Anima/animus

[sweetnpetite]

The Anima is the personification of all feminine psychological tendencies within a man, the archetypal feminine symbolism within a man's unconscious. The Animus is the personification of all masculine psychological tendencies within a woman, the archetypal masculine symbolism within a woman's unconscious.

some links:

http://www.cnr.edu/home/bmcmanus/anima.html
http://www.thearchetypalconnection.com/ANIMUS .htm
http://www.sex-is-sacred.org/sacredMarriage.htm

So anyway, without taking it all too seriously, this is a thread about your inner man/woman (opposite gender), similer in some ways to the 'secret girly habits' thread for many of you

For me, my inner man is kind of my shadow self, if they are not the same. He's like a mix between Andrew Dice Clay and Ben Afleck. Kinda sleezy and jerky the kinda boy I never want my sons to grow up as!

 

[sweetnpetite]

I know a guy who sais if he were a woman he'd have a whole bunch of kids by different men and live off child support.

 

[Svenskaflicka]

People tell me I'm kinda masculine. I guess they get that idea from me being so forward and always standing up for myself. I'm not afraid to ask for what I want, and I don't take crap from people.
It's kinda sad that such qualities are seen as typical for one gender and not for both.

 

[sweetnpetite]

"The best way for a woman to understand and work with her inner masculine self is through objectification, e.g. painting, drawing, clay modeling, journaling, composing, poetry, etc. He (the animus) often appears in nightly dreams in a variety of symbolic forms."

 

[sweetnpetite]

Most if not all animus characters are made up of unconscious projections. A father complex in a woman can attract a wide variety of male characters into her orbit. The abusive father usually becomes the abusive boyfriend or husband. The jealous father usually becomes the jealous boyfriend or husband. A woman's psyche is a crowded place. Many characters or parts can inhabit it. Some of these are friendly and some not so friendly. Some are masculine and some feminine in nature. All these parts are symbolic representations of inner attitudes, emotions and behaviors. Their source is always archetypal: predominantly mythology and folk/fairy tales. Here are some of them:
The Predator
The Demon Lover
Big Daddy
The Magician
The Ghostly Lover

for descriptions of the archetypes:

http://www.thearchetypalconnection.com/ANIMUS .htm

 

[Liar]

Huh. All this "sides" and "inner man/woman" rings pretty false in my ears. It's not an inner "other" - it's all me, no more no less. By separating cerytain traits and calling them your "inner male", seems to me to be a way to excuse away the analouge blend of masculinity and femininity that is natural in every person. That way they can be set aside as "not really me". And thus cementing the social gender construction.

But what do I know? It's 2 in the morning, and I haven't had any coffe all day.

 

[sweetnpetite]

Here are some of them:
The Predator
The Demon Lover
Big Daddy
The Magician
The Ghostly Lover

for descriptions of the archetypes:

http://www.thearchetypalconnection.com/ANIMUS .htm

I wish I had found this stuff earlier, ait would make a great basis for a halloween story with a bit of depth and psychological thrill. Maybe next time.

 

[sweetnpetite]

Like any real woman, the anima part of a man can sometimes play the role of sulking bitch. When a man identifies with her he falls into a mood. The mood can create an atmosphere of withdrawal and depression. In dealing with an anima mood it's important to remember the three T's: testy, touchy and temperamental--somewhat like an opera diva.

 

[sweetnpetite]

The anima plays the part of a man's muse and some of the greatest artistic creations have been inspired by her.

 

[sweetnpetite]

Mythic stories of enchantment, fascination, enthrallment and utter entrancement of men by creatures from the deep or witches and fairies are found worldwide. They are psychological symbols for the dangers that men face whenever emotional obsessions or complexes take center stage. An addiction can enthrall and lure a man down to the depths of his own unconscious soul. Often a man considers it his greatest achievement when he breaks free of a negative anima spell and withdraws his co-dependence on her. Alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, food, gambling or sex are a few of the better know anima addictions.

http://www.thearchetypalconnection.com/ANIMA.htm

 

[oggbashan]

The anima plays the part of a man's muse and some of the greatest artistic creations have been inspired by her.

Help! I've got more than 15 feminine muses. 9 were enough for the Ancient Greeks. Have I got schizophrenia in my anima?

Og

 

[chris 44]

The anima plays the part of a man's muse and some of the greatest artistic creations have been inspired by her.

You mean.... like Ent

 

[entitled]

You mean.... like Ent

*blink* Huh? What did i do?



Why is it necessary to split the psyche into two halves (masculine and feminine), when in reality the two are so closely interwoven that one could not survive without the other?

