Eli5: what do Carl Jung’s archetypes means?
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Imagine you are playing with toys, and you have a superhero toy, a princess toy, and a wise old wizard toy. These toys represent different types of characters or archetypes. The superhero might represent bravery and strength, the princess might represent beauty and kindness, and the wise old wizard might represent wisdom and guidance.
irl, people also have different qualities and roles they play. jung believed that these archetypes are part of our human nature and can show up in our thoughts, dreams, and the stories we tell. They can help us understand ourselves and the world around us.
Archetypes can include things like the hero, the caregiver, the rebel, the wise mentor, etc. They are like patterns or ideas that we can recognize in different people and situations.
An archetype is basically a mental blueprint of sorts that’s baked into everyone’s collective subconscious, much like everyone’s baked in desire for a partner or for meaning and purpose. Call it instinct or innate behavioral tendencies.
In other words its a character/pattern of behavior that seems to transcend both time and culture and is relatable to everyone on earth inherently without any cultural priming.
For example almost every movie follows the exact same plot structure: The status quo, followed by the call to action, the rise, the fall, the sacrifice, then the phoenix/rebirth of the character followed by victory having become stronger. That structure in itself is extremely archetypal and resonates with all humans on a deep level that goes beyond culture; its the value of persistence and strength in the face of hardship that is ingrained in all of us that moves us when we watch these films. You cant improve without sacrifice, and you cant improve without being called into action, away from comfort and into the unknown.
There are individual characters too in most movies that are chosen for their archetypal nature, which helps audiences connect with them more. The hero, the fool, the wise, the trickster, the anti-hero, the mentor, the scapegoat etc.
Pick any character in any movie and they will most likely slot into one of these archetypal categories.
Yoda, Prof X, Rafiki = Mentor
Buggs bunny, Jerry (tom and jerry), Road Runner = Trickster
Drax, Peter Griffin, Homer = The Fool
Meg Griffin, Simba, = The Scapegoat
Rapunzel, sleeping beauty = The Maiden
Theres way more archetypes than that, but you get the idea.
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