Pastoral Psychology, Vol. 41, No.

1, 1992

Jung's Concept of the Anima/Animus:

Enlightening or Frightening? 1
Roslyn A. Karaban

This article is an attempt to deal with Carl Jung's concept of the

anima/animus which is still quite influential today. In the history of inter-
pretation of this concept, Jung's dichotomy of masculine and feminine has
always been taken for granted. This dichotomy, however, presupposes a
sexist bias and view of the human person. This article challenges these pre-
suppositions from a feminist perspective.

ANIMMANIMUS CONCEPT
The anima is what Jung calls the essence of a man's personality, his
female spirit. The animus is the complementary male spirit that lives and
acts within a woman's psyche. Both the anima and animus are spontane-
ously produced by the unconscious and are archetypes (primordial images)
common to all people. For men the anima may be described as an image
which they project onto the women that they meet. Common archetypal
images include the Virgin, the Goddess, and the Divine Mother. For
women the animus may be projected onto men as a father-figure, movie
star or religious leader, to name but a few examples (Frey-Rohn, 1 9 7 4 ,
p. 264).
Jung believes that men and women are basically different. A woman,
by nature, possesses feminine qualities such as receptivity, warmth, patience,
and openness. These are "feminine" characteristics that each woman has
by virtue of being a woman. A man, likewise, possesses certain masculine
characteristics such as activity, decisiveness, and logical thinking (Singer,
1972, p. 236). A man does not only possess masculine qualities, but also

1This article originally appeared in Bangalore Theological Forum, Vol. 19, No. 4, Oct-Dec. 1987.
Address correspondence to Roslyn A. Karaban, M.Div., Ph.D., St. Bernard's Institute, 1100
South Goodman St., Rochester, N.Y. 14620.

39
© 1992Human SciencesPress, Inc.
40 Karaban

feminine qualities which make up his anima. The masculine qualities, how-
ever, are the dominant traits in a man. A woman also possesses masculine
qualities in addition to her feminine ones and these can be found in her
animus. Her feminine qualities, however, are the dominant ones.
Jung, then, holds a view of the human person as a being who pos-
sesses both masculine and feminine qualities within him/herself. In men
the masculine qualities are dominant and the feminine qualities often re-
main hidden or unconscious, whereas in women the masculine qualities
often remain dormant while the feminine qualities are the active ones. It
is important to note that Jung believes that this is only usually the case
and a woman can and should become conscious of her masculine traits (or
a man his feminine ones). Actually, this is what needs to happen in Jung's
concept of the process of individuation. However, for a woman to become
conscious of her masculine qualities does not mean to allow them equal
status or dominion over her feminine ones.
A woman or man usually only expresses his/her dormant qualities un-
consciously by projecting them onto men or woman they meet. In other
words, a woman will usually ignore or fail to recognize and express her
masculine side and will therefore look for a man who epitomizes mascu-
linity in a strong, assertive, and decisive way. Or, a man will usually refuse
to see or express his anima, his feminine self, and will look for a particularly
"feminine" w o m a n - - t e n d e r , patient, and receptive--to fulfill his unex-
pressed femininity. However, according to Jung, this woman may actually
be the man's own worst weakness (Jung, 1972, p. 189).

Enlightening?
Jung's foundational work in the discovery and explanation of the an-
ima and animus has been elaborated on by various therapists (Fordham,
Frey-Rohn, Harding, Becker, Singer). The anima/animus concept has often
been used in explaining and exploring relationships between men and
women. To cite a few examples:
Freida Fordham, in summarizing Jung's concept of the anima/animus,
states that Jung saw quarrels between husbands and wives as having their
basis in misunderstandings due to anima/animus projections (Fordham,
1966, p. 114). She suggests that integrating the anima and animus into con-
scious life leads to the possibility of more equal, partnership relationships
between men and women (Fordham, 1966, p. 115).
Ernest Becker describes the anima and animus as an "unkna~vn part-
ner within" (Becker, 1971, p. 32) which rules our choice of mates. This
unknown partner can create havoc in a marriage: