The Green Valley

Maynard Understands...

Bane

Oh, you think darkness is your ally, but you merely adopted the dark. I was born in it, molded by it. I didn’t see the light until I was already a man. By then, it was nothing to me but blinding!

Hut! Velociraptor

There is a stream beyond which lies the curious mountain range bordering the land of lava and our own land. It occurs to me that the mountain range is fresh and has come up only recently though I feel confident (I must admit that I'll always have my doubts) that the raging lava flowing on the other side of the mountain range will never seep into this land but life has a strange way of unfolding herself. It always pleases me to notice that what was once a desert now is at least populated by grass, a stream and a few rodent like creatures here and there. Rumour has it that recently a forest has started to grow on the banks of a river (which I am yet to see with my own eyes) as well.

Someone seems to have constructed a rudimentary type of dock on the river indicative of some form of intelligent life, but I've only very rarely glimpsed the women who lives there. I've also sensed the presence of a hermit who co-habits the same river and apparently he can control the flow of its water. It is also said that he doesn't speak and can magically conjure up a boat that always keeps afloat irrespective of the river's force. From afar, he has a balding head but on getting close his face seemed to disintegrate into a blobular plasma.

Oddly, in that place where there is very little fauna there lives a lonely velociraptor. A carnivorous animal, my guess is that it feeds on any animal that might be lucky (or unlucky) to grow big enough to be spotted by it. I also wondered how a velociraptor which normally lives in a herd is populating our shared space all alone - maybe this one just wanted to be alone or is probably lost from its herd? Most velociraptors talk (as you may not know) and were considered to be amongst the most intelligent of the dinosaurs but this one strangely didn't seem to know how to speak at all.

I first encountered him (I don't know how I know that) while examining the puddle I had arrived at disoriented since it was but newly formed in that past time. As I sat up I noticed the moon in the sky and it was clearly nighttime with the ever present misty fog everywhere. Curious about my presence he came sniffing around as I tried to get up, confused as I always am on entering our land. He didn't quite know what to do with me, probably the only other creature roughly his size. I guess now that since he couldn't rightly ascertain who or what I was- friend or foe, prey or the hunter, mother or father, male or female he too seemed as disoriented as I. The only deduction I could make was that he was somehow 'made' fully formed and was not born from an egg like other velociraptors.

Initially I was a bit apprehensive of his presence since dinosaurs are supposed to be extinct and our co-presence at the same time seemed to elucidate that something was amiss. But that thought soon dissolved as I remembered where I was and how I had gotten here. I then felt what might be akin to an archaic form of kinship with the being for I realized intuitively that he too was trapped in here with me and felt an urge to reach out to the creature but he suddenly jumped back as if in horror.

To my shock I realized that I had omnisciently merged with my velociraptor friend and was able to cognitively tune in to his inner state while retaining some amount of functioning of my own. I was able to experience his sense of confusion and unsatisfied hunger coupled with his drive to kill. He was at war in himself, whether to make friends with this new creature or to dare attack it so as to procure a new source of meat.

Realizing this I too took a step back  trying to put some distance between us for if he attacked I would at least be able to dodge it. What then ensued was a game of cat and mouse with the two of us circling each other like warriors in a ring even as I could sense the palpitations of his heart as his conflicts with regard to who I was kept him from taking decisive action. Realizing that this was getting nowhere, I suddenly remembered that velociraptors could talk (as you might not know) and said a few words to him. It was only then that I understood that the poor beast was tongue tied for you see its when when spoken to that a velociraptor can really learn how to speak! It then dawned on me that empathy was the only tool I had to determine what might be going on inside him.

To this day I don't know why I did what I did or how I did it but the next thing I was aware of was that he was standing over me, his powerful legs pinning my hands down as I stared up at what seemed to be imminent death. He looked at me, engulfed by his drive to kill and survive and for a moment I sensed guilt, compassion and pity in him as he bent down to tear open my chest and feed to his heart's content.

Even as green smoke spurred out from the place in my body where the ancients reckoned one's soul to be, there was a thunderous clap and I felt her cold hands embrace me with the words clearly said out loud -  "I'll never leave you again". The grin that he had when I etched out this story to him will forever remain in my memory.

Epliogue
I know that my friend the velociraptor is still alive. Some other good acquaintances of mine, on scouting our land, told me that he was spotted there with some other creatures his own size and seemed even to be talking to them. Where there was but small grass there are now a few bamboo shoots - a place where he can feel more at home. I was even able to meet the hermit of the river who taught me a severe lesson in bracing the watery elements. There is much to learn from this strange land indeed.

