How else could it have occurred to man to divide the cosmos, on the analogy of day and night, summer and winter, into a bright day-world and a dark night-world peopled with fabulous monsters, unless he had the prototype of such a division in himself, in the polarity between the conscious and the invisible and unknowable unconscious? Primitive man's perception of objects is conditioned only partly by the objective behaviour of the things themselves, whereas a much greater part is often played by intrapsychic facts which are not related to the external objects except by way of projection. This is due to the simple fact that the primitive has not yet experienced that ascetic discipline of mind known to us as the critique of knowledge. To him the world is a more or less fluid phenomenon within the stream of his own fantasy, where subject and object are undifferentiated and in a state of mutual interpenetration.
-Carl Jung: Psychological Aspects of the Mother Archetype (1939) In The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious
In Jungian psychology, the shadow is the unconscious mind - all of those aspects of oneself that one is not fully cognizant of or those that we tend to reject about ourselves. Jung wrote, "Everyone carries a shadow, and the less it is embodied in the individual's conscious life, the blacker and denser it is." Thus, the concept of "Mastering the Shadow" is the attempt to bring light to the darkness; to fully explore and understand the shadowy aspects of ourselves that motivate and drive our behaviors. By having this insight and master over our unconscious, one can become fully actualized and grow as an individual and collective member of society.
Jackson, principal of Master the Shadow Productions, holds Bachelor's degrees in Journalism (News Editing/Print Production), and Psychology (Social and Cognitive Psychology), a Master's Degree in Clinical Psychology (Neuropsychological and Psychological Assessment and Testing) and continued doctorate work in Counseling Psychology/Studies in Human Behavior (Gender and Sexuality, Relationships, and Sex Therapy). He has worked as a graphic and production designer, a Senior Prepress/Managing Editorial Specialist at a major book publisher, a Neuropsychological Accessor, a counselor, a community outreach director and program developer, and is currently a professor of Sociology and Psychology. His primary research interests include a broad interest in gender, sexuality, socialization and personality development; specifically, the impact of society, environment and culture on psychosocial development and individuation.
Master the Shadow Productions is his effort to help others spread knowledge, art and wisdom through the works of print and video; to "Master their Shadows" and perhaps help others in the process. Our collective works add to the body of collective knowledge. Each publication works to remove the veil from the collective shadow of the unconscious. What words of wisdom live in your shadow? We'll help you share them with the world.