Romancing the Shadow

I went through a phase of that when I was teen and never really recovered, but this book is different. I don't know if the term depth psychology applies, but it certainly brings the concept to mind. The author works in Jungian concepts of archetype and shadow and seems to assume familiarity with them. Like many books it has a number of examples, but I found them more detailed and better related to one another. By reading this book one spends some time with the concept that a relationship, with oneself, or a significant other, is continuously evolving and never fixed, but that it can be stable. Zweig gives us the idea of a the third person in a relationship who can be a threatening other or the unity created by the couple, but usually both. This combines with the artistic, rather than scientific, analysis of the Shadow, to create a useful tool which encourages the reader to pinpoint what it is they really want from a relationship, as opposed to what they think they want. It's very easy to be confused on that subject, especially in our society where there's no such thing as an emotional education. You have to do your own work though.

The authors of this book have done a wonderful job of demonstrating and guiding one on how to go about working with our shadow side, that side of us that we don't like, don't want to confront because we have been told that it's bad. They have made a distinction in that the idea is not to "integrate" the shadow as we're used to hearing, but to romance these things--feelings, characters--in the shadow, to give them their place. They have given many exercises to do and demonstrations on how to use the ideas. They have done a particularly good job of using sophisticated, scholarly ideas, while describing them in language that anyone interested in soul work can understand. I highly recommend this book to anyone seeking to understand themselves and their own actions, sometimes self-defeating actions, more fully.

Zwieg and Wolf have given us a book to savor over and over. It begs to be read slowly, but I had to devour it the first time - and then reread it with pencil and journal in hand. They offer many insights into the Shadow: individual, family, relationship, cultural. The authors present the material with clarity and understanding in a non-judgmental way. They don't ask you to feel shame or guilt, simply to observe your own Shadow and seek to understand. I have had so many "aha's" while reading the book that surely I am now beginning to recognize the shadow when I see it in myself (and others). I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to see their own actions more clearly in an often confusing inner world context.

This is a classic work that begs to be savoured slowly chapter by chapter and to be read and reread as one opens to its depth. The author's expertise on the shadow is just the run-way to take off on a flight through Jung, modern application of the shadow, case examples and self-help methods. Don't read this book for light reading or if you want a strictly classic version of Jung. It's insightful, profound and current. The method for doing your own shadow process at the back of the book is original and gives startling insight into oneself. Great for dealing with compulsive habits and relationship problems.