Valentine's Day

It was just an everyday and after a tiring day at work I settled down comfortably on the bed. The venue was different but the place was the same - as usual. Even before I took it upon myself to get there, the destination had already arrived. The world always slows down (and in rare cases speeds up) as I wade through the path to get to the place and today was no different. Intuitively though, I had foreseen a strange sense of easiness and calm for what may or may not be a fruitful exercise in love.

The usual cantankerous racket that always proceeded my entering the place was absent, however there pervaded in that space an ominous positivity. Since positivity and negativity are both perceived only by the depraved, I decided to get closer - and there they all stood - smiling.

In a world wrought with barrenness and despair it was uncanny to see them all united and happy. A bit flummoxed, I was a tad bit distraught at seeing the abnormal but very soon I was with them, one amongst them.

The place is usually dark - as it should be, but there emanated a strange warmth in the place that previously was used as an interrogation chamber. That elusive purple sunflower that I had been wrestling with my whole life decided to show itself and from the floor brought along with it a man sized light bulb, the warmth from which was shared and welcomed by everyone. There was truth everywhere.

Not wanting to miss out on the fun my brother decided to show up! He was late as usual with  fire emanating from him as he flew down, dressed sharply in his Westwood suit. Always critical, previously a king and being one of the first ones there, he has been very cooperative and accepting of the rest of them. He watched on with the suspicious curiosity so characteristic of him and I sensed from him the same sense of urgency that I too share, not wanting to hurt my feelings though he keeps it carefully hidden.

She was present as well, elusive and mysterious as always. I must confess that I noticed her late but she didn't seem to mind - she was probably used to it. What was strange however was that she didn't share in the light that the purple flower had brought but seemed as though she was rather expecting it. I'm more or less certain now that she won't survive in too many places but that space that we all shared was permissible to her. I remember seeing her in her natural residing place though, the place where she had warned me about flight. She seemed comfortable enough there but a bit annoyed at not being payed enough attention, most likely.

"Happy Valentine's Day"

Beware of God

Humour.. and dancing, maybe

Life Of Pi: An Analytical Perspective

[Obvious warning: Might contain spoilers]

Life of Pi is a book by Yann Martel picturised in a movie by Ang Lee. I had the pleasure of seeing it one fine Sunday morning and at a superficial level, it made no 'sense'. Sure there was plenty of emotional content (carried off by some great acting), stunning visuals and a perfect 'family oriented survival story' (as expressed by Rohit Ramachandran) but the 'sense' was only apparent in Irfan Khan's final rework of the story at the very end. However, I have a personal take on it.

Why is the book titled Life Of Pi? Pi is an irrational number and might be allegorical of life in general. It could  mean that the author is implying that life in itself is irrational and no amount of planning or control can save us from the ebb and flow of its chaotic nature - much like the life of Piscine.

Piscine is showcased as a smart, sensitive boy portrayed by Suraj Sharma. He is your typical awkward teenager with the same questions and doubts as anybody else his age, but what shines through is a rich dreamy inner life (he is willing to try on multiple religions as once, has an engaging soliloquy) and a sense of individuality (he creatively changes his embarrassing name Piscine to Pi) that provides the character with a certain depth of personality. 

On a careful analysis we can see that no character other than Pi is 'fully real' in the movie. His father played by Adil Hussain symbolizes a highly polarized Logos (He was an atheist ever since his prayers to the Gods went unanswered, but was cured from his polio by western medicine. He is also shown to have a purely  rational attitude and only an implied emotional side) whereas his mother played by Tabu embodied the principle of Eros (She had close ties with her religious roots as a means of holding onto her family from who she was estranged as they believed she had married beneath  her - to a zookeeper. She is also shown to have an emotional side and only an implied rational side). At the start of the movie, Pi is closer to his mother and rather a bit intimidated by his father indicative that Pi was tending towards a more feeling orientated way of life - but he was in for a shock. This dreamy boy's friendly curiosity towards Richard Parker (the tiger) was broken when his father demonstrated to Pi Richard Parker's real nature when he fed a live goat to the tiger and the tiger's ferocity shocked a young Pi. His father instructed him that what he saw in the tiger's eyes was just his own emotions being reflected back at him. 

As is the case with many such rude encounters with reality, when one's developing function is shockingly proved to be 'wrong' or 'useless', the ego pushes this function back into the unconscious from where it came. This is evident from the statement that Pi entered a sense of meaningless existence where school and even swimming became empty and he simply went through the motions of the day. His intuition was still functioning though as he continued exploring religion but with a lack of feeling as all his endeavours lacked any value, nor was his psyche vast or experienced enough to bring out the thinking function - to make him similar to his father. What could have been his saving grace then was the dancer who had caught his fancy. There again we see his intuition hard at work when he is able to understand what the dancer's steps symbolizes, he   approaches her using the only functional orientation he knows - intuition (he asks her what a particular mudra meant, doesn't bring her flowers-sensation, write her a poem-feeling or create an elaborate plan to woo her-thinking). Again, typical of adolescent love, it didn't last long as Pi was to move to Canada with his family.

