Demystifying the Anima and Animus
Discussing Jung’s Mysterious Concept of the Anima and Animus — The Jungian Psyche #6
Introduction
I have never been so excited and yet so anxious to write an article. Jung’s concept of the Anima and the Animus is on one hand extremely interesting and carries profound implications, yet on the other it has simultaneously been the bane of many modern theories on gender identity. There is much nuance to this conversation, and due to its polarization I find it important to discuss. This write-up will be primarily aimed at articulating this often misunderstood phenomena in Jung’s psychological model in the most direct and factual way possible.
While it is true that Jung was a product of his time, and that the strict binaries of the 50’s are evident in some of his thinking, the concepts of the anima and animus reach much further into the primordial bedrock of the psyche and far beyond our modern conception on what it means to be human.
If you find yourself troubled by the gender binary that Jung presents his work under, I do understand. I ask that you read with an open mind. If anything, there is something there within the psyche that plays the role of anima or animus. I’ve heard it labeled in the plural as animae, or even described as taking the symbol of an animal.
It’s important to note too that men and women have both an Anima and an Animus. Regardless of what you identify as, the primordial masculine and feminine exist as archetypal forces in your unconscious.
Personally, I think it is a mistake to disregard the fundamental binary that our species is built on. At the very least, it is a mistake to disregard the reality of the flesh. While the experience of being human in many ways transcends its biological structure, at the same time, whenever the psyche is split from its body, inflation occurs. The psyche that is not identified with the body and instead holds to its disembodied beliefs of self is enacting the Lucifer complex. This is a state of narcissism.
While it is also true that the experience of the Self is inherently genderless, we can only realize this state of non-duality by first experiencing total duality. To embody the self, we have to work with the body we have. We experience this duality through polarity, and one powerful way polarity shows up in the psyche is through gender.
The word gender comes from the same root as to generate. The principle of gender is to create attraction that brings two things together, producing a new, third thing. This process operates in a very basic way physically, but it is also fair to say that this is happening within the psyche as well. It is this attraction and synthetic production that generates momentum on the individuating path.
When it comes to these archetypes, we must remember that they are very primordial. They have been existing and influencing the psyche for thousands of years, if not more. For the majority of humanity throughout the ages, the dualistic nature has been the norm. To think that just because we are “modern,” means that the residue of thousands of years of this pattern doesn’t matter is rather absurd. It is exactly when we disregard its existence that we open ourselves up to possession by it.
Ultimately, you know your own experience best. Personally, I think that people need to have the experiences they think they need to have. It is not a matter of what is real or not, but what facilitates the most self-realization and ultimately, integration.
Now that we’ve established that, let’s dive into one of the most fascinating aspects of the Jungian Psyche.
**For the sake of brevity I will be writing Anima and Animus together as Anima/us, unless addressing each one individually.**
Defining the Anima and Animus
Following our previous discussions on the parts of the psyche as described by Jung, we can start by discussing what the Anima/us is and is not. The Anima/us is a function of the unconscious. It exists beyond the shadow, stretching into the borderlands between the personal and collective unconscious.
For this reason, Jung used the Latin word for soul to denote this subjective experience. As with any psychic entity outside the ego, the Anima/us take on a life of their own. They are distinctly alien to the psyche. Unlike the shadow however, the Anima/us is even more foreign, as it is not in direct connection with the ego. It is not the product of discarded parts the ego banished to the shadow, but rather something much deeper, numinous, and archetypal.
“If the distinction between persona and shadow is ‘good versus bad’—plus and minus, positive and negative aspects of the ego—the distinction between ego and anima/us is marked by the masculine-feminine polarity” (Stein, pg. 126, 1998).
The Anima and Animus are the Divine Feminine and Divine Masculine respectively. As per Jung’s theory, archetypes are not the product of culture, but rather blueprints preexisting in the psyche that culture molds around. In the same way, the Anima/us are not products of our biology, but rather psychic blueprints that determine the masculine and feminine polarities within our species, on all levels.
To understand this better, let’s discuss morphogenetic fields.
The idea behind morphogenetic fields is that an organism contains the coding for what it will be once fully evolved. How does the acorn know to grow into the oak? Somewhere in its DNA, there is some semblance of the oak it will someday be. There is a blueprint. In the same way, the Anima/us are representative of the potentials of our species. They are the potential for generating more of our species.
