"The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can
become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort.
To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present
and real".
Swiss psychologist Carl Jung is one of the most important figures from the 20th century
in the fields of psychology and philosophy, and in today's video we look at one of the
most important ideas to have come from him, the idea of the shadow.
The shadow is an aspect of us all that is often repressed by many as they don't want
to identify with that element of who they are, but rather serves a utility in our lives
and is important to identify and integrate into ourselves and our state of being, helping
us be more complete individuals.
To help understand this idea I will be referring to talks Jordan Peterson has done on the subject
as I feel he's explained it quite well, and in a way that's easy to understand.
So, without wasting any further time, let's start by asking ourselves...
What Is The Shadow?
The shadow comes from our unconscious, or is even sometimes identified as the unconscious,
and is often deemed to be a dark and elusive side of ourselves, hence Jung calling it the
shadow.
For many, the ego either doesn't acknowledge the shadow or represses it, which is a causation
of chaos in the lives of many people according to Jung.
You see, just as people are able to do acts of good in their lives, whether it be through
acts of kindness or support, people are equally capable to have the proclivity to do acts
of evil.
Often, when we act out either, it comes from the unconscious as a natural, even instinctive,
response.
And this explains the importance of identifying with the shadow, because whether we want to
or not, it will manifest itself in some form or another in our lives.
So...
Why Is Integrating The Shadow Important?
We've already touched on this previously in identifying that the shadow will manifest
in our lives whether we want it to or not, and fundamentally, this is why it's important
to consciously integrate it into our lives, so that we have control over how we act in
relation to others.
For example, as a father I can relate to this in terms of being a parent.
No matter how much you love someone, they will do things that will negatively affect
you at times, and for children this is common as they haven't matured as individuals and
are therefore often still developing their understanding of civility and the responsibility
of their actions.
Parents who struggle with integrating the shadow often allow the dark side of themselves
to take a hold of their reactions to their child's misdemeanors, which is where we sometimes
see acts of abuse taking place, resulting in feelings of regret.
On the other hand, a parent who has acknowledged and integrated their shadow is much more likely
and capable of reacting in a way that serves a purpose, such as disciplining the child
in a way that teaches them right from wrong, whilst reducing the risk of causing them significant
harm.
Again, it goes back to the point raised earlier, we're all capable of acts of evil, so it's
important to have it in check and controlled, than letting it manifest itself in ways that's
ultimately destructive.
Lord Of The Flies
One of my favourite books that delves into the concept of the shadow is William Golding's
Lord of the Flies.
In the book, a group of children are stranded on an island after a plane crash and we see
them devolve from civilisation to becoming very much primal over the course of the story,
performing horrendous acts of violence in the process.
In the case of the characters in the story, especially those with a more aggressive nature,
they effectively repress the shadow by identifying the acts of evil being the acts of a beast
rather than coming from them, but this results in it manifesting itself in a way which is
far worse than had they been capable of confronting it and using it in a way they knew was productive
and of value.
Simon, one of the key characters in the story, is one who confronts the beast, and identifies
it as something that's within each of the boys and not a separate entity.
It's hard to accept and is one of the most critical junctures of the story, as with this
revelation he symbolises hope for the group, which ultimately ends in his death and events
that are comparable to hell.
You see had the boys been capable of integrating the shadow, they had a significantly better
chance of maintaining a level of civility that would have led to a far more productive
way of living on the island.
However, they instead repressed this side of themselves, and the one who did confront
it, Simon, did so in a moment that was of great internal conflict and turmoil.
This is important to understand, as Jung acknowledges the difficulty in confronting the shadow and
the process of integrating it into the conscious.
The reason is it's hard to control and morally conflictive and therefore hard to adapt to
purposeful needs, but doing so is a necessity.
Jordan Peterson on Becoming a Monster
Jordan Peterson explains the reasons for integrating the shadow extremely well, as he often talks
about the idea of becoming a monster.
I've previously done a video on this idea when talking about DC's Batman, so it's worth
a watch if you want to delve deeper.
In principle, when Jordan Peterson speaks of becoming the monster, what he says is that
whether we want to or not, we always become a monster in life as part of our maturity.
As you take on more responsibility, sometimes it means to accept that you will have to let
elements of the shadow integrate with your conscious behaviour to serve utility in a
given circumstance.
One such example is when I spoke about acting as a parent and disciplining a child, in this
case utilising the shadow to discipline the child in a way that's useful for their growth,
rather than being abusive.
Another example Jordan Peterson gives is when you have to deal with the passing of a loved
one, say a parent.
In this circumstance, you will be a monster either way, because you either mourn and let
that control your behaviour, resulting in a lack of action in a time where your maturity
is needed, or you accept the death, and push through to take the action required of you
in that moment.
In both scenarios you become the monster, because on the one hand you're incapable of
being of value in a time of need and instead risk becoming a burden, whereas in the other
you're able to act and even if in mourning, people can question how you're able to do
so having lost someone who raised you from birth.
By integrating the shadow and thus taking on the role of a monster, it's always better
to be the second option, as while taking action can be construed as a heartless act, albeit
most people do understand in such circumstances, staying strong and capable in such a situation
serves a utility, not just in organising the necessary processions that come with death,
but also being capable of supporting those around you to be able to move on in a healthy
way.
Using The Shadow
Having discussed the shadow and the purpose of integrating it into our lives, we've come
to realise the importance of doing so, as if we don't, we can't predict how it will
manifest itself in our lives.
Carl Jung was particularly interested in World War 2 when conceptualising the idea of the
shadow, and spent time trying to understand the behaviours of the nazi soldiers.
What's often quite disconcerting to people is that many soldiers were very much normal
people, who lived normal lives.
And this is what's important to understand about using the shadow, that we're all capable
of acts of great evil within us and if left unchecked, we could see it manifest itself
in ways that might seem unimaginable today.
With this in mind, I want to clarify it's not that the shadow is necessarily just evil
within us, but I'll let the words of Jung explain this better than I could hope to do...
"If it has been believed hitherto that the human shadow was the source of all evil, it
can now be ascertained on closer investigation that the unconscious man, that is, his shadow,
does not consist only of morally reprehensible tendencies, but also displays a number of
good qualities, such as normal instincts, appropriate reactions, realistic insights,
creative impulses, etc."
Were you aware of the concept of the shadow from Carl Jung?
Let me know in the comments section below.
If it's of interest I'm also keen to explore further into this subject, such as going deeper
into ideas of projection.
Please Like, Share and Subscribe as we help you live life on your terms.
Don't forget to hit the bell icon to ensure YouTube notifies you of the latest uploads.
Thanks for watching