The Portable Jung (Portable Library)

Edited by Joseph Campbell, this 650 page book does a phenomenal job of encapsulating the essence of Dr. Carl Gustav Jung's psychological concepts. The Introduction gives us an overview of Dr. Jung's life and published books which is no small task. The book starts out by describing the functions of the psyche and how it develops from childhood and throughout the lifespan. The role of instinct and the unconcsious are described next. The role of archetypes and the collective unconcsious is given a thorough review. The psychological types: of extraversion and introversion are connected with the feeling, thinking, sensing, and intuitive functions as theorized by Jung. Dream symbolism and alchemy are analyzed in depth. The roles of transcendence, the anima, animus, shadow and synchronicity are examined in the development of the psyche, as man creates meaning in life. This is one of the best introductions to Jungian psychology on the market. It provides a great sampling of his works and simplifies the concepts for the average reader. Most readers will delve further into the vast universe of Jungian psychology immediately after reading just this one book. Erika Borsos (erikab93)

I've put off reading up on anything more "core" Jungian than Man and His Symbols and Memories, Dreams, Reflections, because I believed the story that he was difficult to follow. The book is exciting! Jung's insight and sense of humor shine through as does his self-consciousness about being part of a science still in it's infancy. I've also read VonFranz's intro to symbolism in Alchemy, and I'm sure other things Jung has written attain that density, or greater(/worse). I've no idea how much is owed to the editing of Campbell, but Jung is so lucid in this book that much of what he describes seems almost like (experienced) common sense by the time he's done.

For those interested in getting their feet a little wet in Jung, this book is perfect. His collected works are well represented here and the reader, if interested, will find several pathways marked here that can be taken further. The plus of this book is Joseph Campbell's introduction. He is always on the mark.