The Origins and History of Consciousness (Princeton Classics)

Neuman's ideas and book need considerable study, I think, not only to understand them but to assess them. I had considerable training in archetypal theory in literature, so I hesitated reading Neuman's book. However, Neuman's ideas came alive for me as I worked through the book. Indeed, there were days when I could not get his notions out of my head. I began to see their application everywhere throughout contemporary life. The book added dimensions to my awareness. It has also provided useful explanations to Buddhist teachings in Zen, Mahamudra, and Dzogchen for me.I found the writing difficult to read, sometimes. The writing repeats itself, but in different ways. What one reads in later chapters was often written in an earlier chapter. To be fair, though, that redundancy was helpful as there were some ideas / concepts that I still struggle with definitively--especially when I have to explain them to someone else outside of this field of study.Last, I disagree with reviews who claim that Neuman's book and ideas are dated or no longer applicable. That would be like claiming that the love of a mother for its child is dated and no longer applicable. I think such criticisms are unambiguous signs of a overly emphasized mental-rational point of view. If Neuman's ideas and book say anything, they work to show how much of the experience of life cannot be understood conceptually or rationally.

A great book, it gives you a comprehensive and understandable rundown of the psychological archetypes and their significance in mythology. Take your time with the book, there's a lot of ground to cover if you're unfamiliar with Jungian psychology. It will probably be a lot to take in though it is an undoubtedly fun ride. Also for whatever it's worth, if you're a fan of Jordan Peterson this book would be invaluable to you if you want to understand what he's actually saying when he talks of the archetypal stories and their significance. Though as always, don't let your excitement over these concepts stop you from being mindful that there's always another perspective.

A difficult read, every paragraph is densely charged with information. That being said, it is a magnificent book, worth the read if you are into Jungian Psychology. Neumann manages to organize and systemise the rather chaotic teachings of Carl Jung, who was a genius, and very difficult to comprehend for his mind did not work in the manner of an ordinary man. Neumann's work is the best shot we mortals will get to understanding the genius of Carl Jung.

This book was recommended by Camile Paglia and Jordan Peterson - and they were right about it. A deep dive into depth psychology!! Not for the faint of heart, but very rewarding for those with the persistence and intellectual engagement to stick with it. A classic text that will never be outdated.

This books will have loss you, find you, and then toss you in the abyss of consciousness, (oh, the labrynth of consciouness). Indeed, not for faint hearted. The only drawback is that the books is dense. "I found myself" having to adjust my present consciousness, in a literal way, to percieve exactly what Neumann was attempting to explain.

This book changed the way I think about mythology, history, philosophy and psychology. All the more fascinating, since the subject matter lies at the intersection of so many related topics, it led me to tie together what were previously separate or fragmented areas of thought. A reader would, however, need to be much better read than I in order to understand everything in the book. Much of it is over my head, but it's a great book nonetheless.

I'm slugging through this tome, but it seems to me to be the middle of a conversation. Knowing what should come first would make understanding the premise the author is making easier to grasp. Also, he makes many statements about how things are with little supporting evidence other than somebody else said something about that topic. I guess very much of "science" is that way.

I loved this treatment of the psyche and I made tremendous progress in understanding myself. It is quite dense for a non analyst however it helped me and aided my development.

Aliás como tudo que Erich Neumann escreveu

A very insightful and interesting book that I took a very long time to read. I like both parts of it, which are analysis of the mythologies and analysis of the psyche. It's a book that will probably change your view on yourself, your personal history and your relation to the society you belong to. However if you are not familiar with Jung's theory or psychoanalyses at all I recommend you to familiarize yourself with them because during the second half of the book you are likely to encounter them quite often.

The book’s cover was damaged: it had a piece or cardboard sticked to it, almost impossible to remove. And once removed, the cover is all sticky and nasty. On top of that, the book took around 3 weeks to arrive, and it didn’t mention anything about it at the moment of buying. Really disappointed!!

Exactly as expected.

Erich Neumann must count as one of Jung's most influential students. Jung himself (who also contributes a forward to the book) is on record in saying Neumann was taking ideas about archetypes further than he had been able. Neumann himself has influenced the likes of Camille Paglia and Jordan Peterson who both have produced interesting essays and talks about him available on the web, and regard this as one of the greatest works of Jungian psychology.Nuemann's thesis is a mixture of anthropology, mythology as well as psychology observed sometimes, he states, with his patients as a psychotherapist. He shows how certain creation myths reflect how a child becomes conscious of itself while separating from the mother in particular. After the separation there are problems for both and others. Readers of psycho-analytic literature may be familiar with this through say the work of Klein and Winnicott, which has parallels with Jung's idea of the mother archetype. Through all this, Neumann plots a path of human consciousness as emerged from the Great Mother who was worshipped in ancient times. Neumann has written more about the Great Mother elsewhere. He suggests changes in human consciousness for the future paralleling the processes described here.For some this might be heady material, especially as it is spread over just under 500 pages. That said, I found myself able to read this over only a couple of days on a holiday. I found it insightful, not least as a psychotherapist who sometimes has to help people navigate their own mother problems be they real or symbolic. Neumann's suggestion of a possible new leap in human consciousness, has in some ways been better argued by Jean Gebser in "The Ever-Present Origin." But what he presents here is visceral and immediate, so the books deserve both to be read.Neumann is himself a lucid read. His thesis worth reading. This is justifiably seen as a classic, and is worth reading for psychological insight alone