The story progresses with his ship sinking in the sea and the (supposed) death of every human other than himself. He finally finds himself on a lifeboat with 5 animals - a zebra, a monkey, a hyena, a tiger and a rat. In Pi's altered version of the story the zebra was a sailor, the monkey his mother, the hyena a cook and finally the tiger was himself. Two clues that tell us that the animals are  anthropomorphic representations of humans is when the Japanese investigator points out that 'Bananas don't float' and other being the fact that the tiger stayed hidden under the tarpaulin of the boat, sharing the same space as the hyena for far too long than naturally possible. Of course this does add merit to Pi's final version 'real' version of the story, but lets just assume that there is more.

First to reach the boat is the Zebra, a dull, harmless, herbivorous animal. The zebra represents the state in which Pi is while initially facing this challenge. Like the zebra he too is gentle, does no harm and is more or less a dullard. The black and white stripes on the zebra represent his confused state with regard to spirituality (and his sexuality to some extent) and also the black and white mentality of someone who's cognitive strengths are still archaic and undeveloped.

Second on the boat is the orange monkey representative of Pi's Eros picked up from his mother. As pointed out by the Japanese investigator the monkey floated onto the lifeboat, on bananas. In popular cultural bananas symbolize the male phallus and like all things dead, dead phalluses float. It is interesting that the monkey should be called 'orange' juice with orange being the colour of the Swadhisthana chakra - the chakra of emotion and/or the mother. Another pointer is in the scene just before the ship sinking when Pi's father sedates the animals. During that scene Pi is seen talking to orange juice and innocently and asks his father why the animals need to be sedated to which his father replies that sea-sickness is bad and that he doesn't want to clean up after the journey. It again emphasizes his fathers (the principle of Logo's) distaste for everything 'emotional' comparing it to vomit, another blow to Pi's psyche, the balance to which can only be restored by a major upheaval, liking the sinking of his ship that could connect him back to his feeling function.

The third animal on the boat is the hyena and is a stereotypical symbol of cunning. On looking at cunning we can see that it is analogous of crooked thinking. It isn't like the self aggrandizing idealistic thinking of a hero or a knight nor is it strategically superior like that of a general in a war zone. Cunning is selfish thinking and focuses only on the survival of the individual at all costs. Here we see that the hyena first kills the zebra, symbolic of the death of his innocence and secondly the monkey, his realization that he can't depend on his mother to magically save him (she had done so before a couple of times before in the movie) anymore and is on his own with his cleverness. It also portrays the fumbling start to his thinking function which he desperately needs in order to survive alone. However, much more than mere cleverness is needed to survive the hardships of the dark blue ocean.

Finally, in a sudden fit of hunger the tiger (Richard Parker) jumps out from under the tarpaulin and kills the hyena - the birth of something new - his inner warrior! An interesting part about the tiger is that it was initially called Thirsty but later gets humanized to Richard Parker (in modern city life a man's true warrior spirit is largely repressed and never let out in the raw from that nature intended it to be, leading a variety of neurosis - from aggression to rape) something that Pi laughed about. Also, even before the zebra, Pi initially sees Richard Parker try to get onto the boat (symbolic that he initially rejects his warrior) but hits him with his oar to push him away but Richard Parker gets on the boat anyway (probably while Pi was asleep sometime). By now its pretty certain that the tarpaulin represents all that is unconscious in him and the exposed part of the boat everything that he knows. 

As the story progresses, we see Pi getting closer to the tiger and finding out that living FOR the tiger is what kept him alive i.e. his drive to keep alive the warrior archetype in him. We then see that the final animal to die in the face of his warrior is the rat. The rat almost always symbolizes wisdom since it is the mammal closest to the earth. If the lion is the king of the jungle then the elephant is always the priest of the jungle (in both African and Indian lore) but the only animal that an elephant is afraid off is the rat (and the snake, but that is a whole different story in itself - technically because elephants can't see little things well) symbolized in Indian mythology as Ganesha's (he has the head of an elephant) vehicle after being 'tamed' by him. In the movie, the death of the rat symbolizes Pi's total surrender to his warrior (he henceforth does what it takes, eats non-veg and goes against everything his religions have taught him (his ego defenses still being active though - when he thanks Lord Vishnu for appearing as a fish than bereave himself for eating non-vegetarian food)) when he personally throws the rat into the tiger's mouth. What then proceeds as a typical survival movie, but with a couple of stopovers.

