By exploring archetypes it is possible to delve into our psyche and understand ourselves better. Exploring archetypes can be a helpful way of finding out why you do the things you do and what your key wants and needs are. I have used it myself and with people that I work with, with powerful and poignant results.
Carl Gustav Jung said that archetypes are universal symbols or patterns that exist in the collective unconscious of humanity. He said that there are twelve archetypes:
The Innocent: Seeks safety and happiness above all else.
The Orphan: A representation of the universal search for a place in the world and often from humble beginnings.
The Hero: Aims to prove worth through courageous acts and aspires to use mastery to improve the world.
The Caregiver: Their main aim is to help and protect others this may be to their own detriment.
The Explorer: Their goal is to explore the world and their place in it. For this they must be authentic.
The Rebel: Seeks radical change and disruption of the status quo. They are willing to destroy what isn't working.
The Lover: Seeks intimacy and experiences that involve love, relationships, and personal satisfaction.
The Creator: Aims to create something of enduring value and give form to a vision. They most value authenticity and imagination.
The Jester: Enjoyment is very important to them, and they use humour to attempt to make others happy.
The Sage: Seeks truth and understanding, and values wisdom and intelligence.
The Magician: Aims to make dreams come true and transform reality. They value knowledge and the fundamental laws of how things work.
The Ruler: Seeks control and wants to create a prosperous, successful family or community.
There have been many adaptations of the theory of archetypes. For example, some writers including Margaret Hartwell and Joshua Chen have extended the theory so that there are five archetype families with five archetypes in each family. For instance, the Innocent Family has Innocent, Child, Dreamer, Idealist and Muse archetypes within it.
You don’t need to know the theory around archetypes to recognise one. Archetypes are around us all the time. The most obvious example of this is in books, TV, and film. Forrest Gump, Dorothy Gale, and Bambi are classic examples of the Innocent archetype. We can look at real people too. For instance, Amelia Earhart and Marco Polo exemplify the Explorer archetype.
How can exploring archetypes help me to know myself and how is this useful?
Exploring archetypes can help us to recognise the different personalities within us. You’ve probably noticed that you have more than one personality. Usually, we have a dominant personality but occasionally you might find yourself questioning why you made a certain decision or behaved in a certain way. Perhaps you wonder why on earth you played that trick on your friend or why you volunteered to do the presentation at work. It could have been that a more rebellious, playful, or adventurous part of you was triggered, causing you to act in a way that is unusual for you. The unusual behaviour could turn out to be unhelpful, or in some in instances it may bring you to the edge of your comfort zone, leading to greater freedom or a realisation that you are more capable than you previously thought. Either way, being able to acknowledge ‘that was my innocent side’ or ‘that was my inner rebel’ can be helpful. You can decide to reel that part of yourself in or let them take the limelight more often from now on!
Knowing your dominant archetype can even help you make important life decisions and help you fix things when you feel things aren’t going well. For example, you may realise that you are a ‘Detective’ (in the Sage family of archetypes) if you are passionate about using your powers of obsession to reach the truth. This can be very useful obsession sometimes. However, you may constantly be scrutinising your friends or thinking there is injustice when there is none, which may be tiresome! When you recognise this, you may decide to be more discerning about when you use your detective powers.
Another way that identifying your dominant archetype can be helpful is if things aren’t going well or you feel stuck in a rut. You could ask yourself if you are in alignment with your dominant archetype. If you are an Explorer and haven’t travelled for a long time or if you have been acting unauthentically, this might explain where the problem lies.
How can I get to know myself better using archetypes?
· I use Archetype cards by Caroline Myss (wellness and mysticism writer) although there are other Archetype cards available. Leaf through the cards and see what resonates with you. There is a brief description on the cards about the archetype and there is a booklet with more information on each of the cards.
· Think about the characters in film, TV, and books who you resonate with. For example, if you resonate with Yoda from Star Wars, Mr Spock from Star Trek, or Professor Dumbledore from Harry Potter perhaps your dominant archetype is the Sage. Or maybe if you identify more with people like Miranda Priestley from The Devil Wears Prada, Aragorn from Lord of the Rings, and Mufasa from The Lion King you are more of a Ruler.
· Look around your house or apartment at the things you own. Firstly, identify the things that mean most to you and then ask yourself, what part of me do these objects belong too. If you reflect that you have lots of objects or that have a magical feel to them, perhaps you might have a strong Magician streak. Or if a lot of your possessions are related to knowledge and understanding, this might reflect the Sage in you.
