Complexions of a Mother-Complex

Complexions of a Mother-Complex Often in literature there exist characters that personify certain archetypes, or in other words exhibit a certain body of universally observable traits. C. G. Jung in his development of the theory of archetypes sets forth the idea of a mother archetype. Jung describes the mother archetype as being the symbols or qualities often used, specifically as it pertains to literature, in describing a mother, or some other mothering entity. This archetype, …showed first 75 words of 517 total…

…showed last 75 words of 517 total…tradional Chinese lore. In short, the narrator character of Maxine Hong Kingston’s The Woman Warrior, does, it would seem, exihibit many of the characteristics associated with Jung’s mother-complex. It is less clear though which of Jung’s suggested variation she fits into. She appears to most closely conform to Jung’s so called negative mother-complex, perhaps more by more obvious exclusion from the other groups than by clear inclusion in this particular category.