There is one surreal scene where the ocean is extraordinarily and unrealistically calm and the surface is filled with jellyfish and a majestic whale makes a leap out of water. Visual stunning, this scene is a stereotypical archetypal dream. Water and the ocean have always represented the unconscious and the stillness of it implies a closeness to the unconscious that the ego has achieved than never before (nothing like being isolated on a boat in the middle of nowhere to get 'in touch' with oneself). Creatures like fishes and jellyfishes also represent content that are half inside-half outside - psychological content that the dreamer is 'almost' aware of - in the case of Pi his merger with his warrior. The whale is also symbolic of a 'big dream' and always shows itself when the unconscious is going to show one the wisdom of the ages (the rat being wisdom of the current time - a collective wisdom specific to one's culture) and of mankind in general - of intuition and creativity. If you remember closely, Richard Parker barely reacts to these beings almost as if he knows and accepts them but it is us the viewer and Pi himself who is amazed by them!

Following the calm, there is always the storm. Again a salute to the visual effects which captures in every detail the fury that mother nature can unleash - and it is here that Pi and Richard Parker are truly one, where their physical states are shown to be fully synchronized. The most interesting aspect of the movie however occurs after the storm.

Richard Parker and Pi find themselves on a strange island. The island is a paradise with no natural predators but having an overabundance of a curious animal - meerkats! Meerkats in dreams and active imagination usually imply 'watchful wisdom'. Being close to the rodent family, they again symbolize wisdom - but with a catch. As the movie then shows us, the island itself is carnivorous and devours its inhabitants at night while providing them life giving nourishment by day. Pi also finds a fruit on a tree, inside which he finds a tooth which he thinks is of a sailor who was trapped there before. Curiously however the tooth is a wisdom tooth, judging from its size and sturdiness. We also see that Richard Parker has an instinct about the island and runs away at night. Pi later explains that nobody else has seen this island nor is it on any map. What might this numinous island represent?

The clue in answering the question is in the final long-shot of the island where it is shown to be shaped like a human being - I'd conclude that it is the archetype of The Self. Characteristic of the self, the island provides the ego eternal rest. Jung points out that an ego that has assimilated the Self knows no past of future but exists simply in the everythingness of its totality. It is the prized archetype that all religions aim to reach and THE archetype from which all other archetypes are branched out from. But the catch with the assimilation of the Self is stagnation in all forms - physical, mental, emotional and spiritual - leading to one's death. The ego can completely and truly absolve itself into the Self when it has no further desires to be in this world and enter into complete samadhi - something that Pi has no idea about. Thus we see that the island nourishes, but at the same time devours everyone that it encounters, symbolic of dying while being alive - something that only saints aspire to be. Furthermore Richard Parker is extremely apprehensive of the dark side of the Self as the warrior is an archetype that connects one completely and totally to LIFE!

Finally as Pi and Richard Parker's journey reaches an end and they land on the Mexican shore, Richard Parker is shown to run away into the jungle without looking back. On reaching the shore we again see Pi's feeling function erupt as he longs for a final goodbye from Richard Parker but the warrior is not one to do so.  Jung famously stated that "Sentimentality is the superstructure erected upon brutality" here Pi's ego being sentimental but his archetypal opposite - the warrior continuing its brutality, without looking back and braving forwards by living free in the jungle. The best way to say goodbye to the warrior is not to say goodbye at all... 

Personal Notes
1) Just like all such interpretations, it could just be an over interpretation. As with all art it could be meaningful expression of something the artist wishes to convey to the world, or that which grips the artist and has to be expressed as a communication from the unconscious or a big fat lying joke
2) Yann Martel spent significant time in India and studied philosophy, so some of the observations in this interpretation might be justified
3) This is based purely from the movie, I have read only about 10 pages of the book
4) I really really miss using this word from my childhood, pissing. Its all 'restroom', 'men's room' or the 'laterine' now. PISSSING! There I said it out loud, now say it out loud again, for me. Pissing!!
5) I've seen the movie only once and there might be factual errors. Please do point them out if any!
6) The dream interpretation of the animals are based on my understanding of various schools and hence may not match with any particular school of dreams. Personally however I am closest to the Jungian school.

Anima - I

[Unedited, unabridged, that was the deal]
[This is not poetry, this is communication. I did not write this]

Dearest bride to be, now everlast
born of the same womb, till death do us apart
Shine you now in the pale moonlight,
our souls entwined, our pain, aghast

Like the neverwinter, the icy chill
of distant lands from lonely window sills,
Persephone or Sita, the soul of nigredal night,
you taunt and scream for me to come out

Fight for me beloved, fight for me my love!
for heaven's fury has leant thou a blow
For he who crawls and he who screams,
the shadow's curse shall befall thee!

