Betsy Perluss - Academia.edu (original) (raw)

Papers by Betsy Perluss

Landscape Archetypes, 2004

Ecopsychology Journal, 2010

Ecopsychology Journal, 2012

Comparing two very different genres of writing, Richard Nelson's nature writing about his experie... more Comparing two very different genres of writing, Richard Nelson's nature writing about his experiences among the Koyukon tribe in northern Alaska, and Carl Jung's work on the primitive psyche, this article highlights the need for modern, Western people to recover an indigenous relationship with the natural world. Jung declares that one of the biggest tragedies of Western Civilization is the loss of the numinous that has resulted in the dehumanizing of the natural world. Examining Jung's controversial use of the terms " primitive " and " participation mystique " , we discover that what modern man has considered to be a more " civilized " higher state of consciousness has been wrongly equated with ego-consciousness, thus resulting in a limited understanding of the unconscious psyche. This article points out that the way beyond the " cult of consciousnesses " is to attend to that which the rational mind does not understand: Dreams, symptoms, and the presence of archetypes. By doing so, the Western heroic ego, along with its need to dominate and control nature, is dismantled, opening the door for a participatory relationship with both psyche and nature. Whereas Jung's work is highly theoretical, Richard Nelson's writing provides insight into the lived experience of these ideas. The aim here is not for western people to appropriate that which belongs to native people, but rather to learn that there is more mystery to the world than ego-consciousness is able to contain. This, says Jung, is the goal of individuation.

Circles on the Mountain, 2016

The SAGE Encyclopedia of Theory in Counseling and Psychotherapy, 2015

Ecotherapy is an emerging field of psychotherapy that expands beyond the traditional human-center... more Ecotherapy is an emerging field of psychotherapy that expands beyond the traditional human-centered treatment modalities to include the human-nature relationship.

Ecopsychology Journal, 2014

This article discusses the challenging visions of ecopsychology. There is a distinction saying th... more This article discusses the challenging visions of ecopsychology. There is a distinction saying that depth psychology focuses on psyche as an inner phenomenon, while ecopsychology turns its focus to psyche as an outer phenomenon. The authors fears that if they force ecopsychology into the mainstream, particularly mainstream psychology with its emphasis on standardization, and away from the darker edges of soul, that it will also be forced to alienate itself from nature. To be adopted by the mainstream, ecopsychology would then be expected to demonstrate some economic value and, in order to have economic value, it would need to demonstrate its effectiveness. But soul is not effective. Soul doesn't succumb to our expectations, nor does soul necessarily lead us to where the author thinks they should be. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Psychological Perspectives, 2008

Using Thomas Vaughan's allegory of the mountain as a backdrop and drawing insights from the myth ... more Using Thomas Vaughan's allegory of the mountain as a backdrop and drawing insights from the myth of Demeter and Persephone, this article elaborates on the challenging and paradoxical path toward individuation, which, in this case, is metaphorically expressed as climbing a mountain. Although, at first, it is often assumed that individuation is a straightforward process of moving forward and upward, this article demonstrates that this is not the case. Rather, individuation is a complex endeavor that initially takes one down instead of up. In other words, to climb the mountain is to encounter the prima materia, to come face to face with one's shadow, and to take the many unforeseen detours away from the ego's fixed goals. In the end, what is discovered is that one never attains the mystery (or reaches the top) by strength and will alone, but rather by divine grace, which the alchemical literature describes as the aqua permanens, the " stream of living water from the summit of the mountain.

Psychological Perspectives, 2005

Psychological Perspectives, 2015

A mix of memoir, depth psychology, and environmental philosophy, this paper includes reflections ... more A mix of memoir, depth psychology, and environmental philosophy, this paper includes reflections garnered from the author’s recent trek along the John Muir Trail, a 220-mile route in the California Sierra Nevada that begins in Yosemite Valley and finishes at Whitney Portal. Through long dark nights, encounters with death, melting glaciers, and fierce lightening storms, the author describes in living imagery the inseparability of psyche and nature, of wholeness and wilderness, and the mystery of the union of earth and spirit that is discovered along the way.

