List price: $21.95 (that's 30% off!)
Used price: $2.45
Collectible price: $20.00
Buy one from zShops for: $14.50
List price: $24.95 (that's 30% off!)
Used price: $13.45
While I am impressed by C.G. Jung's pattern matching abilities, this is also what makes this book ridiculous- Jung's seeing hints and references that are not at all obvious in the analyzed text and even contrary to the author's opinion & stated intent.
This book is useful for getting some inspiration on how to reinterpret Zarathustra- but for a more reliable interpretation, based on the actual text and Nietzsche's other works you should turn to a philsophical book instead.
Unfortunately analytical psychology & psychoanalysis are non-scientific systems making any attempts of discussion futile. This book is very helpful in showing this fact, as you can read how seminar attendants offer equally (im-)plausible interpretations that are simply ignored by Jung without much of a refutation.
There's a definite sense of total respect for Nietzsche from Jung . . . almost as though Jung himself (one of the more exceptional intellects of our species) was struggling with the great, monstrous geist of Nietzsche for understanding. Which is a nice touch, having so often seen the man debunked as a megalomaniac, or, worse, a run-of-the-mill madman. This book is a must have for any Nietzsche scholar (no matter what the age or education) and, I imagine, quite useful in understanding Jung as well.
List price: $26.95 (that's 30% off!)
Used price: $8.17
Buy one from zShops for: $17.77
Although I would not suggest Transformations to any and everyone, it is as important as any other critical landmark in the development of modern psychology and even the philosophy of our entire species. If you are a person who wishes to confront those ideas of what it means to be a human being and who wishes to meet one of the great 20th century intellectuals in his own territory (instead of all those 2nd and 3rd hand sources), I strongly recommend giving this book a try. Just don't expect an easy or even agreeable read; Jung is if nothing else always challenging.
While the content of this book is excellent, this defect is a serious problem. If you buy the book, plan on gluing the cover in place yourself.
I actually obtained two copies directly from the publisher, Ariadne Press. When the first defective copy arrived, they sent another but said that the books were printed in the UK and they could not guarantee the quality. They also said this problem was possible with all of their Gustav Meyrink titles, though I've only had the problem myself with "Walpurgisnacht" and "The Deadalus/Ariadne Book of Austrian Fantasy: The Meyrink Years 1890-1930."
The word "Walpurgisnacht" has its folklore roots in the concept that the night of April 30th is an evil night, one when old values are destroyed and replaced by new ones. But, in the mind of Meyrink no new values will bring salvation to the world. The novel was published in 1917, and the setting is the city of Prague during WWI. The main characters are Zrcadlo (the mirror) the solitary man who forces people to look into their own souls, and Dr. Thaddaeus the only survivor of a spiritual alchemy, the only character capable of facing his sould and taking a new direction in his life.
In his contempt for established religion, Meyrink brings forth the concept of Aweysha. Anyone who is not able to hear his own soul becomes an "aweysha," a living body whose soul has moved into another living being, a dead mirror where strange demons come and go, a wandering corpse. Defying the concept of "free will," Meyrink holds that anything a person does against his will comes from "aweysha."
Myerink was influenced by Jewish mysticism and found in the experience of the "innermost I" the salvation of the soul: "the innermost I is the source of joy, and who does not worhsip it is a servant of hell." Unfortunately, his mystical experience integrates the good and the evil alike, downgrading the soul to low moral standards.
This novel is a reflection of personal despair, a desperate search for a transcendent reality that will surpass mysticism into the esoteric.
List price: $18.00 (that's 30% off!)
Used price: $7.00
Buy one from zShops for: $6.99
Used price: $103.90
Buy one from zShops for: $103.90
Used price: $1.23
Collectible price: $5.00
Serrano later fixated on Adolph Hitler, so there certainly seems to be a germanic bent that he followed. Read "Black Sun" to see the strange path MS took after his encounters with Hesse and Jung.
Used price: $5.45
Buy one from zShops for: $7.98
This is not biography in its best form.
De La Grange has done us a service by compiling a very detailed but largely chronological history of the events of Mahler's life. You'll find a largely blow-by-blow description of his life: compositional struggles; arguments with cast members, managers, and officials; correspondence with friends and colleagues; listings of cast members in the opera performances he conducted; reviews of his performances by the various publications; health problems, etc. The detail is extremely valuable.
However, De La Grange falls short because he rarely steps back from the detail in order to find the larger themes in Mahler's life, and he leaves that effort to the reader. This is asking too much: this is a projected four volume biography, and it will probably be well over 3,500 pages before it's done.
I imagine it will take a later biographer to come along and sift through all that De La Grange has delivered in order to write a more informative biography.
I have an additional issue with an editorial decision that's been made here. The first volume was published in the 1970's, by another publisher. Oxford has not re-published it, but will publish a second edition of the first volume when the fourth volume is published. They have styarted with the 2nd volume rather than the 1st, out of deference to those who might still have the 1st volume. Fair enough. But the footnotes that refer to content in the 1st volume only refer to chapters, not specific pages, and are thus incomplete. Perhaps the reasoning behind this is because the original 1st volume will be superceded by the 2nd edition 1st volume, and they don't want to be specific to something they imagine will be obsolete. However, at the current rate it could well be 5-10 years before that 2nd edition 1st volume is out. Will Oxford then ask readers to buy a 2nd edition 2nd volume that has page numbers in the footnotes? (The whole idea sounds like very little deference to those who might have the original 1st volume.)
List price: $17.95 (that's 30% off!)
Used price: $6.94
Collectible price: $10.00
Buy one from zShops for: $9.57
Gendlin also describes bias controls, which I also find very helpful in eliminating prejudices and wishful thinking from my interpretations. And his systematic charting of the various ways to approach dream interpretation is a good overall framework that anyone can use to interpret dreams.