AUDIO
In his new book, The End of the World, author JON MILLS considers the question of why humanity seems bent on self-destruction. Jon, who is also a philosopher, psychoanalyst, and attorney, has appeared in courts across the U.S. on issues related to constitutionality, cybersecurity and privacy.
We face famine, climate change, obscene wealth disparities, and threats of global war and nuclear annihilation. Yet the majority of us seem to prefer living either in denial, or in irrational and active opposition to the writing on the wall.
This week Jungian analyst and co-host Lisa Marchiano interviews Jon about how we face up to impending catastrophe. Is there a viable alternative to the current situation in which we seem to be indulging a collective death wish, careening unconsciously toward a dangerous precipice?
Lisa and Jon discuss Jung’s emphasis on doing individual shadow work and how myth and fairy tale - a distillation of human nature and wisdom - might offer a spark of hope. If we can recognize and confront evil and hold the tension of opposites we can start a conversation with our shadow.
In the episode, we cover:
The Nature of Evil
We consider the existence of evil as an essential aspect of human nature. Jung considered evil to be a very real phenomenon, not merely the absence of good. The Jungian response to evil is that it is imperative that each of us do our own psychological work, especially on withdrawing the projection of our shadow on others. We must find the discipline to ask, “where is this in me?”, rather than pointing the finger at those we deem “bad”.
The human capacity for violence is a psychological fact, and it has played a role in all human development. On the personal level, growth often requires a kind of inner destruction, a symbolic death that makes way for a new attitude or way of being.
On the collective level, our impulses toward violence and dominance cannot simply be denied; they must be acknowledged and contained. Violence and evil are woven into our human story. Still, the question of what to do when our shadow side completely takes over, becoming personified in the machinery of the state, is a daunting one, and can feel impossible to answer adequately.
The Extent of Humanity’s Evolution
Humanity has evolved over time, achieving a highly developed sense of justice, complex aesthetic principles and sophisticated systems of values. On the one hand, we could say that in many ways we are the most enlightened and ethical species alive. On the other, we're the only species that takes pleasure in killing each other. As each technological age advances, our capacity for mass killing escalates.
We are, by nature, a social species, shaped by inter-group competition. This dynamic can bind us together, fostering cohesion and shared identity, but it also implies pleasure in uniting against a common enemy. Again and again, we see how readily human communities displace frustration, rage, and disappointment onto an “other.” Across history, collective life has often been organized and maintained through this kind of violence.
All of this makes the challenges of the modern age especially complex. As we confront multiple, overlapping existential threats, the question remains as to whether it is possible at this point to acknowledge and manage dark forces within ourselves and our societies, and to arrest our rapid progress toward self-annihilation.
Holding the Tension of Opposites
At the heart of Jungian thought is the principle of holding the tension of opposites. In both our personal lives and politics, rather than assuming the “other side” is evil and out to get us, we must resist the tension towards splitting, or rushing to take one side and condemning the other.
The Looming Threat of AI
Artificial intelligence (AI) poses a whole new set of dangers as it potentially becomes autonomous, and so far society and government have failed to take on the complex challenge of regulating this new technology. The rapid-scale unregulated development of AI represents another arena in which we are ignoring already evident disasters, and driving the technology forward without pausing for thought.
Mass Psychology
The dynamics of mass psychology tend to work against rational solutions to complex problems. Jung was deeply distrustful of the ways people become caught up in crowds, with an accompanying reduction of consciousness to the level of the lowest common denominator. Mass movements are fuelled by raw desire, conflict, passion and the emotion that drives group thinking. They can fuel polarization rather than providing a viable path forward.
Living Unconsciously
Currently humans struggle even to share an acknowledgment of empirically validated facts, which leaves us stuck in delusion and fantasy. Some of us are perhaps more aware of the dangers, but still intellectualize them away or feel so overwhelmed that we dissociate from problems that feel far too big to fix. There is a pressing need to overcome our unconsciousness on many issues and move on from the Pollyanna-ish denial of the horrors that stare us in the face.
How to Move Forward
Possibilities for change include working to influence our elected officials, who retain some power to create change.
At a psychological level, we can begin by adopting Jung’s recommendation to withdraw our shadow projections onto our fellow humans.
It is also crucial that we create grounds for conversation across polarized divides, holding the tension of opposites rather than collapsing into Melanie Klein’s paranoid schizoid position where all the good is “in here”, and all the bad is “out there".
The cultural artefact of hospitality and the archetype of the guest may offer inspiration. We need to reach a position where we can invite our enemies into our house, feed them a meal, and create a constructive dialogue. Just as in myths and fairy tales, we can give the mysterious, hideous stranger some dinner and a place to sleep; and in the morning we might wake to find the gift that saves us.
Resources Discussed In This Episode
Jon Mills, End of the World: Civilization and Its Fate
Visit Jon Mills’ website
Erich Neumann, Depth Psychology and a New Ethic.
Tzvetan Todorov, The Conquest of America: The Question of the Other
Related Episodes
If you enjoyed listening to this episode, you might also like:
- Confronting Shadow: The Work of Self-Discovery
- Donald Kalsched – Can running our minds like a democracy save us?
- Psyche in the Age of AI
About Jon Mills
Prof. Jon Mills, PsyD, PhD, ABPP is a Canadian philosopher, psychoanalyst, and retired clinical psychologist. He is Honorary Professor, Department of Psychosocial & Psychoanalytic Studies, University of Essex, UK; Faculty in the Postgraduate Programs in Psychoanalysis & Psychotherapy, Gordon F. Derner School of Psychology, Adelphi University, USA; Faculty & Supervising Analyst at the New School for Existential Psychoanalysis, USA; and is Emeritus Professor of Psychology & Psychoanalysis at Adler Graduate Professional School, Toronto, Canada where he taught for over 20 years. Recipient of numerous awards for his scholarship, he is the author and/or editor of over 35 books in philosophy, psychoanalysis, psychology, and cultural studies.
