A Jungian analysis of Jack and the bean stalk

by J.D. Stephen Flynn

Introduction
Jung advocated that myth and fairy tale have a direct relevance to human behaviour. What I attempt to do within this paper is to look at the simple story of Jack and the bean stalk and see how it can actually apply to therapy. By working my way through the tale using our hero Jack, I will illustrate (as it were) a client striving to make his way through life. Even the reader may find him/herself developmentally within this very story.

I apply my understanding of Jung’s terminology based upon reading all of his Collected Works over several decades. I would like to begin by briefly describing some of the key words such as animus, anima, ego, shadow and archetype. Animus relates to the masculine energy within all people and the term ‘anima’ relates to the universal feminine energy. The term ego simply means, what you are doing right now, reading this article, talking with a colleague, the here and now of daily life – your self-identity as you engage with others and the world. The definition of shadow, in the context of this paper, refers to behaviour of the same gender that the ego rejects. Finally, the use of the term ‘archetype’ relates to unconscious patterns of collective human behaviour. For instance, everyone has a mother and the very idea of ‘mother’ is archetypal, holding deep affiliation, both conscious and unconscious.

Fairy tales are likened to “big dreams… [whose] …chief significance lies in their intrinsic meaning and not in any personal experience and its associations” (Jung, 1960: 291). All the great religions give the dream high priority and Christianity is no exception. There are no less than five dreams associated with the birth of Christ, each playing a significant part in the story – for example, “…an Angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise and take the young child and his mother and flee into Egypt…” (The Holy Bible). Perhaps the semi-conscious was acknowledged to play a greater part in events than is given credit nowadays.

Where and when does anything take place to remind us even remotely of phenomena like angels, miraculous feelings, beatitudes and resurrection of the dead etc? …during the unconscious state of sleep, intervals occur, called ‘dreams’, which contain scenes [of] the motifs of mythology. For myths are miracle tales.

(Jung, 1981:35)

By ‘myth’ I will use Jung’s definition of “…an expression of patterns of energy held deep in the psyche, common to all, known as the collective unconscious” (Jung, 1960: 11). By exploring myth per se, we can acknowledge in story form how the mind cannot control body needs nor reduce them to psychic needs, as the body continues to function in spite of mood, sleep, rest or activity. Such is common to all and way outside of consciousness. This does not apply to sexuality alone, but also to losing individual freedom and becoming overwhelmed by instinctive fears. And so, by looking at this simple fairy tale as if it were a myth, it will enable us to explore the collective unconscious as identified by Jung. Just in case you are unfamiliar with the story or want a quick reminder, here is a précis:

When Jack was a baby in arms his father was killed by a giant of a man. The giant then sent off the mother and baby under the threat of death and proceeded to take all the loot to his castle afar off. Jack and his mother continued to live alone in poverty. We are told Jack was a good natured, indolent boy until he reaches about fourteen years of age.

One morning there is no food in the house except the failing dairy cow. Jack is sent off to market to sell the cow and meets a wily old butcher who, knowing Jack’s ingenuous character, offers to buy the cow for a handful of beans saying they are magic beans. Jack accepts this offer, takes the beans home and incurs the wrath of his mother for striking such a poor bargain. She throws the beans out of the window and the next morning several have grown and intertwined into an enormous bean stalk reaching high into the sky. In spite of his mother’s agitation, Jack climbs the bean stalk and finds himself in a strange land dominated by a wicked giant in his castle.

On the first visit, before he reaches the castle, he meets a fairy in the guise of an old woman. She reveals to him that his father was once a noble upright man, murdered by the giant and robbed of his possessions. It is Jack’s duty to take back what should have been his and eventually he must kill the giant. Our hero has to make three visits to the giant’s castle, each time going against the pleas of his mother.

During these visits to the castle Jack stole or, rather, recovered three possessions. On the first journey he returned with a bag of gold and silver, and on the second journey he returned with the hen that laid golden eggs. Both times he had hidden in the kitchen and managed to acquire the goods while the giant slept. On the third visit he took the magic harp, which called out and woke his master. Jack was pursued by the giant, reached the bean stalk and called for his mother to bring out the axe while he climbed down. He had the advantage of youth and not having a heavy meal and wine inside him, unlike the giant. Jack reached the ground in time to cut down the bean stalk, which resulted in the giant falling to his death. Jack and his mother lived in peace and happiness with enough to eat and without anxiety.

