Book Review - Owning Your Own Shadow
The shadow of the human psyche cannot be overlooked in a thorough exploration of personal development. According to the classic resource Owning Your Own Shadow: Understanding the Dark Side of the Psyche, “The shadow is that which has not entered adequately into consciousness.” In translation, it represents those parts of us that are not “acceptable to our society” and thus we have deemed “have to be put away” into the subconscious.
Book Review - Iron John
Iron John by Robert Bly is a classic book about men. It has legions of ardent fans, but I reluctantly admit I am not one of the more zealous. Although the book has high points – the classic story of Iron John as put down by the Grimm brothers stands out to me, as well as an exploration of masculine archetypes – it also has what I found to be a great deal of rambling narratives, too many fictional references, and a plethora of poetry that was more distracting than illuminating.
Book Review - King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine
This book is a timeless classic that had a significant impact on deepening my understanding of the masculine. Published in 1990, King, Warrior, Magician, Lover introduces readers to the concept of mature masculine archetypes and their immature shadows. The authors, Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette, focus on the four predominant archetypes indicated in the title, which ideally overlap and enrich one another.