Swim with me in the deep dark water,
of mermaids and fishes and paths beyonder
Nigredo crawls, nigredo screams,
we run with you, run to the sea

Majestic queen always unknown,
why do you play games with me, oh goddess home?
I shall play with you, play with you forever,
for you and I we're in this together

Like a prayer you sing to me,
when I'm the one who wants you more
Oh little boy, when will you grow up
for I've waited, waited too long

Kiss me, embrace me and then let me go
for you and I are already so
I am you for we are one,
yet coiled like the snakes of caduceus

If words don't satiate but they will have to do,
to tell you goodbye oh so soon.
With sadness I wish you the best
but you hold me close as I sink in your chest

Are we in love? Oh who are you?
I thought I knew, now I don't want you
Get away filthy scum, your hands are dirty!
for I'm still waiting for the kingdom come

Death, death! He wants me, he wants me,
only you oh noble one can even save me
Carry me, whisk me away,
so the evil shadow doesn't catch us

But who are you? Are you my child?
You are so different now, have we met before?
I was alone and confused, but now you're here
You make me think, the haze disappears

Eternal mystery you are to me boy,
am I your mother or your love child?
I hate you and I love you, for you are a man
and I am a cowardly princess from a far away land

We'll build a house, we'll burn some sticks,
you pray for me, watch over me until I undress
But something comes over you as the night falls,
I fear not if the shadow walks through these halls

There is a stillness between us, nature's bond
to keep us apart for shallow beings we are
Build a bridge, build a bridge now!
Before its too late before you're too old!

Oh my old man, we're so alike,
you and I are one, we always were one
I am blind, I can never see,
I think a little... so sorry, let me be

I regress now back to my nascent state,
I'll pray for you, keep away the goddess of hate
Sleep my child for tomorrow, you and I
will be together again, for ever more...

Paulo Coelho 's Other and the Winnicottian False Self

In a book titled "By the River Piedra I Sat Down and Wept" Paulo Coelho speaks to the reader about the exercise of The Other:

It is described as such:

“What is the Other?" they ask.

The Other is the one who taught me what I should be like, but not what I am. The Other believes that it is our obligation to spend our entire life thinking about how to get our hands on as much money a possible so that we will not die of hunger when we are old. So we think so much about money and our plans for acquiring it that we discover we are alive only when our days on earth are practically done. And then it's too late."

And you? Who are you?"

I am just like everyone else who listens to their heart: a person who is enchanted by the mystery of life. Who is open to miracles, who experiences joy and enthusiasm for what they do. It's just that the Other, afraid of disappointment, kept me from taking action."

But there is suffering in life," one of the listeners said.

And there are defeats. No one can avoid them. But it's better to lose some of the battles in the struggle for your dreams than to be defeated without ever even knowing what you're fighting for."

That's it?" another listener asked.

Yes, that's it. When I learned this, I resolved to become the person I had always wanted to be. The Other stood there in the corner of my room, watching me, but I will never let the Other into myself again----even though it has already tried to frighten me, warning me that it's risky not to think about the future.
From the moment that I ousted the Other from my life, the Divine Energy began to perform its miracles.”

Nice try Mr. Coelho, Donald Winnicott beat you to it. A deeper explanation into the role of the false self and the freeing up of the true self would appear in the collectivized thinking that the false self endorses. If however one individuates in the true sense as per the Jungian way, there can easily be a meeting point between the true self AND the false false provided one's ego has differentiated the thinking AND feeling function operating within one's psyche - thereby allowing the complete language of the Self to ensue.  

As to why this book has a close association to me, I'll write about later..maybe...

The Dark Knight Rises: An Interpretation Along The Jungian Process Of Individuation

[Contains spoilers!]
[For clarifications or criticisms please look at the personal notes at the end of the post]
[I'm assuming some familiarity with Carl Jung's work, if not here is a primer]

It turns out that The Dark Knight Rises is resplendent enough with interesting characters and a plot to encapsulate the Jungian process of individuation with Bruce Wayne's journey being the template for the character conjoining back to the archetype of the Self. Described below is an archetypal analysis of the stages of the process of individuation as portrayed in the movie with the various characters representing (being projections of) the psyche of the Batman/Bruce Wayne ego-entity.

