Women, Violence, and Jung’s Archetypes

Abstract

Jung’s concept of the shadow will be applied to cases of violence against women in the regional context of theMiddle East. This paper will present an explanation of the reasons why Middle Eastern women are often subject togender inequality and violence against women. In order to do so, Jung’s conception of archetypes will be applied tothe specific cultural context of the Middle East.Objective: To further understanding of gender inequality in the Middle East.Methods: Phenomenology/Analytic PsychologyResults: Liberation from violence from men is the women’s shadow since this is a desire which they deny orconsciously ignore primarily because it is in contrast with societal and cultural norms that teach them to besubmissive and inferior to males.Conclusions: Women should identify, understand, and reveal this shadow. Once revealed, women will realize theirrights, particularly to be free from acts of discrimination and violence, and can begin to fight for these rights and forempowerment.