Jack has acquired a negative animus (i.e. masculine patterns of behaviour and beliefs). He is totally unaware of the negative masculine and feminine within. He does not know about the existence of the giant, the basis of his mother’s fears, the fact that his father had a naïve nature (which is outlined more clearly in the full version of the story), nor does he know about the brutality of his father’s murderer (the giant). He is both innocent and somewhat stupid. Jack is a bit like Peter Pan, who had no shadow and therefore was unable to accept or even know about his inner dark side and so he never grew up. Jung elaborates on imbalance of the psyche or rather one-sided development of the mind and also elaborates on how individuals thus beset, use fantasy as “…compensatory to the situation or attitude of the conscious mind” (Jung, 1995: 310).

The mother/son dependency is primal, as reflected in the development of the gods in ancient Greece. (For an excellent study of this subject see Harrison, 1991: 257ff, where she describes the making of a goddess).

Jack’s lack of a ‘father figure’ in his life prevents him from internalising the role of father and what it means to literally ‘grow up’. This was a major factor in Jack and his mother being stuck. Jack’s dependency solely on milk for nourishment at his age is obviously regressive. He is dependent upon his mother, still at the breast as it were.

The story states a little about his character. He is “…indolent and useless about the place …careless and extravagant, quickly over remorse…” and it seems, he is easily put into a temper and “…silly…” (Opie & Opie, 1980: 214). If that were not enough, he is also described as “…frightened easily…” (ibid). He is obviously ruined by a mother who overcompensates in her caring. I believe that these are the traits of ‘boy mentality’, all too prevalent today. Some men have not embraced manhood and behave like overgrown boys, emotionally dependent on their mothers and even marry and transfer that emotional dependency onto their wives.

The giant himself was a “…schemer, impatient, told lies…” (ibid: 214) and actually murdered the boy’s father. This situation is very symbolic because as we gain insight into what lies ahead for Jack, he has to both reclaim the nature of the father, and balance this with the nature of the murderer giant, thus integrating these extreme opposites within himself. Not only is Jack unaware of what his father was like, or that the giant existed, but he is also unaware that his mother knew, and was afraid to tell him. Instinctively, Jack is aware of his mother’s ill ease, thus the feminine in the male represents his instinctive qualities, his deep feelings, for Jack they too are as yet undeveloped.

Jack’s mother therefore represents the state of his own feminine, as it is usually from the mother that the anima is formed: “…thus confirming the psychological rule that the first carrier of the anima-image is the mother” (Jung, 1995: 388). The indulgent mother is compensating in her attitude to her son for the undeveloped positive masculine security absent within herself, and is too afraid to face her fears. The gap between the conscious and unconscious is great at this point in the story and renders Jack to suffer from ‘moods’, which further aggravates his inability to deal with the world.

Now enters the butcher, a man who eats meat, kills animals and transacts business with people in the marketplace every day of his working life (perhaps analogous with meeting a therapist for the first time!). The Butcher in effect hints at the arrival of manhood, whereby Jack needs to embrace what lies ahead in order to mature. There are only three other males in this story besides our hero, and the butcher is the only ‘normal’ person we are to meet.

Although he has a brief appearance in Jack’s life, he is very significant and seems to have been the turning point for Jack.

The butcher appears hard and cunning, yet he is the therapist and the catalyst Jack needs. Consequently, at this stage of Jack’s life, our milk-supping wimp is no match for the butcher, as the story proves. Jack has no sense of value, and money is the symbol of value, the exchange between people and money is a mystery to him. The butcher offers the boy beans (seed). This is a tale of a boy who has reached adolescence (makes seed, symbolic of masculine potency arriving). The butcher is seen as holding positive masculine qualities, almost forcing Jack to break from boyhood. At this point in life it is appropriate to begin an adventure involving ‘developing the masculine within’. This fact should be addressed before attempting to ‘make father without’. To put it quite simply, a man has to become aware, has to acknowledge his own powers within himself, as the outer form reflects the inner identification.