It is a basic fact of life that one of life’s main goal—if not its only goal—is to create more life. Keep. the. species. alive. plays in the background of every mammal's mind, so distant it’s not even noticeable. The urge to procreate is undeniably strong.
In order for two members of the species to come together to create more life, there needs to be attraction. The Anima/us are responsible for generating attraction between two members of the species. Attraction doesn’t occur without a masculine and feminine dynamic. Swap masculine and feminine with any other words you wish, but there is always a force that is receptive and a force that is assertive. That is the only way to generate more life.
Because of this, the two archetypes appear in a gender binary. Because they are archetypal, they lack the complexity that is available within a single human’s experience. They are not meant to. They are meant to be entirely one thing. The Anima is a completely feminine presence, as is the Animus a completely masculine presence.
Soul Archetypes
This is where it gets to be rather interesting.
The Anima/us is complementary to the ego. They are not antagonizing to the ego, but rather complement it in a way that is able to generate energy. At the same time, the Anima/us links the ego to the experience of the Self.
Because of this link, the Anima/us serves to adapt us to our inner worlds. As Jung himself illustrates:
“The natural function of the animus (as well as the anima) is to remain in place between individual consciousness and the collective unconscious; exactly as the persona is a sort of stratum between the ego-consciousness and the objects of the external world. The animus and anima should function as a door, leading to the images of the collective unconscious, as the persona should be a sort of bridge into the world” (Jung, Psychological Types, 1921).
The Anima/us is therefore what governs one’s relationship to their inner world. It is essentially how one treats themselves. This is similar to the persona, which showcases the way the individual interacts with the external world. The Anima/us is the persona for the inner world.
Again, for this reason, Jung chose the Latin word for Soul, to refer to these archetypal processes. They represent the self that interacts with the collective inner world.
At this point, Jung’s definition of the Anima/us is lacking in any kind of gender assessment. The best that could be argued is that when one is consumed by their own personal reality, particularly their inner world, they usually become “possessed” by their anima/us and showcase traits opposite to (or in many cases as we see today, identifying as “non-binary”) their biological sex.
Given that we live in a time where many lack inner depth, and yet many are overly-consumed by their own grandiosity and personal reality, it is no wonder that we are seeing massive upheavals in gender identity. The identification with the Anima/us is driving a strong agenda that this inner perception of gender can be whatever the person wants it to be. It’s a nuanced topic, which we will discuss a little bit in detail later on.
For now, we can focus on Anima/us possession, which is what occurs when the ego is not able to form healthy identifications in a grounded way. The ego is then subject to emotional dysregulation through this wanton archetypal identification.
In a classic sense, when men become possessed by their Anima, they become moody and irritable. They lose the power of logic to a sea of turbulent emotional uproar. When women become possessed by their Animus, they become cold, harsh, and critical. They may be possessed by extreme opinions that are void of logic, their only aim to bring down whoever they are directed at.
“Whatever the content of the ‘possession’ happens to be, the inner world of the unconscious is not sufficiently held in check, and emotional and irrational neediness disturbs and distorts normal relations with other people and with life in general. Anima/us possession throws the gates of the unconscious wide open and lets in practically everything that has enough energy to come through. Moods and whims sweep in and carry one away. Impulse control is minimal. There is no containment of through or affect. This is an ego problem, too of course—symptomatic of an undeveloped ego that cannot hold and contain the contents that normally float into consciousness but need to be reflected upon and digested before being carried into verbal or physical action” (Stein, pg. 132, 1998).
In addition, the issue can stem from a weakly structured Anima/us. When there is no inner development whatsoever, men will usually look to a woman to help manage their emotions, while women will find a man who will receive their inspired thoughts and do something with them.
In both cases, the ugly dynamics of “shadow boxing” commence, laying the breeding ground for arguments and power struggles within relationships. The very persuasive force that was projected onto your partner, the force that attracted you to them, becomes your motivation to dump them.
The issue here is not that these problems are truly the fault of the other person (though I am not excusing any behavior on either party's side) but rather that these issues are taking place within them. It is their own opposite nature that they are fighting with. Until one can reconcile this opposite polarity within, they will continuously find themselves in relationships that devolve into disagreements, only to have the Anima/us reignited with someone new, continuing the cycle into infinity.