· Once you have an idea of the archetypes that might be prevalent for you, you could journal about them. You could ask yourself the following questions: What signs have led you to decide on your dominant archetype(s)? What are the light and dark aspects associated with your dominant archetype(s)? What can your dominant archetype tell you about how you want to live your life? Now that you understand your dominant archetype(s) more what would you like to bear in mind when connecting with others?
Exploring archetypes can help with relationships
Perhaps there is a person in your life such as a work colleague or relative who you find it difficult to get on with. It could be worth trying to work out the archetype they embody and then you could work out a way to deal with that person more effectively. For instance, perhaps you work with a Rebel who is always trying to change things or cause disruption. Understanding that they are like that due to their wiring and conditioning can be helpful (they may genuinely believe they are acting for the greater good by doing what they do). Also, when we understand that our own archetype brings with it blind spots, we can be more empathic about the blind spots in others. You may even feel able to have a conversation with them about when rebellion is helpful and when it isn’t. Similarly, if you have a manager who is a Detective, constantly asking questions and trying to find the problem, you can rest in the knowledge that it is nothing personal, they are always like that. You could even pre-empt any annoying questions by answering them before they get the chance to come to you! Have a think about the people you know and what their dominant archetype might be and see what it brings up for you. Again, you could think about the well-known personalities and characters they remind you of in literature and film to help.
Exploration of other archetypes
If you are interested in the idea of archetypes, you don’t need to stop at the Jungian ones. There are many other lists of archetypes out there including the 7 female archetypes imagined by Jungian, Jean Shinoda Bolen, in her book Goddesses in Everywoman (1984) and the Greek Gods of Olympus are also considered to be archetypes as are Tarot cards and signs of the Zodiac. I’ve already mentioned the Caroline Myss Archetype cards. These feature 80 archetypes, many of which overlap with Jungian archetypes.
For anyone who is not familiar, Clarissa Pinkola Estes formed the idea of the Wild Woman Archetype in her book Women Who Run with the Wolves. If you are not familiar with her writing, you are in for a treat.
‘When women reassert their relationship with the wildish nature, they are gifted with a permanent and internal watcher, a knower, a visionary, an oracle, an inspiratrice, an intuitive, a maker, a creator, an inventor, and a listener.’
Clarissa Pinkola Estes – Women who Run with the Wolves
Archetypes, creativity, and healing
I’ve already talked about the use of archetypes in films and books with some famous examples. They are amazing creative fodder, so why not let your creativity run wild and:
· Create a complex archetypal character in a story.
· Create your own versions of archetypes in paint or clay (they might represent people you know).
· Using any arts media you like; you could create versions of the archetypes you believe are within you.
Doing these things might help you to understand yourself and other people better which could even lead to healing and better communication in relationships.
Archetypes don’t have to be people. They can also be symbols that have well known and long held meanings and could be objects, animals, or phenomena. These could include:
Lighthouse: signifying safety and protection
Rainbow: signifying joy, positivity, and hope
Robin: spirit guide
Pot of gold: signifying luck or ambition
Unicorn: magical, spiritual, and pure
Crow: signifying creativity and cleverness
If you wanted to, you could weave these and similar symbols into your creative endeavours. For many people these symbols can also be a source of comfort, inspiration or hope in their lives.
Final words on archetypes (spoiler: they aren’t rigid)
I wouldn’t want anyone to think that archetypes are rigid: that we were born this way and we will be this way forever. There are some aspects of our personality (or personalities!) that may have been handed down through the generations. However, our personality is also impacted by the world around us from what happened to us in childhood to what happened to us yesterday. We are constantly changing and evolving. It could be you feel that more than one archetype is dominant within you and certainly (as already mentioned) there will be many others lurking which can be triggered at any point. It’s also worth saying that our dominant archetype might change over time. If you go through a time of transition or healing, for example, you might shift from being an Innocent or Orphan to an Explorer or Magician. I find using these types of archetypes to understand myself and others better (rather than a Myers-Brings style structured personality test) is more useful and certainly more fun.
Now, I’ll leave you with the words Caroline Myss:
‘If you know your archetypes - and not just yours, if you know how to perceive the world in archetypes, through archetypes - everything changes. Everything. Because you have two things: you can see through one eye which is impersonal, and through the other, which is personal. That's the way the game is written down here.’
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