Personal Unconscious vs Collective Unconscious
When discussing personal unconscious and collective unconscious, there is a distinct difference between the two. It is important to first understand the concept of the unconscious, for which Carl Jung is a significant figure in psychology. Inspired by Sigmund Freud, Jung was highly interested in studying the unconscious and believed the psyche consisted of three main components: the ego, personal unconscious, and collective unconscious. The personal unconscious contains suppressed conscious experiences, while the collective unconscious contains shared experiences with other humans from our pasts. These two types of unconsciousness can be seen as different layers of the unconscious.
What is Personal Unconscious?
Personal unconscious consists of experiences that have been repressed from an individual’s consciousness. These can include a variety of memories and emotions that the individual has rejected or repressed and usually cannot be consciously recalled. Memories of bitterness, hatred, embarrassing moments, pain, and forbidden urges can all be repressed in an individual’s personal unconscious. Jung believed that these could have a significant impact on the individual.
For instance, consider a person who experienced trauma in their childhood. Even after many years, the person may have completely recovered, and their emotional torment and painful memories of the experience may have faded. This is because the individual has repressed these emotions and memories. However, this repression does not mean they are lost; rather, these emotions are stored in the personal unconscious. Although the person is unable to recall them, they can manifest in the form of dreams and unusual reactions to daily events. This emphasizes that the personal unconscious is unique to the individual and based on their life experiences.
What is Collective Unconscious?
Collective unconscious differs from personal unconscious as it is not individualistic but applies to the entire human species. It can be understood as an inheritance for all humans from past human memories, often defined as the “whole spiritual heritage of mankind’s evolution born anew in the brain structure of every individual.”
The collective unconscious transcends cultural barriers and presents a commonality for all humans, passed on through heredity. It includes universal human experiences such as love, hatred, fear, danger, and pain. Jung also discussed a concept called “archetypes” in reference to the collective unconscious, believing that archetypes such as the persona, anima/animus, and the shadow were all products of the collective experience of humankind. This highlights the difference between personal and collective unconscious.
Key Takeaways
- Personal unconscious consists of repressed memories and emotions unique to an individual’s life experiences.
- Collective unconscious is an inheritance for all humans from past human memories, transcending cultural barriers and applying to the entire human species.
- Collective unconscious is considered a deeper layer than personal unconscious and can be accessed through various psychological techniques.