Landscape Archetypes, 2004

Ecopsychology Journal, 2010

Ecopsychology Journal, 2012

Comparing two very different genres of writing, Richard Nelson's nature writing about his experie... more Comparing two very different genres of writing, Richard Nelson's nature writing about his experiences among the Koyukon tribe in northern Alaska, and Carl Jung's work on the primitive psyche, this article highlights the need for modern, Western people to recover an indigenous relationship with the natural world. Jung declares that one of the biggest tragedies of Western Civilization is the loss of the numinous that has resulted in the dehumanizing of the natural world. Examining Jung's controversial use of the terms " primitive " and " participation mystique " , we discover that what modern man has considered to be a more " civilized " higher state of consciousness has been wrongly equated with ego-consciousness, thus resulting in a limited understanding of the unconscious psyche. This article points out that the way beyond the " cult of consciousnesses " is to attend to that which the rational mind does not understand: Dreams, symptoms, and the presence of archetypes. By doing so, the Western heroic ego, along with its need to dominate and control nature, is dismantled, opening the door for a participatory relationship with both psyche and nature. Whereas Jung's work is highly theoretical, Richard Nelson's writing provides insight into the lived experience of these ideas. The aim here is not for western people to appropriate that which belongs to native people, but rather to learn that there is more mystery to the world than ego-consciousness is able to contain. This, says Jung, is the goal of individuation.

Circles on the Mountain, 2016

The SAGE Encyclopedia of Theory in Counseling and Psychotherapy, 2015

Ecotherapy is an emerging field of psychotherapy that expands beyond the traditional human-center... more Ecotherapy is an emerging field of psychotherapy that expands beyond the traditional human-centered treatment modalities to include the human-nature relationship.

Ecopsychology Journal, 2014

This article discusses the challenging visions of ecopsychology. There is a distinction saying th... more This article discusses the challenging visions of ecopsychology. There is a distinction saying that depth psychology focuses on psyche as an inner phenomenon, while ecopsychology turns its focus to psyche as an outer phenomenon. The authors fears that if they force ecopsychology into the mainstream, particularly mainstream psychology with its emphasis on standardization, and away from the darker edges of soul, that it will also be forced to alienate itself from nature. To be adopted by the mainstream, ecopsychology would then be expected to demonstrate some economic value and, in order to have economic value, it would need to demonstrate its effectiveness. But soul is not effective. Soul doesn't succumb to our expectations, nor does soul necessarily lead us to where the author thinks they should be. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Psychological Perspectives, 2008

Using Thomas Vaughan's allegory of the mountain as a backdrop and drawing insights from the myth ... more Using Thomas Vaughan's allegory of the mountain as a backdrop and drawing insights from the myth of Demeter and Persephone, this article elaborates on the challenging and paradoxical path toward individuation, which, in this case, is metaphorically expressed as climbing a mountain. Although, at first, it is often assumed that individuation is a straightforward process of moving forward and upward, this article demonstrates that this is not the case. Rather, individuation is a complex endeavor that initially takes one down instead of up. In other words, to climb the mountain is to encounter the prima materia, to come face to face with one's shadow, and to take the many unforeseen detours away from the ego's fixed goals. In the end, what is discovered is that one never attains the mystery (or reaches the top) by strength and will alone, but rather by divine grace, which the alchemical literature describes as the aqua permanens, the " stream of living water from the summit of the mountain.

Psychological Perspectives, 2005

Psychological Perspectives, 2015

A mix of memoir, depth psychology, and environmental philosophy, this paper includes reflections ... more A mix of memoir, depth psychology, and environmental philosophy, this paper includes reflections garnered from the author’s recent trek along the John Muir Trail, a 220-mile route in the California Sierra Nevada that begins in Yosemite Valley and finishes at Whitney Portal. Through long dark nights, encounters with death, melting glaciers, and fierce lightening storms, the author describes in living imagery the inseparability of psyche and nature, of wholeness and wilderness, and the mystery of the union of earth and spirit that is discovered along the way.