On the Topic of Gender
We can now come back to the idea of gender with the Anima/us and discuss it in further detail.
It is important to remember that Jung was a product of a time when there were very clear distinctions between men and women. Society placed more emphasis than today on enforcing stricter gender roles, causing the vast majority to identify as wholly masculine or wholly feminine.
For the most part, Jung argued that archetypes in general were applicable to both men and women alike, although in regards to the Anima/us he drew a clear distinction.
Overall, however, Jung did say that both masculine and feminine archetypes were available to everyone. In a sense, everyone has an Anima and an Animus. There are certain factors that come into play which force identification with one or the other, forcing the opposite one to act as the bridging inner figure.
“Jung argues that both genders have both masculine and feminine components and qualities. In some passages he links this to the fact that each has both masculine and feminine genetic material. Their empirical differences are only a matter of degree … In his theory, both men and women are both masculine and feminine. However, these qualities are distributed differently. And this difference is archetypal, not societal or cultural. It is not a difference, in other words, that can be erased by changes in social policy” (Stein, pg. 134, 1998).
While both men and women have access to the full range of archetypes both masculine and feminine within, various levels of development affect how they show up in the psyche. To claim that the issue of gender is solely a social one, the byproduct of “socialization,” is just as absurd to say that the biological basis of gender is all that should matter. There are levels to reality, and each level must be dealt with respectively as part of a larger whole.
That on a biological basis, men and women are different is quite obvious. To say that these differences indeed change the psychic structuring isn’t that much of a stretch. Increased testosterone or estrogen shapes thinking and feeling in distinct ways. What’s important here is that this claim can be made knowing that it is not all that affects what is going on within the psyche. It is but one aspect of the whole system. The level of socialization accounts for another shaping of inner structure, as well as any psycho-spiritual development.
A great issue of our modern times is that there is little acknowledgement given to this fact. Everyone is viewing reality from a different level, and reducing all of reality to that singular perspective. What results is a chaotic battlefield of differing opinions, as no one is willing to give up their position. On one hand, there is a group of people claiming gender is obsolete and entirely from social programming. On the other is a group of people who say that there are only two genders that are rooted in biological sex.
This has only resulted in one side refusing to let go of toxic traditions surrounding gender roles, with the other side having little to no reverence for the sanctity of their flesh and body they’ve been given.
This extremity has only eroded the concept of gender down to shallow, worn-out images that have become hyper-distorted. Masculinity is reduced to a puffed up bravissimo; femininity reduced to submissiveness and daintiness. It’s no wonder so many people want to ditch the concept all together. The complexity, richness, and depth of the archetypes are completely lost here.
There is truth to both sides, and perhaps a deeper third perspective will eventually arise out of this extreme polarization.
What matters most here is the general pattern Jung observed. If one is masculine on the outside, their inner world is feminine, and if one is feminine on the outside their inner world is masculine. This is really a fundamental process of polarity. What has a positive charge in the external will have a negative charge on the internal.
When considered this way, we apply this basic equation within the context of the society in question. Jung did so in the 1950’s, which is why his theories on gender seem outdated. In our modern context, gender roles have been more diversified. More women hold what were once classically masculine roles, as do more men now hold those that were classically feminine roles. In this case, we can say that whatever collection of archetypes one has consciously identified with, the reversal makes up their Anima/us.
In other words, if someone has identified and integrated around 60% masculine archetypes and 40% feminine archetypes into their egoic self, their Anima/us will be the other 40% masculine and 60% feminine. From there you could generalize and just say that this person has more of an Anima, but if I’m being honest, what’s the point?
We can go back and forth and dissect if Jung was sexist or not, or we can take a step back and realize what Jung’s psychology is aiming at. At the end of the day, Jungian psychology is a psychology of self discovery. It’s a map for you to take within as you discover what lies hidden in your own unconsciousness.
Jung wasn’t just writing about the people of his time. He was aiming at themes much deeper and pervasive within the whole context of humanity. The majority of people who have ever lived, and ever will live are straight and cis-gendered. They will follow the classic example laid out by Jung because that is the default state for humanity.
Yes there are exceptions, and it’s wonderful that we are becoming more accepting of our differences. But in discussing a theory that is aiming to be a map of humanity, we can’t forget what the basic hardware is. From there we can extrapolate and contort it to fit our own personal experience, and that is the point.