Ego/Persona
A curious feature of superheroes is the question of  "Who made who?" - did the alter ego create the superhero or did the superhero create the alter ego. For example did Bruce Wayne's ego (billionaire, playboy, wounded child) create the Batman's persona (crime fighting hero) or did the Batman's ego create Bruce Wayne as a persona? A not-so-bad analysis is done in this one shot where it is agreed upon that neither is the persona of the other. Bruce Wayne DOES want to be a billionaire-playboy but at the same time wants to be the crime fighting Batman. This is evident from the first movie where he re-appears on the Gotham social scene with two models on either arm and in The Dark Knight with seven. In The Dark Knight Rises (TDKR) Miranda Tate mentions that Bruce never attended charity balls, but his pursuit of women shows that he might have accepted that image to a certain level. To conclude, neither the Batman nor Bruce Wayne is the controlling ego but are both a part of the same person - a well integrated balanced personality.

Abandoned Child
Another curious aspect of superhero movies is the archetype of the abandoned child and its projection. Every hero has lost a loved one(s) early on in their childhood (Batman - his parents, Superman - his planet Krypton, Spiderman - his uncle Ben, Green Lantern - his father etc) urging the hero to use the rage and pain to do good. These characters, instead of embracing the barren abandoned nature of their psyche project it onto their respective cities (Superman - Metropolis, Batman - Gotham, Green Lantern - Coast City etc) protecting them from villains and the like, playing the role of a protective parent.

The Shadow
The shadow is when things gets interesting. In TDKR Batman's shadow is portrayed by another masked character - Bane. Born of the same spiritual father (Ra's al Ghul) Bane seeks to altogether (metaphorically) eliminate the pained projection of the abandoned child by planning to detonate a "fully primed neutron bomb" in Gotham city. It is characteristic of the shadow to have the same overall goals of the ego only to use methods that have been rejected by it, in Bane's case it included building an army (Batman works alone), expose himself completely (Batman is a symbol) to the press and the people, kill and not be afraid to die himself. Bane is also portrayed as having an emotionless persona (as against Batman's sentimental side) with a strong Extraverted Thinking ("If he's dead, show me his body" - when commissioner Gordon jumps into the sewer) as well as a philosophical bent of thought characteristic of Introverted Intuition ("I was wondering what would break first, your spirit or your body" - before breaking Batman's back) characteristic of an antagonistic ENTJ with many superheroes being portrayed as being ruled by Introverted Sensing (either in an overly conscious or demonically unconscious way, as discussed with Rohit Ramachandran) doesn't allow them to move on from childhood emotional trauma.

Viewing this from Bruce Wayne's perspective, the time he spends in Bane's prison is a stereotypical "dark night"/nigredo experience where the ego has to gain the strength to beat the shadow (climb out of the pit and be physically fit to take on Bane). Bruce Wayne now needed to reach back into that very emotion (fear) which he had triumphantly conquered over (and hence rejected - Bruce Wayne mentions "I'm not afraid of dying") in Batman Begins. Jung explains that integrating with the shadow requires the ego to face all that it has rejected - fear being the motivator that metaphorically characterizes the albedal upward force propelling  Bruce Wayne out of the pit.

Anima
Nolan keeps us guessing here. Who IS the heroine of the movie? Is it Miranda Tate or is it Catwoman (Selina Kyle). For those of us familiar with Batman lore we already know that Miranda Tate (Talia al Ghul) is   Ra's al Ghul's daughter and Nolan doesn't go against the mythology and remains true to her identity. That only leaves Selina Kyle as the anima figure in TDKR.

Selina Kyle has a majority of the characteristics of the anima - different goals (she only wants the device that deletes all her records as well as a drive towards freedom, away from Gotham City) but shares Bruce Wayne's sentimentality and compassion. However, she has her own methods (manipulation, thieving, seduction) to achieve her aims - things the Batman never considered (before even having to reject them). Furthermore, symbolic of Bruce Wayne's growth it is Catwoman that finally destroys Bane by shooting him (he forgives her for it of course - they do live happily ever after don't they?) which the Batman grudgingly approves of when he kisses her at the very end ("Guess we're both suckers then"). On the journey of individuation, when the ego and shadow are in a deadlock, a common participation mystique is when the shadow is overcome or integrated ONLY after encountering the anima and it is her call that gives the ego the strength to finally triumph over the shadow.

