In this course, we will take as our starting point selected writings of Freud and Jung on the hypothesis of the unconscious, in particular, C.G. Jung's hypothesis of the collective unconscious and Aobjective@ psyche. We will then engage in a retrospective analysis of contributions to the development of the concept from philosophers, poets, anthropologists, and psychologists, whose work anticipated, or directly influenced, that of the major 20th-century proponents of the hypothesis (Freud, Jung). In the final section of the course, we will examine recent perspectives on the hypothesis of the unconscious, concluding with a brief selection of contributions from both the sciences and the arts, and from popular culture if time permits.
Required Texts
Course Kit
Dostoevsky, The Double (Penguin)
David Fincher, Fight Club
Course Kit : In-class discussion and student presentations will be based on readings from the Course Kit, available through Scholar House Productions, 100 Harbord Street (just west of Spadina; 416 977 9641; sales@scholar-house.on.ca). Students will be expected to read more widely in the areas of interest on which they focus for their presentation and final paper. It is recommended that any texts you wish to purchase (such as Ellenberger=s The Discovery of the Unconscious, works by Freud and Jung, etc.) be purchased from Caversham Booksellers, 98 Harbord Street (next door to Scholar House Productions).
The Course Kit includes key texts of Freud and Jung. We will use two imaginative works, Dostoevsky's The Double, and David Fincher's film Fight Club, as texts in which to ground our discussions of the hypothesis of the unconscious. The kit also includes short excerpts from the work of a number of thinkers, such as Kant, Wm. James, Wm. Blake, P.B. Shelley, S.T. Coleridge, W. Wordsworth, F. Nietzsche, J.P. Sartre, J. Lacan, R. Searle, P. Ricoeur, W. Pauli, Alfred Einstein, A. Stevens, David J. Chalmers, Francis Crick & Christof Koch, Hester McFarland Solomon, Helen Morgan. We will focus in class on those excerpts that appeal to the majority of class participants; final papers may be written on thinkers included in the kit but not discussed in class. Consideration of relevant imaginative works and cultural artifacts (for example, art, performance, cartoon, film, architecture, ritual, the tattoo) may also form an integral part of our discussion.
Recommended Background Reading
F. Ellenberger, The Discovery of the Unconscious (2 chapters are included in the Course Kit)
Time
Mondays, 4:00-7:00
Evaluation
1 presentation (approx. 20 mins) with notes to be submitted the following class 20%
Short paper (4-5 pages) on either Freud's or Jung's hypothesis of the unconscious 20%
Final paper a comparative critical analysis of two hypotheses of the unconscious or the critical application of up to two hypotheses to The Double and/or Fight Club (15 pages) 45%
Attendance & active participation 15%
Instructor
Dr. Ann Yeoman
