Introduction
This work is devoted to studying Carl Jung’s theory on archetypal human stories within Herman Hesse’s novel, Demian. The essay analyses Emil Sinclair’s character regarding the Jungian Shadow archetype. The story is set in Germany in the decade before the First World War. This paper explores how the various types of shadows of Emil Sinclair’s character are reflected in the novel, their triggers, and their effects. Emil Sinclair views his home as the “light,” which describes something good (Hesse 67). Concurrently, Sinclair feels he has a different view on specific issues such as religion that he is relatively reluctant to share with his family. The theory of Carl Jung is perfectly superimposed on the work of Hermann Hesse Demian, where the plot is saturated with psychologism and symbols of acceptance of oneself and one’s experience.
Characteristics of the Shadow Archetype
The first aspect discussed in this work is the shadow archetype majorly, which stems from the theory of individuation developed by Carl Jung. In Jungian analytical psychology, the individuation process refers to personal growth or “maturation” (Kotzé 514). Through this complex process, the personality’s shadow aspects become fully integrated (Jung, “Psychological Types” 51). Individuation starts from developing an adequate awareness of the shadow’s existence. It implies that a person should learn to understand one’s actual self and distinctive features to mature into the indivisible whole (Kotzé 515). Individuals can go beyond the limits of group attachments and comprehend their true selves (Hengehold 41). The novel Demian is built in the form of notes by Sinclair, recalling the events of his youth; therefore, a series of fragments-memories has a selective essence.
The novel creates symbols correlated with the Jungian “figures” of the unconscious. Sinclair’s path to himself is like the journey of a mythological hero who sets out to meet his destiny. As per Jung’s periodization, each soul learns to reject society’s morality and then replaces it with one’s ethical codes and fantasies (Kotzé 515). Having established these personal-level mythologies or systems of notions to approach the world, the soul reenters society and strikes the right balance between personal and collective beliefs (Jung, “Psychological Types” 5). During what seems to be individuation, Sinclair faces a variety of obstacles. Encounters with various characters, including Knauer, might also be perceived as challenges (Crew 12). These could facilitate the main character’s development and personal progress.
The archetype of the shadow is strongly associated with the problematization of human consciousness, his idea of himself. Some personality traits, for example, laziness, a tendency to deceive, can elude a person so as not to spoil the overall picture of self-perception. Then the person sees no conflict between how they see themselves and how others see them. Usually, otherwise, this leads to severe mental problems, low self-esteem, and self-blame. The issue of representation in society is seriously related to this archetype. People prefer not to notice negative character traits and take them out through projections on others or in dreams. In daydreams, people usually see a figure of their gender, which causes them irritation and condemnation. Some people who have pathologically low self-esteem and many feelings of shame or guilt do not see their positive traits, driving them into the shadow archetype.
Carl Jung nods to his colleague and teacher, Sigmund Freud, creating the concept of the shadow archetype. It is the shadow that Carl Jung occupies in almost the same place that Sigmund Freud occupies the unconscious with all the desires and impulses, usually unacceptable in society. A person entering into an active dialogue with the archetype of the shadow experiences a lot of contradictions that he needs to overcome for the sake of further adequate development of the personality and integration into society.
The shadow personifies everything that a person refuses to recognize in himself, so meeting with this shadow turns out to be severe psychotherapeutic stress. However, after meeting this shadow, a person feels better and more confident. Many mental processes and situations from the past become more understandable to a person. In addition, a person can improve relationships with relatives, friends, and loved ones. The absence of internal conflict is always the key to successful communication.
Separately, it should be noted the style of writing the works of Carl Jung, his categorical apparatus, and language. The results of Carl Jung are registered with the help of metaphors and allegories, which later became acceptable scientific terms. Such a language allowed Carl Jung, like Sigmund Freud, to find a borderline state between philosophy and psychology. Common sense tells the layman that if there is a shadow, then there is light. It fits into the logic of ordinary people who do not have specific psychological or philosophical training. Carl Jung does use the figure of light along with the shadow archetype. Light is what is illuminated by society, what manifests and actualizes problems and conditions there. Hermann Hesse has light in Demian, and with light, he associates the image of the house and family of Emil Sinclair.
In life, people who meet a conditional patient who profess a lifestyle that matches his own shadow cause him serious dissonance. Sometimes this dissonance results in aggression and irascibility; one judges others for their opinions and actions. It actively indicates that the prohibition mechanisms (social or cultural, civilized) act on a person in such a way that he forbids himself a lot of what he wants. It happens consciously through rationalization; often, a person uses reasoning, thoughtful and balanced. The process of individuation is associated with accepting the shadow and all the inner impulses that a person is usually ashamed to show and admit. It is necessary to reject the image of a dream formed in a person’s society. To this image, as it seems to a person, he is obliged to correspond at all costs: achieve success, work at a particular enterprise, start a family, have children, and much more. These requirements can vary greatly depending on the society in which one lives, as they reflect the values of the people around them.
