An archetype is a universal pattern of a psychological structure. Masculine and feminine archetypes exist on the same continuum but vary in different directions. They are enigmatically linked such that one cannot exist in a meaningful way without the other. Archetypes are basically universal themes in all aspects of mankind and are therefore different from both women and men. Jung’s theory of feminine and masculine archetypes is based on an ‘inferior function’.
The animus and anima are the two main archetypes of the human conscious mind. Arguably, a man’s sensitivity is more or less repressed. There four core masculine archetypes: Emperor, this archetype is literally based on bringing a man’s desired reality into realization and also building and stabilizing his empire. The second is the Magician archetype; where a man is believed to be a visionary being that creates reality according to his dream. Green Man is the third archetype which states that a man should break out of the molds and should therefore be civilized and lastly Hierophant archetype where a man is supposed to be a guru or guide. All these archetypes are intertwined and have one meaning. They identify a man as a physical creature who is strong, muscular and projective. Women on the other hand are considered receptive. There are four core feminine archetypes: Empress, women are loving, connecting and nurturing. The Hathor archetype considers a woman a Goddess with beauty and pleasure. High Priestess: this archetype considers women as intuitive and contemplative and lastly the Hestia archetype describes women as tending and mending beings. All these feminine archetypes are entwined and view women as soft, loving, caring and tender beings (Stamper, 2012, p. 100).
Mary who just turned twenty five is married is very contemplative while Lucy on the contrary lacks an understanding of intimate expression. Jack is brawny, resilient, outspoken and loves outdoor chores. Peter is quite the opposite of Jack as he is always complaining about minor issues in his life. To start with, Mary who has recently married works as a florist and is so compassionate about life; she is intelligent, insightful and has good feminine taste in her preferences. She is loving, tender and loves her husband very much. She plays the role of a woman very well; she cleans the house and does all other feminine chores. Additionally she has attractive and receptive qualities which make her appear loving and caring. Lucy on the other hand has a different attitude that more or less appears to cling to the masculine side. She has very few values of the feminine archetype. Based on her stature, she is not emotional and has interests in mind blowing activities that are masculine you could say she possesses the Green Man archetype. Jack has a great deal of masculine qualities in that much of what he is and does, is one and the same thing. He is a forensic science student who loves adventure, exploring and learning. He is also a rugby player and a footballer too. He is muscular, visionary and a big dreamer. Based on his stature, it goes without saying that he loves and adores women and this factor makes his Magician Archetype animate and relevant. Unlike Jack, Peter is pretty much on the other side. From his traits, you could say he possesses the High Priestess Feminine Archetype as he is so much concerned about petty issues. Besides that, he has introvert feelings. He considers doing minor tasks that are not strenuous such as clerical tasks. Unlike his vibrant associates, he has female hysteria. He withdraws from the crowd, gets nervous and blushes when in a compromising situation.
My friend Justine and I have archetypes that are not in accordance with our gender. Justine has the Hathor (The love Goddess) archetype. He adores love, beauty and pleasure unlike me who loves being a guru most of the time. According to our individual archetypes, Justine who is male ought to have the Hierophant archetype that I posses while I the female should posses the Hathor archetype. I have keenly observed him and it is evident that he posses different archetypes from other males. To personalize it, his presentation is very much what could be termed as androgynous. He is very sensitive, compassionate and I would ascribe these traits to the female High Priestess archetype. In our conversation, he expresses his frustration with his partner in that he tends to choose ladies like myself. He does this in a psycho-energetic comportment to balance his own personality or meta-personality structure. On the contrary, he doesn’t understand what they are asking for him or what they need from him.
Very much a man, the breadth and depth of his feminine archetype and its manifestation and evidence prompt him to be the “woman” genetically focused, narcissistic and fast. On the contrary, for my case I have never expressed my frustrations with my partners such that I tend to choose men like him. I actually do this in an attempt to balance my own personality though I do not quite understand exactly what these archetypes are asking or what they need from me. Critically, there are two key points in this scenario, the first is that more or less there is a demonstrable and distinct difference in the way that women and men approach issues of sexuality, intimacy and emotionality which is majorly the engine for tension and conflict found in transgender interpersonal relationships. Secondly, persona doesn’t really make assumptions about our interior landscape. Literally, for Justine’s case, the Hathor and High Priestess feminine archetypes are seen to dominate his personality while in my case, the Emperor masculine archetype is dominant.
References
Stamper, G. (2012). Awakening the new masculine: The path of the integral warrior : a psychospiritual journey into fullness for men.
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