Thus, and symbolically, the notion of seed is inherent in the story. Jack climbs the bean stalk (up his rejected seed) – his mother no doubt rejected her son’s inevitable maturity for fear of where it might lead, but Jack has to start to take charge of his own destiny. He needs to do this in order to become a responsible male, Jack needs to be aware of his own origin, his ancestral traits or his DNA as it were, or he is destined to remain unaware of both his potential and his faults. The bean stalk is for Jack the ancestral single bridge between/leading from boyhood to manhood. The bean stalk is like the mystic tree reaching heaven and is a very old concept (Eliade, 1989). In alchemy the tree symbol grows out of the male loins, whereas for the female the tree grows out of her head (Jung. 1993). Could this latter symbol suggest the woman’s development might be hidden in her taking ownership of opinions and viewpoints, whereas the man’s development comes from control of his passions and moods?

Jung differentiates the anima from the animus by the predominance of differing but complementary energies. Thus, the anima contains sensation and feelings, and the animus contains intuition and thinking. All four energies are prevalent in an individual, as is evident in this tale.

Consider the father of Jack himself. Here is a man who has never known his own shadow. It seems the shadow tried to take over the ego, for we learn the giant was “hoping to integrate himself into his father’s favour. He removed quickly into [the father’s] neighbourhood …” (ibid: 217). This is a case where the shadow hopes to integrate but ends up usurping the ego. When you think about it, it is the father, the good side of the personality that should integrate the bad or darker side, not the other way around. It is indeed a huge problem that Jack faces. His father’s problems are out of proportion, even giant, and therefore unconscious and ignorant. This means that, at this point in the story our Jack lacks any awareness of greed, cute knowledge and native wit just like his father, because all these qualities are held within the giant.

In Jack’s case, before he can ‘make father within’ he has to face what his own father has avoided. His father was so benevolent that he lost contact with his darker nature. I am asking the reader to consider that this darker nature rose up within the father, gigantic and totally unconscious, exaggerated or out of proportion and very dangerous. This story represents both aspects of male traits that need to be embraced if a man is to become integrated. There is a saying here in Ireland for such a man who is not integrated: ‘He is a street Angel and house Devil.’ Meaning he is split, divided in his development. I have worked for over twenty years with young offenders, whose typical background is a one parent family and/or their father was violent within the home. Consequently, these young men embraced power and even leadership but not responsibility. This one-sided development is the hallmark of adolescence and at times later in life also.

Interesting,the‘nationalpsyche’oftheEnglishfairystoryisabouttalesof‘cunning’.Forexample, there is much cunning found in the heroes in ‘Puss in Boots,’ ‘Jack the Giant Killer’ and no doubt others. Later our ‘Jack’ finds need for the ‘cunning’ in order to achieve his goal too.

Now let us explore the anima side of Jack’s lack of development, for both are needed to mutually mature and attain integration. The story states Jack’s mother loses her temper and then feels remorse, fails to teach her son anything and also fails to learn anything from the experience. She is stuck, powerless! All is a useless expression of concern and no resolution is forthcoming. This regression (to mood) is typical of the inferior anima of the male psyche too. It is only when Jack defies his anima do things begin to happen, that is, the ego becomes sufficiently differentiated from the unconscious anima within, to then be able to act alone. This is a significant developmental milestone in the development of the masculine within the individual.

On his journey to meet the giant, Jack has a (chance) meeting with the second female, the old woman, or guardian fairy, and discovers the secrets about his father’s death and loss of fortune. She describes at length what a good man Jack’s father was. Referring to the giant, she actually said “… this man was altogether as wicked as your father was good…” (Opie & Opie, 1980: 217; emphasis is author’s). Jack’s father could not accept his own shadow, so it killed him. There is clear evidence in the story, that the father was totally unaware of the giant’s wish to kill him even at the point of death; “…the giant took the opportunity and stabbed him. He instantly fell dead…” (Opie & Opie 1980: 217). Perhaps it is as well to remember that if the shadow chooses to turn on the ego, you would not last the night (Jung, 1960). Jung reminds us that the shadow contains all that the ego rejects.

Another feminine part of our hero can be found in a footnote the Opies mentioned in an earlier version of the story, where the old woman Jack met en route was depicted as a beautiful young woman with a peacock (ibid: 216). This image of a peacock is an ancient alchemical symbol – among other meanings it represents the soul or the unified self (Jung, 1993). This second woman who presented herself as such a symbol, enables the youth to overcome all obstacles (a recurring theme in the ‘hero’ fairy tale). She is his guide, the inner woman, whose task it is to lead the soul. She gives him guidance “…Never let your mother be made acquainted with your journeys beforehand…” (Opie & Opie, 1980: 217-218). Remember his mother was “…stupefied with horror and grief …at his father’s death …and was motionless…” (ibid). So she remains “…locked in pathological grief and is in need of help herself to break loose from her trauma…” (ibid).

