The notion of unconscious psychic field in Carl Gustav Jung: The self and its prefiguration in the Christ archetype - Notes in Edith Stein

Abstract

This study investigated the notion of the unconscious psychic field and its regulatory
center of psychic activities-the self-in the writings of Carl Gustav Jung. The present study was
delimited to the Christian archetype, considered the phenomenon of religious diversity that permeates
Western culture. The theoretical-methodological approach involved qualitative bibliographic research,
which combined the writings of Carl G. Jung with the work of Edith Stein. In Western culture, the
self-archetype is prefigured in the image of Christ. In the Christ archetype, Carl G. Jung identified the
symbolic manifestation of the central archetype of the human and collective psyche: the projected Self
of contemporaneity. In clinical interventions, Carl G. Jung sought to make the process of psychic
development conscious, reaching the essence of the act of existing: the “becoming” of the individual.
In the psyche, this archetype presents itself in modes of light and shadow. In turn, the integration of its
negative aspects constitutes part of personality development. In this study, we highlight: [i] the
meaning of the central archetype; [ii] its psychic role prefigured in Christ; [iii] its function in
personality development. In the 21st century, it is understood that research concerning the
manifestation of the self is essential for the development of psychic personality.