A healthy personality breaks out of the shackles of constant demands on oneself, which have a destructive effect on forming attitudes towards others. Internal conflicts or hostility towards oneself and one’s traits will necessarily lead to outbreaks of aggression or unexpected situations. Life in conflict with oneself leads to rash actions, spoils relationships with people, and a person gradually begins to hate himself. In Demian of Hermann Hesse, the protagonist noticeably struggles with himself and his inner impulses, succumbing to the archetype of the shadow.
Emil Sinclair’s Life and Shadow Integration
It was essential for Hesse to show the subjective chronotype of Emil’s life to create new images of the characters. Therefore, the shadow appears gradually and eventually impacts Emil’s choices. As expected, Emil tries to hide aspects of it as they are viewed as immoral and shameful. The characters appear to be authentic and seriously capture Sinclair. It is because the symbols are not only understood but, according to Jungian principles, represent experiences linked with personal backgrounds and associations (Jung, “Dream Symbols of the Individuation Process” 117). The statement above is especially relevant to symbols from dreams that become the unfoldments of personalities (Jung, “Dream Symbols of the Individuation Process” 117). Further, the following section of the work presents five instances where the shadow is well exemplified.
Lying to Franz Kromer
The first shadow of Emil Sinclair is the lie he told Franz Kromer to avoid getting into his bad books. It came up when he was ten years old and triggered his fear of the large and authoritarian Kromer. They and some boys from the neighborhood were walking and talking about the mischievous wrongdoings that they had done. When it was his turn, Sinclair, out of his fear of Kromer, made an intricate story of the thievery of apples in which he was the hero (Hesse 6). Emil claimed to have stolen a sack of apples, and Kromer threatened and blackmailed Sinclair to pay him, so he did not inform others what was done (Hesse 47). He is confident that this deception would, without a doubt, cause him to commit numerous other bad things. Thus, the character is forced to fulfill the requests of Kromer.
In this story, he was subjected to blackmail and cruel actions because of suspicions of a crime. Emil does come from a good religious family that he sees as the “light.” Such a boy ideally would not partake in misdeeds such as lying about stealing apples or even succumbing to blackmail on things he did not do in the first place. However, Sinclair does yearn profoundly to fit in with Kromer and his friends and wants to impress them (Hesse 50). As a result, Sinclair forges a story to impress them, but his resultant naivety cannot allow him to see that their threats are empty.
Stealing
The second shadow happened when Sinclair cracked open a piggy bank that his mother kept for him and stole sixty-five pfennigs to take to Kromer to offset part of his debt. Kromer, however, persisted in harassing and blackmailing Sinclair, and he devised new, even worse ways of tormenting Emil. Finally, the main character was forced to steal to pay the two marks, which brought him further blackmailing. This shadow reflects Sinclair’s fear regarding his unwillingness to be declared guilty by the authorities or parents. Kromer was aware of each theft escapade and used this as leverage on Emil (Hesse 41). The effect of his thievery episodes left him under the mercies of Kromer, who used this chance to take advantage of the character’s naivety.
Doubting the Bible and Drifting Away from Christian Teachings
The third shadow happens when Sinclair begins to doubt the Bible and Christianity. Max Demian opens the main character’s mind to new and uncustomary ways of interpreting religion. Rumors around school suggested that the new classmate was either an atheist or a Jew. Demian chooses to attend religious confirmation classes the same year as Sinclair. Max’s uncustomary way of interpreting the Cain and Abel story brings him close to Emil, who is soon profoundly fascinated by his classmate’s way of thinking. The “irrefutable lack of adequate company” or the individual’s loneliness can surround the process of searching for one’s true self (Crew 7). Confrontation with the shadow archetype and its subsequent integration into the individual’s consciousness promote the union of opposites (Kotzé 515). This union can address the all-encompassing loneliness and encourage a person’s unification with the world’s events by promoting reintegration into society. Sinclair feels that Demian’s mindset helps him expand his mental capacity to handle life’s good and evil aspects. Max often offers his unique interpretation of the religious teachings to Sinclair, and over time, Emil begins to question the Biblical teachings and his religious beliefs.
Sinclair’s religious beliefs die down gradually; he, however, does not entirely deny all teachings in Christianity and the Bible. Instead, he respects the pros of leading a religious-observant life but is more open in the way he interprets the Biblical teachings. He has unconventional interpretations of the same Bible influenced by his continuous interaction with Max Demian, whom he views as a superior human. These understandings eventually impact Sinclair’s choices in life and his general view of life.