Wise Old Man
In usual superhero mythology, the hero is always brought up by a wise old man/woman/couple (Superman - Jonathan and Martha Kent, Spiderman - Uncle Ben and Aunt May etc ) where, in spite of a lack of parental figures superheroes have an emotional and moral functioning core (unlike most villains who lack it). In the case of Nolan's Batman that role is played by Alfred, his butler. Although an 'employee' of Bruce Wayne Alfred shows all the love and care that a father would to child but quite mindful that he isn't really Bruce's father. He doesn't however hesitate in interfering with Bruce Wayne's matters at what he feels to be the appropriate time ("No. I'm afraid that you want to." - when Bruce asks him if he would fail going up against Bane, burning Racheal's letter in The Dark Knight to save Bruce the pain of rejection from the only person he loved, walking out on him to try to urge him to stop being the Batman etc). He is also always at Batman's side preventing him from slipping into the darkness that always gnawed at his soul (suturing his injuries, researching villains, providing a wiser view on matters, taking care of his fitness and the Wayne estate etc), but never fully aiding him either - aware that it is Bruce Wayne's journey and not his own.

Dark Mother
Miranda Tate's character is one not usually found in superhero movies - The Dark Mother. The dark mother is symbolic of absolute safety, complacency and the temptation of eternal rest away from the harshness of life. In Nolan's trilogy, since childhood Bruce Wayne is fighting a never ending battle against evil with his only hope for a normal life (Rachel Dawes) being killed by The Joker in The Dark Knight and is finally able to lay down his suit after The Joker's arrest. In the beginning of TDKR Bruce Wayne/The Batman has not appeared in public for 8 years, characteristic of the emergence of The Dark Mother archetype. It is later revealed that he has been silently working with Miranda Tate to set up the fusion reactor which would be his ultimate gift to the world. A curious feature of being under the influence of The Great Mother is of one being safely apart from the world, protected in the mother's womb but looking outside - judging (a depressive episode). In those 8 years Bruce Wayne has shown this characteristic, although not explicitly mentioned his actions of pulling the plug on his fusion project after Dr.Pavlov was kidnapped is indicative of his growing paranoia (in The Dark Knight he trusts the people of Gotham to not blow up the 2 boats). Miranda Tate also served as the one board member in Wayne enterprises that Bruce explicitly trusted and who also initiated sexual relations with him at his lowest point (when Bane's antics in the stock exchange makes him lose all his wealth) - like a mother comforting her wounded son.

The Trickster
The trickster in TDKR is played by Lucious Fox, the sly CEO of Wayne Enterprises. The trickster represents that function of the ego which one believes one has control over but never really does which in the case of Bruce Wayne is Wayne Enterprises. The trickster also aids in the process of individuation by challenging the ego but never in direct opposition (Fox provides the Batman's equipment, financial and political power - 'tricks' necessary for the Batman to operate freely but at the same time weapons when in the wrong hands (Bane takes over the Batman's armory and destroys Bruce's wealth to hand over power to John Dagett)). Many times he acts as a 'partner-in-crime' to the ego/persona but never fully invested in his journey with an attitude of someone going for a ride just for the heck of it.

The Unindividuated Ego
The unindividuated ego is played by commissioner Gordon. He is the hero that could never be. His aims and goals are the same as that of the Batman but does not do what is really necessary to achieve them. He is willing to play the role of the husband, father and police officer but never to venture beyond that, someone whose every success is directly or indirectly dependent on the Batman's actions (from Gordon's perspective, symbolic of success coming out of a higher calling that has not been addressed yet - beginner's luck) and his heeding to that call. Gordon is aware of the call (allows the Batsignal to operate) but never goes beyond it to take matters into his own hands as a self-actualized individual would (that to actively investigate the Batman and find out who or what he is, does not muster up the courage to reveal to Gotham Harvey Dent's crimes). This quote by commissioner Gordon describes himself the best : "There's a point far out there, when the structures fail you. When the rules aren't weapons anymore, they're shackles, letting the bad guy get ahead... Maybe one day you'll have such a moment of crisis. And in that moment, I hope you have a friend like I had. Someone willing to... plunge their hands into the filth, so that you can keep yours clean."

Eternal Child
Jung described the Eternal Child as "the man who didn't grow up" - much like John 'Robin' Blake's character in the story. In spite of suffering as a young boy, John holds on to his youthful ideals and becomes a police officer (unlike Bruce Wayne who embraced the darkness to become the Batman). He too feels like Bruce Wayne but has not given up hope of a better future and has faith in the Batman. At the very end of the movie, it is he that as Bruce's spiritual hire inherits the Batman's assets as he too self actualizes (when he throws away the police badge as being ineffective) and is ready to take up the Batman's mantle, but free to mold it to his own liking.