The female has two X chromosomes, yet the masculine has been so deeply ingrained in her DNA that she will always show what is culturally considered manly traits - despite the fact that these same traits are considered purely feminine in other cultures. There is always the drive to show intelligence and superiority, often considered a masculine trait. There is often the drive to prove superior strength, resourcefulness, and attractiveness. These may hail back to the hunter/gatherer beginnings of man, but are still considered masculine. Yet without any of these, a woman is not considered to be complete.

Take into consideration the normal male, with an Xy chromosome. He is considered an asshole and unworthy if he doesn't have feminine traits such as sensitivity, gentleness, and a basic sense of cleanliness (which society has deemed a feminine trait). Without these he is considered to be a monster, a bad person.

Then there's the 'superman' - those with the extra y chromosome. The masculine outweighs the feminine in no small measure. Every last Xyy male i have ever heard of are serial killers, serial rapists, enjoy torturing people, or something very similar. If that happens when you have a 2:1 ratio of masculine to feminine, why on earth would ANYBODY want to completely separate the two?

Even if it is just within the mind, it makes no sense. You simply cannot take one part of the whole to study without it's having an effect on everything else. If the mind were a piece of fabric, for example, and a person chose one thread from the middle to study and took it out, that would not represent the whole. It's a tiny part of the intricate design, each part interacting with each other to make something strong, useful, and perhaps even beautiful.

With that being said in a really long-winded way, i'm glad i have my animus. Even if it is about half of my mental makeup. My animus allows me to enjoy getting dressed up in leather armor and beating people with big sticks every week. It allows me to enjoy fencing, archery, throwing knives and axes at targets, and building things. None of these are considered to be feminine.

It's also not considered to be a typical 'girly' thing to be offered full ride scholarships to the Air Force Academy based on math and mechanical aptitude skills. i happened to be the only person i know of that scored perfectly in both areas both junior and senior years of high school on the tests they give everybody. It's not typical 'girly' behavior to seek out and receive training from military snipers - and to be able to outshoot them if neither them or myself had sights on the guns.

It's not feminine behavior to do hard work - breaking horses, plowing either on a tractor or using a hand plow, building fences, riding on roundups, building large structures such as barns and houses. Neither is playing hard like rock climbing and mountain biking in what could be considered 'extreme terrain'. Neither is wanting to learn how to fly and arranging for lessons (as soon as he gets enough hours to start giving lessons).

i've done all of these things in my short time here on earth. And then some. Not because of my animus, but because of an unmeasureable curiosity and the willingness to push myself, to prove to myself that -i- can do these things. They all make up a part of who i am. They have had an effect on how i live, and how i see and do the 'feminine' activities that take up quite a bit of my time.

You simply cannot have one without the other. It is useless to study one without the other. They are too interrelated.

Oh, and sweet? You've got too much time on your hands, starting all those threads.

 

[sweetnpetite]

Help! I've got more than 15 feminine muses. 9 were enough for the Ancient Greeks. Have I got schizophrenia in my anima?

Og

Yes.

 

[sweetnpetite]

*blink* Huh? What did i do?



Why is it necessary to split the psyche into two halves (masculine and feminine), when in reality the two are so closely interwoven that one could not survive without the other?

The obvious answer is because two is how many halves there are in a whole.

seriously though, don't look at it as two seperate halves but two interwoven qualities (as you said). Each quality has a bit of the other contained within it as well. You might recognize it as this:

http://www.rio.maricopa.edu/classes/psy/psy_images/yinyan.gif

 

[sweetnpetite]

You simply cannot have one without the other. It is useless to study one without the other. They are too interrelated.

Oh, and sweet? You've got too much time on your hands, starting all those threads.

I wouldn't suggest studying one (or even discussing one) without the other. I find the concept quite fascinating.

I totally believe in the concept because I know that I have an "inner man" and he's nothing like what I want a man to be, or think I would want a man to be- he's quite the opposite.

Every woman I know has certain 'male' tendencies. And these are feminine straight men, but they differ in certain areas in what is 'typical' of our gender (and I don't just mean what is expected)

Every man I know has an 'inner woman' though most of them prefer to deny it. ("I am all man") In some ways my boyfriend and I are the exact opposite in who's the guy and who's the girl. In other ways, we fall right into type. I think we are very yin-yang (both seperately and together)

ps- yes, too much time on my hands. I'm stay at home and I probably should have been doing (should be doing) other things. I ballance it out by dissapearing for days or weeks at a time.

 

[sweetnpetite]

*blink* Huh? What did i do?



