Feist−Feist: Theories of
Personality, Seventh
EditionII. Psychodynamic
Theories- Jung: Analytical
Psychology
© The McGraw−Hill^117
Companies, 2009whose only weakness was the chemical element kryptonite. An immortal person
with no weakness cannot be a hero.
The image of the hero touches an archetype within us, as demonstrated by our
fascination with the heroes of movies, novels, plays, and television programs. When
the hero conquers the villain, he or she frees us from feelings of impotence and mis-
ery; at the same time, serving as our model for the ideal personality (Jung,
1934/1954a).
The origin of the hero motif goes back to earliest human history—to the dawn
of consciousness. In conquering the villain, the hero is symbolically overcoming the
darkness of prehuman unconsciousness. The achievement of consciousness was one
of our ancestors’ greatest accomplishments, and the image of the archetypal con-
quering hero represents victory over the forces of darkness (Jung, 1951/1959b).
Self
Jung believed that each person possesses an inherited tendency to move toward
growth, perfection, and completion, and he called this innate disposition the self.
The most comprehensive of all archetypes, the self is the archetype of archetypes
because it pulls together the other archetypes and unites them in the process of self-
realization.Like the other archetypes, it possesses conscious and personal uncon-
scious components, but it is mostly formed by collective unconscious images.
Chapter 4 Jung: Analytical Psychology 111The hero archetype has a tragic flaw. With Superman, the fatal weakness was kryptonite.