Sinclair’s New Lifestyle with Beck
The fourth shadow happens as Sinclair embraces a new lifestyle with Alfons Beck that is not consistent with his teachings or his typical character. Emil goes to a Christian boarding school, where he struggles to make friends. Throughout the narrative, profound metamorphoses occur with the hero; he goes through a complex mystical and psychological path, abandoning his former self (Hengehold 43). The character did not see Demian for some time and missed him, but at the same time, hates Max for his contribution to his current mental state.
Sinclair, who has been at the school for almost a year, meets with Alfons Beck, the school’s eldest boy, while exploring the town alone. Beck invites Emil to drink at a local tavern, where Sinclair gets drunk for the first time. Beck introduces the character into another part of the realm of pleasures consorting with women. Sinclair, however, does not join in the sexual episodes. Part of him still believes in the emotional fullness that love brings, which sex cannot provide.
This first drinking night leads to a long phase of evil. Soon, Sinclair is well known at school for his drunkenness and being unruly. He often gets in trouble and is always close to being expelled for his ill mannerisms. Despite him now being a ringleader of the rebels in the school, Emil still feels lonely and is without real friends. He soon becomes a poor student. Interestingly, from Jung’s lectures, “the willingness to descend into one’s own darkness” is a sign of embarking on a path of rebirth rather than degradation (Kotzé 517). Emil still does not care much about his failure and slowly begins to accept his quickly “darkening” fate.
Sinclair Misses His Old Self
The fifth shadow of the character of Emil Sinclair is undoubtedly not wrong. It happens when Sinclair begins to miss his old self and his friends and is exemplified further in the artwork. One of the essential aspects of the story is that Sinclair twice wrote to Demian but received no reply. One day in a park, Emil sees a girl he calls Beatrice and soon becomes interested in her; however, he never makes a move on Beatrice. Beatrice brings some hope to Sinclair’s life, and the character immediately stops going to bars and becomes more interested in school now. He begins living a more noble, solemn life; thus, Emil’s life takes a complete turnaround and becomes better, at least by the conventional opinion.
Emil dreamed about Demian and the symbolic coat of arms at Sinclair’s house on another night. He then goes ahead and paints the sparrow hawk in the coat of arms and sends this artwork to his old friend, Max. The desire to become independent is manifested in the image of such symbols of freedom as a sparrowhawk. On the other hand, Sinclair needs his help to become free, and he admits to feeling some increasing independence. Sinclair’s dreams and paintings clearly show how he misses his old lifestyle and friend, Demian.
One unexpected evening while walking around the town, Sinclair hears a quite familiar voice. It is Max’s voice, and after stalking his companion, they reunite. Friends share ideas, and eventually, Demian invites Emil to his new house. Sinclair, at this point, is pleased that he will now get a chance to see Demian’s mother once again. Sinclair’s constant deep desire to reunite with his friend and Max’s mother shows how he missed the old days. From the self’s point of view, known as the center of the whole personality, the ego, which is the center of the conscious, appears as an object (Kotzé 516). Sinclair identifies with Demian, which enables him to approach his true self at the end of the novel.
By combining the different projections, the character gets a piece of his actual personality, which, in Jung’s theory, happens when one comes to terms with the shadow aspect. Sinclair repeatedly had symbolic dreams that reminded him of different elements of his former life (Kotzé 515). Emil might have tried to hide his need for constant help to understand the concepts of life broadly, but eventually, all his struggles led him back to Max.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this paper considered the Debian novel in which the main research issues were Jungian’s concept of shadow that is not good and evil and the main protagonist’s journey. Within the framework of this analysis, integration of the shadow was discussed. To sum up, Emil Sinclair has five different shadows, not all of which are inherently negative. Other causes trigger every shadow in Emil Sinclair’s character. Sinclair lied because he feared Kromer and wanted to impress the group so that he would fit in. He stole because he stressed Kromer and worried that his parents or the authorities would discover his misdeeds, for which he felt ashamed. Emil doubted the Bible and Christianity due to his constant engagement with his new friend Demian. The main character embraced a new lifestyle to fill the void and emptiness caused by changing his living environment and meeting new people. Finally, Sinclair missed his old lifestyle and friends since he now had a higher understanding of life that transcended most societal norms, and his old friends had helped shape him on that path.
Additionally, each shadow of Emil Sinclair’s character has a consequence. His fictitious story caused him to be blackmailed and tormented, making him feel miserable. Emil’s thievery further made the torments from Kromer even worse and made him ashamed and humiliated. Doubting Christianity and the Bible enabled him to view life differently and be more accepting of people’s different views. Sinclair’s new lifestyle caused harm and pain to his family, who had to go through his constant expulsion threats. Missing his old lifestyle led him back to Demian and Eva, and therefore not all shadows are wrong, and not all effects of them are evil.
Works Cited
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