Why is it necessary to split the psyche into two halves (masculine and feminine), when in reality the two are so closely interwoven that one could not survive without the other?

The female has two X chromosomes, yet the masculine has been so deeply ingrained in her DNA that she will always show what is culturally considered manly traits - despite the fact that these same traits are considered purely feminine in other cultures. There is always the drive to show intelligence and superiority, often considered a masculine trait. There is often the drive to prove superior strength, resourcefulness, and attractiveness. These may hail back to the hunter/gatherer beginnings of man, but are still considered masculine. Yet without any of these, a woman is not considered to be complete.

Take into consideration the normal male, with an Xy chromosome. He is considered an asshole and unworthy if he doesn't have feminine traits such as sensitivity, gentleness, and a basic sense of cleanliness (which society has deemed a feminine trait). Without these he is considered to be a monster, a bad person.

Then there's the 'superman' - those with the extra y chromosome. The masculine outweighs the feminine in no small measure. Every last Xyy male i have ever heard of are serial killers, serial rapists, enjoy torturing people, or something very similar. If that happens when you have a 2:1 ratio of masculine to feminine, why on earth would ANYBODY want to completely separate the two?

Even if it is just within the mind, it makes no sense. You simply cannot take one part of the whole to study without it's having an effect on everything else. If the mind were a piece of fabric, for example, and a person chose one thread from the middle to study and took it out, that would not represent the whole. It's a tiny part of the intricate design, each part interacting with each other to make something strong, useful, and perhaps even beautiful.

With that being said in a really long-winded way, i'm glad i have my animus. Even if it is about half of my mental makeup. My animus allows me to enjoy getting dressed up in leather armor and beating people with big sticks every week. It allows me to enjoy fencing, archery, throwing knives and axes at targets, and building things. None of these are considered to be feminine.

It's also not considered to be a typical 'girly' thing to be offered full ride scholarships to the Air Force Academy based on math and mechanical aptitude skills. i happened to be the only person i know of that scored perfectly in both areas both junior and senior years of high school on the tests they give everybody. It's not typical 'girly' behavior to seek out and receive training from military snipers - and to be able to outshoot them if neither them or myself had sights on the guns.

It's not feminine behavior to do hard work - breaking horses, plowing either on a tractor or using a hand plow, building fences, riding on roundups, building large structures such as barns and houses. Neither is playing hard like rock climbing and mountain biking in what could be considered 'extreme terrain'. Neither is wanting to learn how to fly and arranging for lessons (as soon as he gets enough hours to start giving lessons).

i've done all of these things in my short time here on earth. And then some. Not because of my animus, but because of an unmeasureable curiosity and the willingness to push myself, to prove to myself that -i- can do these things. They all make up a part of who i am. They have had an effect on how i live, and how i see and do the 'feminine' activities that take up quite a bit of my time.

You simply cannot have one without the other. It is useless to study one without the other. They are too interrelated.

Oh, and sweet? You've got too much time on your hands, starting all those threads.

ps again-- that's hot.

 

[Liar]

I wouldn't suggest studying one (or even discussing one) without the other. I find the concept quite fascinating.

I totally believe in the concept because I know that I have an "inner man" and he's nothing like what I want a man to be, or think I would want a man to be- he's quite the opposite.

Every woman I know has certain 'male' tendencies. And these are feminine straight men, but they differ in certain areas in what is 'typical' of our gender (and I don't just mean what is expected)

Every man I know has an 'inner woman' though most of them prefer to deny it. ("I am all man") In some ways my boyfriend and I are the exact opposite in who's the guy and who's the girl. In other ways, we fall right into type. I think we are very yin-yang (both seperately and together)

The only problem is, I have no idea which aspects of my personality are supposed to be my "inner woman" as opposed to just...well...me.

What do you mean, if you don't mean what is expected? What else is there, except body parts and their roles, that is not a cultural pattern?

ps- yes, too much time on my hands. I'm stay at home and I probably should have been doing (should be doing) other things. I ballance it out by dissapearing for days or weeks at a time.

You're like them hurricanes. When it rains, it pours.

 

[entitled]

Not quoting all those posts (bacause i'm lazy that way), but it sounds as if we just might agree.

My main malfunction at the time of posting that was the fact that it seemed we should be focusing on one and not the other in this thread. Either that or the animus raised it's ugly head and made my skull really thick. Should i duck for that one?

Oh, and by the way, i'm a stay at home too. Spend entirely too much time on here - it's constantly running in the background while i'm doing other stuff. It just hit me that you started a huge amount of threads the other night and i had to give you grief for it. Another part of that animus thing.