So on our hero goes to meet the next feminine figure of significance, the third and final woman in our story-cum-dream. Jack meets the giant’s wife. He “begs” for help from her and so learns what it is to be cunning, and by that learning enters the castle (ibid:220). If we reflect here for a moment, Jack has to break away from his mother, first by defying her, then by keeping a secret from her, and then learn about his father from the second woman en route. Finally, he has to learn to deceive the third woman. By so doing he draws closer to his own complex, that ball of energy holding a whole life of its own; the giant and the giant’s wife (who is also the feminine part of the complex). In this case she is so much underdeveloped she unwittingly becomes the means to her husband’s death.

If the reader reflects further on this situation that Jack is striving to resolve, it resembles a ‘mother complex’ whereby this youth has been the subject of excessive care by his mother, no doubt with good cause as there is a giant of a man out there who could quite easily beat the door down and do the dirty! I am reminded of working with the ‘mammy’s boy’ who is unable to relate to another girl as his mammy would not approve. I encouraged the male patient to develop positive deception, whereby he is encouraged to deceive his mother with white lies, as it were. One such case was where a young man had to share everything he owned with either his mother or his siblings. There was no dad in the house. His mother opened his letters, and constantly enquired about his whereabouts when out of the house. So, with encouragement, he kept back a stick for the fire he had chopped and didn’t tell his mother. He eventually carved the stick and made it into a shape of a woman, and still didn’t tell his mother. When out and about, she would constantly ring asking where he was and when was he returning home. With further guidance on my part, he told her he was outside a shop when he was actually inside it. Silly harmless things which eventually lead to him being able to meet the possibility of his own separate world. He went on to have a girlfriend and knowing his mother would disapprove, he kept it from her! Eventually he left home, later married and has a family now.

There is always a corresponding opposite. The boy, upon meeting the butcher, makes his first step towards manhood (albeit then unknown to himself): The old woman whom Jack later meets on his journey to the giant’s castle, is actually a fairy who was turned into an old woman as a punishment for not protecting Jack’s father. She was restored to full power at the same time as Jack met the butcher (Opie & Opie, 1980: 218). Here we have an example of mutual integrated growth of both the masculine and feminine forces within the psyche, actually stated. It seems that when the male part of the psyche faces a reality, the feminine, be it in the form of his mother or the old woman/fairy as representative of the feminine herein, is then in a position to disclose some inner truth to him. However, the duration between the feminine disclosure had not yet transpired, for we read that first his feminine (at present portrayed by his mother) throws his seed (beans) all over the garden. She too is an equally important part of his development. Both female figures are unconscious and need integrating. Jack (who represents the ego) has to address the integration of the mother before he can start his journey. At present he can now only enter a ‘mood’ when faced with difficulties. He is unable to face feelings or cope with stress. The nature of his mood is aptly described when we read about his mother.

For Jack to know the truth, there is a price (as with all truth!). Rather than face the truth within one’s own soul, man would rather seek flight as the means of coping. It takes as much energy to avoid what has yet to be reviled. Our Jack, however, does not run off at this stage. If he did, this would become the basis of a neurosis. “Life calls us forth to independence, and anyone who does not heed this call… is threatened with neurosis” (Jung, 1995: 304). Not following the call of the archetypal hero may result in Jack resorting to a more primitive image, that of the archetypal primordial child. Jung describes archetypes as inherited presuppositions “…of psychic life of our ancestors right back to the earliest beginnings” (Jung 1960: 112). An extreme example of what I am alluding to herein can be found in the story of the Greek god Attis who is the son and lover of Cybele. It is the classic act of utter devotion whereby Attis castrates himself, thus never fulfilling manhood, but remaining a boy. Effectively the same analogy of the modern day ‘mammy’s boy’s’ utter life-long devotion to his mother.