Development and Integration
This brings us to developing and integrating the Anima/us.
It is my own personal belief that the true individuation process does not occur without this initial contact with the Anima/us. Almost every spiritually advanced person I know personally became so through some type of relationship. The Anima/us needs to be projected properly for you to begin a dialogue with it.
Because our Anima/us contains the rejected “other” attributes to our persona, or social role we have identified with, a relationship with someone who carries the Anima/us projection can be extremely intense.
To the degree that we have identified with our persona, we will be attracted to people who are radically different in temperament. The straight-laced business man may be attracted to the chaotic, emotionally exhausting artistic woman as she is completely opposite to his narrow self-identity. Conversely, the woman who follows social rules and doesn’t like to over-express herself is attracted to the bad boy outlaw-type who whisks her away. The effect of meeting someone who carries your Anima/us projection can be quite mesmerizing and intoxicating.
“The real psychic purpose of the conventional man’s affair with his very unconventional anima woman is to produce a symbolic child, which represents a union of the opposites in his personality and is therefore a symbol of the self” (Stein, pg. 139, 1998).
This enchantment goes deeper than the shadow. The Anima/us act as the muse, guiding the individual not only through their own rejected parts, but to the promise of something larger, grander, and more holistic than themselves.
The Anima/us reach far beyond the personal psyche into the deeper archetypal layers of the collective unconscious. They activate the Self in the individual—the highest potential of wholeness we can access.
In this way, the Anima/us is not merely the rejected other half of the persona. It is the other half of the generating impulse within the psyche. It is the yin to the yang, or vice-versa. It is a symbolic representation of birthing new life, of birthing the true Self.
This internal, symbolic process stretches far beyond any practical application of gender we may be dealing with collectively. It goes deep into the roots of humanity itself. The Anima is the image of every woman who has ever lived rolled into one, as is the Animus every man. Often issues between genders stem not from anything prominent in the real world (*at least in personal relationships), but rather from the interaction one has with the image of men and women found within.
“The Anima/us, Jung says in this passage, is like Maya, the Indian Goddess who creates illusory worlds, and the ego ends up inhabiting a world that is largely based on projections… It is amazing how distorted some people’s views really are. And it is equally remarkable that all of us believe in our own views absolutely even when we find serious flaws in them. It is rare that we question a set of basic assumptions” (Stein, pg. 142, 1998).
In a sense, projection rules the psyche. The act of integrating our Anima/us comes down to reclaiming the projection and dialoguing with it once we’ve noticed it’s been projected. Unlike the shadow, the Anima/us carry with it a sense of excitement. We want to move towards it once it shows up in our lives.
Because of its archetypal nature, the Anima/us can be seen as our fate. The pull of something far greater than who we are, exerting its influence on our lives, forcing us to face the full potential of who we are and could be.
Conclusion
Hopefully after reading through this article you’ve gleaned a deeper sense of what these elusive archetypes represented to Jung. Though they are often discredited and labeled as evidence of a bygone era, their prevalence and pervasiveness runs much deeper than the confines of our time.
The Anima and Animus are ancient archetypal grooves nestled in the unconscious. They are responsible for generating attraction between two members of our species, and ultimately fulfilling the evolutionary role of continuing human life.
Symbolically, they are responsible for creating the concept of Self within the individual. The Anima/us come together and, through a union of opposites, produce a truly unique individual. Though our ideas of what constitutes gender may change, and we may not be so rigid in our understanding of how gender manifests in every person, there is no denying some type of attraction mechanism operating deep within the psyche.
Whether you feel that the Anima/us are aligned with biology, or if these archetypes are completely disconnected from the physical self, one fact remains—the Anima/us exist in us all. We all have to contend with our own inner muse, the whisperings of some unconscious figure that draw us towards some glamorous goal. Without acknowledgement of this figure, we are prone to becoming possessed by it and having our fate mercilessly dictated by our mental attractions.
Overall, the Anima/us is a fascinating archetype to explore within yourself, one that yields tremendous growth on the individuation pathway.
Stay tuned for the next article in The Jungian Psyche, where we will be discussing the nature of The Self—the organizing center of wholeness within each of us.
Previous Installments of the Jungian Psyche:
If you liked this post, subscribe to Archetypical below!
If you know anyone who may like this post, please share it with them:
You can also support my work with a donation: