Jungian and Psychoanalytic Perspectives on Christmas: Origins, Motifs, and Psychological Significances - Paperback

by Kendrick Lyddon Norris (Author)

By examining its history, traditions, symbols, and representation in the arts through the lens of three major schools of depth psychology, Kendrick L. Norris, a Jungian Analyst and minister, shows how better understanding of the promise of Christmas can allow us to discover what it is that we long for the most.

Why does the winter celebration of Christmas have such a deep-rooted resonance, individually and collectively? This extensively researched book clearly and engagingly articulates the soul reasons why this holiday has such a significant impact on the human psyche. The work begins with an explanation about how depth psychology can be used to understand the Christmas phenomenon, followed by an investigation into the origins and symbols of Christmas. The book closes by delving into the soul meaning of Christmas through the perspectives of Freud, Kohut, and Jung.

This thought-provoking volume will appeal to Jungian Analysts, psychoanalysts, and psychotherapists, as well as those interested in religion and its relation to depth psychology.

Author Biography

Kendrick Lyddon Norris, PhD, NCPsyA, IAAP, is a graduate of the C.G. Jung Institute of New York, past president of the New York Association for Analytical Psychology (NYAAP), and a certified Imago Relationship Therapist. Dr. Norris has worked at the Pastoral Counseling Center of St. Raphael's Hospital and Family Counseling of Greater New Haven, and has been in private practice for more than 30 years. He has three graduate degrees in clinical psychology and pastoral psychology, 40 years of parish experience, and is Minster Emeritus of the First Congregational Church of Guilford, Connecticut.