Consider for a moment the whole description of the land where the giant lives as inclusive of the complex itself. This includes the castle described as “having a sight of grandeur”, but it is also “forsaken and desolate” (ibid: 220). This indicates the complex has familiar terrain, smell, sound, a ‘mood or atmosphere’. Jack is in the realm of the unconscious where other parts of the self dwell “…the groans of those poor victims whom the giant reserved in confinement…” (Opie & Opie, 1980: 220). There are many rooms within oneself too. “In my father’s house there are many mansions” (New Testament: John, 14:2). The self has many components and in the case of this complex, there are aspects that are seldom used, as in the fairy tale described as ‘dark’, indicating the lack of awareness. In this dark place, deep within the complex there is alchemical gold to be found. A complex is all energy, some of which is trapped off from the ego, Jack (the ego, the subject) is affected by the visit to this land. The object, the land and its buildings are also affected by the ego, it is brought into the light of awareness. The terrain can actually form part of the complex itself. Such a visit can be healing, and especially so for post trauma syndrome. All religions have rituals that help transform the terrain, rituals to bless and clean out, to rid as illustrated by Harrison citing the ancient Greeks “…And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities into a land not inhabited.” (Harrison, 1991: 105)

When Jack eventually returns home triumphant from his first trip to the land of the giant, it is no surprise to learn that he also has to overcome several hardships at home to redress the imbalance. He is now able to not tell his mother when he plans to return. He acquires new strength. He is able once again to climb back up the bean stalk knowing there is pending danger. He has to become hungry, and he has to ‘rest on stones’. But he has more ability to cope with the increased difficulties.

It seems it is not enough just to counterbalance but also to use what was brought back from the complex, in the real world (to make conscious). The energy restored from the trip to the complex may take the form of well-being, sleeping better or able to do tasks previously considered too perilous.

Jack’s visit to the complex must be short or he will be in danger of becoming part of the very problem. The ego (consciousness) also has affected the complex itself; the giant smells the blood of an English man and instinctively becomes more aware. The opposite must also be true, as the story tells, for the wife of the giant hid Jack in the oven where the food of life is baked (pan is bread, companions are those who share bread together). Symbolically Jack landed amid the company. From this intimate centre, or the ‘womb’ of the castle Jack was privileged to hear deep truths. Revelations unfold from every direction for our hero. The ego is more aware at the expense of the unconscious complex. There is no attempt to integrate the complex into the ego.

The route is established, so upon arriving at the castle for the second time the woman outside is “as before”, (Opie & Opie, 1980: 219) which means the complex has not increased in consciousness sufficiently to detect another assault. And so, with the help of a disguise, he again “conned” (ibid) his way in. He even sympathised with her because she was angry with the last visitor as “…both wife and the giant lament its [the gold and silver] loss…” (ibid). Jung talks of the complex having a personality, and here we can see the complex cannot itself develop without the aid of the conscious ego. Here we see the ego choosing to deceive the complex, keeping it ignorant and wanting to rob from it. We also can conclude that some complexes remain too difficult to integrate with the ego. Thus, the ego has to salvage what it can, but the complex is increasingly alienated and angry.

Perhaps Jack’s complex is so ancient and huge that it cannot be integrated into the ego in its entirety. We cannot know all of what went on between our parents, just as they cannot know what lies ahead for their children.

Between visits, our giant’s behaviour has deteriorated somewhat. His riches are declining and he has resorted to abusing his spouse. Because of the loss of the gold, the giant blames his wife who narrowly escapes a beating by going to bed. Perhaps it is the unconscious desire of the giant’s wife to bring down her husband that then lets Jack in the second time. There are deep stirrings of increased anxiety felt within the complex itself, for as the tale unfolds in his last visit the giant has a little dog that starts barking when he has a nap. Jack has to feed it meat to placate it. The dog represents the instinctive part of the complex which is becoming more aware. Another indication of growing awareness can be found in the statement that “…daylight is breaking as Jack attempts his escape…” (ibid:225).

The feminine in the conscious ego is also suffering along with her female counterpart in the complex for when Jack returns home he discovers his mother has become ill. Jack now knows enough about his father so that now his mother’s deadly fears for their welfare are known. She still must go through the worry for her son’s safety as he was away longer on his last visit. Another reason for her increased suffering is that he still cannot tell her when he plans to leave because of the rule imposed by the third female in our story, the old woman or guardian fairy. The fairy (or old woman) who only appeared after Jack met the butcher was the one who created the ensuing conflict as the means of eventual resolution, and it was she who gave him motive and reason to seek out what was rightfully his. So, we have three female forces herein, mother, the old woman and the giant’s wife. This parallel can be found among the three male forces herein, where the butcher plays the same role between the deceased father and the giant. He introduced Jack to the real world, the marketplace of life. Life is about finding balance between extremes.

Let us reflect here on the significance of what has transpired.

