It is well known that Carl Jung was interested above all in the unconscious mind.  It is evident that he said much less about the psyche’s connections with other people and our lives in social context, although he did give us two useful concepts to assist us in the investigation of this relational area of living. 
 
One of these concepts is well known, the ‘persona’ (our social mask) and the other recognised the existence of a ‘cultural unconscious’ (what is culturally assumed but is not necessarily acknowledged or recognised at the cognitive level.)  

This month’s lecture will explore these jungian concepts with some reference to Australian and European social history.  It will throw light on the tension between individuals and their relationship to the Collective, and show how the persona and the cultural unconscious form.  It will discuss/comment upon how these two aspects of our psychic life influence and have determined our social expectations and interactions with each other.

Annette Lowe is a Jungian Analyst who has been in private practice in St Kilda for over 25 years. She is a training analyst with the C G Jung Institute in Zurich and a PACFA accredited supervisor. Annette is a Life Member and a former President of the C. G. Jung Society of Melbourne. She is the editor of “Jung Talks” and “Jung in Effect” publications (copies still available on enquiry), and is a frequent Guest Speaker for the Monthly Lecture Program.