Topics: Archetypes, Birth/Death & the Life Cycle, Complexes, Dreams, Gender & Sexuality, Ritual & Initiation, Family & Intimate Relationships, Shadow , Shame, Transformation, Trauma
To the Gods and Monsters in Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein
In these times of biological and social unrest, where it is easy to project onto the other that which we reject in ourselves, no literary work is more relevant. We will explore Shelley’s original story of Frankenstein which places us in the middle of a psychological, social, and spiritual problem that is the problem of today. Frankenstein’s creature was never loved, never initiated into the world, and he slipped back into the sea as if into the collective unconscious where he resides now. Victor Frankenstein dies never allowing himself to be changed by his creation. We will contrast the creature and his creator and this dilemma with the 20th century iterations of the story through film. In a way, the films served to try to remedy the problem the original story spawned. In some films, the creature is demonized and more recently idealized. How does this collapse of the basic tension of the original story reflect the Spirit of the Times we now live in? Our seminar will seek to restore the original tension of Shelley’s story, understand its archetypal underpinnings and, through engaging with the Spirit of the Depths, gain a new perspective on our contemporary struggles.