There is an increase in the disturbance of the complex and there is a parallel increase in the awareness of the ego. On the first visit he actually had to steal (from the complex) what was rightfully his, that is, silver and gold, which was eventually spent. The loot of gold and silver represents energy which has been shifted from the complex to the self. Initially Jack and his mother enjoyed the spoils and repair the house (i.e., the body). This is an important developmental step as it involved entering a great fear within and taking back some essential energy required in normal life.

The next item of energy taken from the complex is the hen who lays the golden egg, symbolising both spiritual and worldly energy “whence the double eagle is hatched, wearing the spiritual and temporal crowns…” (Jung, 1993: 201). With the magic hen, Jack returned to face his mother ‘boldly’ (Opie & Opie, 1980). The spoils of the second visit resulted in an endless supply of wealth via golden eggs from the hen. The egg represents promise and is a symbol of the unified self to be or ‘to become’. Jack’s theft is far more valuable the second time. He has no reason to return!

There is an increase of awareness in the mother too, for we learn from our story that “In the three years with his mother, his mother has become more aware too….and endeavoured to discover the cause…but Jack is mindful as the …fairy’s menaces were ever present…” (ibid: 224).

Although Jack had returned with the loot it was not a peaceful time for him. He chose mid- summers day to return the third time – when the light (or awareness) is at its height “…the longest day…” (ibid: 224). Again, he defies his mother’s explicit wishes – thereby increasing his own identity and breaking the incestuous bond of mother/son. Jack must choose a time when he and his mother are at their strongest before attempting such a hazardous journey again, but it is not safe while the giant is at large and the bean stalk is still standing. Consider the consequence of leaving a client in this predicament!

As before, the mask must go on for his final return. When he approaches the dark feminine (the giant’s wife) he continues to show respect, recognising her status as a key figure to his future success, although he has mixed feelings about her. There is reference in the story that Jack was experiencing fear and prepared to die as “…Jack thought his death-warrant was signed” (Opie & Opie, 1980: 225). This part of the story is reminiscent of the “Shamanistic near-death experience” and also journeys into the sky (Eliade, 1989: 482-494). Death of what went before suggests something is about to change.

This time it is the harp that raised the alarm by its shouting. Music falls upon the ears of the good, bad and indifferent. Its master is the one who listens. The harp symbolically represents the gift of music which remained trapped within the complex and thereby preventing both Jack and his mother from enjoying artistic appreciation. Music has to do with quality of life and it could not be rent from the giant (complex) without alarm.

It seems Jack is not going to get all he wants from the complex as he must now abandon the castle, leave the spouse and the poor captives trapped behind iron doors (iron has been seen as holding special powers dating back as far as ancient Egypt where such fell from out of the sky [meteorites] and were used to fashion the Ankh – the key Tutankhamun is seen carrying in his right hand on the hieroglyphics).

Having grabbed the harp, its shouting wakes the Giant to hot pursuit. Jack uses the long day to facilitate his escape and eventually enlists the support of his feminine, his mother, by shouting for her to fetch the axe as he descends the bean stalk. Without her help he cannot defeat his enemy. She helps him to defeat the monster or has a hand in it, so to speak. This contrasts with the giant’s wife, whose role in the tale seems to have been to destroy her man. Cooperation between the feminine and masculine recurs again and again in myth and fairy story.

The story ends with the giant falling to his death in the garden (still in the ego space of awareness). Now the enemy lies harmless within the home ground, by contrast when our story opened with the mother fleeing in fear from the giant. In the footnote of Opie’s book, the mother is confronted by the fairy, both women could unite in understanding (Opie & Opie, 1980). So, both male and female forces benefit simultaneously, within our hero. It could be said that the giant and Jack unite in the only way possible too. It seems there has to be a compatible development of opposites, if this was not so, one will undermine the other.

Jack still needs to reconcile the feminine within himself. To do this he asks forgiveness of his mother and promises faithfully to look after her, and all benefit from the elusive spirit in the form of the harp. Jack attains the good parent within, that is, he integrates the qualities of his father, as this is the foundation upon which, with his own cunning, he can move on to realise and fulfil his own development. Jack now has sufficient knowledge from his father and a guiding spirit, along with a developed feminine, all integrated as four in one.

Editor’s note: A version of this article was previously published in the British Journal of Psychodrama and Sociodrama in 2002, Vol. 17: 2.