The Self
The archetype of The Self is personified by the neutron bomb/fusion reactor that Bruce Wayne was trying to construct. On saving to fail The Divine Child (Harey Dent in The Dark Knight - the fallen White Knight of Gotham city) Bruce Wayne (although not explained in detail) decides to spend his fortune on developing a prototype nuclear reactor to provide free energy for "an entire city". He ceases to focus on his body and mind but rather on the nuclear reactor with additional funds (protective nature of the Dark Mother in whose safe abode delusions of grandeur can be entertained) from Miranda Tate. But just like all archetypes the Self can have a dark side when it becomes corrupted by the Shadow (Bane) and changes into the ticking neutron bomb destined to fulfill Ra's Al Ghul's goal. At the very end of the movie when the Batman self-destructs with the bomb, it is symbolic of the ego finally merging with the Self to create a new third "happier" version of himself - in touch with the Anima (relationship with Selina Kyle), exorcises his parents death (gives Selina his mother's necklace), integrates the light and dark aspects of himself (he gives up the Batcave to John Blake and Wayne Manor to Alfred to start afresh) and at the very end gives a warm smile to the one archetype closest to the Self, The Wise Old Man - Alfred

Personal Notes
1. The entire post could just be over interpretation. Christopher Nolan might never have intended it.

2. "Patients suffering delusional episodes often focus their paranoia on an external tormentor. Usually one conforming to Jungian archetypes. In this case, a scarecrow" is a quote (0:33) by The Scarecrow in The Batman Begins. Christopher Nolan does know something about Jungian ideas, or maybe all film makers do. There is also a lot of online literature comparing Nolan's Inception to Jungian active imagination.

3. I've seen TDKR about 7 times now. Yes, Tom Hardy's rendition of Bane is that awesome.

4. Did I already say that Tom Hardy as Bane is awesome?

5. Some mappings between Jungian Archetypes and characters may not be very straightforward. For example

a) Many would argue that Alfred is not the wise old man but rather "Us" in the movie (something Michael Caine himself commemorates in interviews) - an indicative of what a common Gothamite would think if he or she were to know about Bruce Wayne being Batman

b) Alfred-Lucious Fox could be seen together as the "Wise Old Men"

c) Miranda Tate could also be seen as a "Negative Trickster" constantly derailing  (marking the wrong bus as the bomb carrier, providing Bane with information, pretending to be on Batman's ally) the Batman's individuation process

d) John Dagget although having no mention can be seen as a "Negative Wise Old Man" - someone on Wayne Enterprise's board but colluding with The Shadow (Bane)

6. I am just an aficionado of  Jung and am no way qualified for such an analysis. If my analysis is wrong please feel free to mention so in the comments.

Winnicottian State Of Play & The Transitional Object - A Jungian Perspective

Donald Woods Winnicott was a towering figure in the field of Object Relations Theory and came up with creative ideas such as the transitional object and state of play. These theories are highly descriptive of the early stages of development of an adult ego and suggest a process in which new skills are learnt so as to be applied in real life.

Carl Jung made a clear distinction between one's public face (the persona archetype) and the ego-complex (as something closer to its Freudian definition). Modern theorists concur that for a healthy life an ego has to have good levels of self-esteem and self-efficacy, two qualities whose subjective values are largely determined by comparison to other individuals in the outside world. To increase self-esteem and self-efficacy  an individual will have to learn the skills perceived as necessary that will then become a part of their persona, identifying that person with a skill.

Winnicott shows that for there to be healthy learning, a child will go through a phase of uncertainty where the skill/object to be learned/conquered is projected onto a transitional object (eg. In children, a big pink teddy bear might initially be perceived as a threat which would then turn into an object of curiosity and finally into a possession but only when the child feels safe enough to interact with it due to the presence of a parental figure) in a state of play. This similar process can be seen when adults learns various skills as well albeit in the absence of a parental figure, but rather from a sense of trust and confidence in themselves. However, it is a well known fact that an individual's learning ability decreases with age with a peak learning curve seen in early childhood until late teens. Or is that the way it should be?

Jung showed that the child archetype in a prospective role is a representation of future potentialities and psychological maturation. Due to various pressures, as an individual grows up and matures he/she will identify less with the child archetype - disallowing the ego to enter seamlessly into a state of play or to perceive new experiences and skills as transitional objects impairing the rapid assimilation and mastery of new skills and ideas.

In today's fast paced world, in order to survive one needs to constantly be open to new ideas and ways of doing things. These can either be forced onto the individual arising from a sense of fear of being obsolete or can be approached with a sense of play - via one's positive child archetype. These new skills can then leak over onto the persona fueling constant rejuvenation and enrichment of one's public image boosting self-esteem and self-efficacy. Jung posited that the anima/animus archetype is a gateway or guide to the unconscious, but it is the child archetype that can truly act as a guide between the ego and the persona - almost like the opposite face of the anima/animus's golden syzygy.