Very nice - will not be disappointed

Well- to keep it short and sweet - great narration, great introduction on Jung ideas and research (and comparison to his eventual nemesis Freud). Any layperson interested in psychoanalysis will not be disappointed by this audiobook. It will probably spark an interest in buying further books on Jung and or Freud.

38 people found this helpful

An excellent overview of Jung

I have a friend who is a Jungian scholar who is writing a book on some aspect of Jung. When I saw this short book I jumped at it, thinking I could learn a bit about Jung so I would not feel so stupid when we get together. The only thing I knew about Jung was what I had read back in 1971 when I read Irving Stone’s “The Passions of the Mind” about the life of Sigmund Freud. Stone is the master of the biographical novel. The book on Freud was fascinating. The author of this book is Dr. Anthony Stevens a British psychiatrist and Jungian analyst. He has co-author several books on evolutionary psychiatry. Dr. Stevens’ book is a well written, comprehensive over view of Jung’s ideas and biography. He explains Jung’s relationship with Freud and refutes the anti-Semitism charges that floated around since before World War Two. It is obvious that Dr. Stevens did a great deal of research and has the magnificence ability to summarize a complex person and his ideas and system of psychology into understandable and interesting book for a lay person. Tim Pigott-Smith did a great job narrating the book.

13 people found this helpful

Jung: Normal is the Ideal Aim of the Unsuccessful

First, I love this book because it's short. I have a million other topics I need to study, but I've always been fascinated by Jung. I should confess that my total understanding of psychology is a college 101 class, so this is really not my world. However, I was offended by the focus on the aberrant and the lack of focus on the health of ordinary people. I was also repulsed by the focus on Freud and his obsession with sex. While sex is clearly a part of life, my life doesn't evolve around it. The course briefly mentioned this enigmatic, foreign figure who seemed to take people more holistically. This book gave me a nice relationship with Jung -- much more than an introduction. I was surprised at the depth and range of a book so short.
This book is also brings in myth and gossip, rounding out the truly legendary elements of Jung's life. It introduced me to amazing elements of his life, like his own struggles with sanity and his believe that babbling maniacs should be listened to, an idea, which, while counter intuitive, I found compelling. I was also compelled by his idea that by living the experience of failed mental health, he was able to gain a greater insight. He considered his mental failing a great contribution to his research. Amazing!
I learned about Jung's childhood, his relationship with Freud, his research, his failed mental health and recovery and his return to academia. I learned about concepts like his disagreements with Freud on the meaning of dreams and his ideas about archetypes. The audiobook is only something like 3 hours long. In less than a week of daily commutes, I was able to get a pretty good basic understanding of Jung.
The audiobook's narration is smooth and I love the narrator's accent. Great read.

10 people found this helpful

Outstanding

An excellent primer on Jung. Well read in an engaging, informative and lively style which matched the outstanding writing. You will learn much about Juung, Gnosticism, and Depth Psychology from this. I felt enriched for the whole experience. WELL WORTH THE PRICE! A TREASURE.

7 people found this helpful

Utterly fascinating

I had some familiarity with Jungian concepts going into this work, but zero knowledge of his life. What a fascinating biography! I couldn't put this down, and after finishing it craved to know more of Jung's relationship with Freud, and of Jung's life after their rift. Very entertaining, and Anthony Stevens' narration is fanTAStic!

6 people found this helpful

Very Short Introductions is the best collection

Very Short Introductions is the best collection - I loved this one - We need more, please.

5 people found this helpful

Concise

I've always wanted to have at least a basic understanding of Jung's main theories, and I feel like this book did that for me. So much of his work is in contrast to Freud, and this book gives due attention to their relationship and how Jung broke from Freud to develop his own theories, which were totally unacceptable to Freud.

The chapter that discusses the charges of racism, especially anti-semitism, against Jung wasn't sufficiently developed, in my opinion. It defends Jung against those charges, but it doesn't really go into the nature or basis of the charges themselves. I understood why the author thought Jung wasn't a racist, but I wasn't clear at all on why some of his detractors thought he was.

A good place to start in understanding Jung. Short and, with the exception noted above, very informative.

I love this series!

2 people found this helpful

Very good introduction

Covered lots of concepts. Performance was excellent. I enjoyed it very much and would listen to more by the narrator.

2 people found this helpful

Fabulous overview

What did you love best about Jung?

This book succeeds in explaining Jung's life and Jungian concepts in a concise but very thorough and intelligent manner. If you're interested in Jung I can't imagine a better way to learn. As with any well-written book about an interesting subject, it's entertaining as well. Very high recommendation.

1 person found this helpful

"JUNG WILL AWAKEN & OPEN YOUR MIND!!!!"

Would you consider the audio edition of Jung to be better than the print version?

YES!~

What was one of the most memorable moments of Jung?

Jungs extraordinary willingness to do extensive introspection in himself before attempting to help other individuals who are mentally ill. GOD BLESS JUNG!~

What about Tim Pigott-Smith’s performance did you like?

AMAZING!

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

just do it.

Any additional comments?

do yourself a favor and read this book~

1 person found this helpful