IAJS 2024 Online Conference Panel: Robert Langan
January 25, 2026 at 09:23PM
Robert Langan
“C.G. Jung, the Unlikely Spinozist: How Jung’s Curious Reading of Spinoza Betrays the Psychiatrist’s Struggle with Inner and Outer”

This paper examines the contradictory way in which Swiss psychiatrist C.G. Jung engages with the work of 17th-century Dutch philosopher Baruch Spinoza. Although Spinoza is mentioned by name only seven times in Jung’s Collected Works, there is a strong affinity between their core ideas, particularly concerning the transcendental immanence of Spinoza’s God and the monism that underlies Jung’s writings. Their theories of knowledge and affectivity further reinforce this connection. Despite these affinities, Jung frequently denounces Spinoza, often in confused and paradoxical ways. For instance, in The Phenomenology of the Spirit in Fairy Tales (1948), Jung criticizes Spinoza’s treatment of the concept of ‘spirit,’ only to arrive at a conception of the Divine that closely mirrors Spinoza’s own. This presentation explores the reasons behind Jung’s perplexing relationship with Spinoza, ranging from theoretical disagreements to possible prejudice. The most plausible conclusion is that Spinoza’s ideas force Jung to confront the outer world in ways that challenge his deep-seated preference for the inner world, which his psychology prioritizes. Ironically, to resolve
this dilemma, Jung must grudgingly adopt a Spinozist perspective, surrendering to the philosopher’s worldview despite his initial resistance.

Bio: Robert Langan is a writer based in southern New Jersey. He holds a doctorate in Psychoanalytic Studies from the University of Essex. His research interests include Jung and Spinoza, speculative metaphysics, and typology.
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