Jung 106: Jung and Fairy Tales

This course is an essential introduction to the interpretation of fairy tales from the Jungian perspective. Learn how C.G. Jung and his colleague Marie Louise von Franz understood fairy and folk tales as a means to gain insight into the human psyche.

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Explore fairy tales as the purest mirror of the collective unconscious

Marie Louise von Franz recognized that fairy tales reveal archetypal patterns with exceptional clarity – stripped of cultural overlay, they offer direct access to the basic structures of the psyche

This course examines the Jungian understanding of fairy tales as spontaneous statements of the unconscious about itself. While myths carry cultural and religious elaboration, fairy tales preserve archetypal patterns in their simplest, barest form – making them invaluable for studying the comparative anatomy of the psyche. Marie Louise von Franz, Jung's colleague and collaborator, dedicated her career to this work, demonstrating how fairy tales trace the individuation process through shadow encounters, anima and animus relationships, and the dialogue between ego and Self. This eight-module course explores both mainstream fairy tale scholarship and the depth psychological approach, covering the history of European collections from Perrault and the Brothers Grimm through Andrew Lang. You'll study von Franz's systematic analysis of fairy tale elements, examine interpretations by other Jungians including Robert Bly, Marion Woodman, Donald Kalsched, as well as Carl Jung himself, and learn amplification techniques for understanding dream symbols. The course addresses the relationship between fairy tales and mythology, and explores what Jung called the “2,000,000-year-old self” – the ancient wisdom stored in the collective unconscious.

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Your instructor for each of these courses:

Senior Instructor

James R. Newell, Ph.D.

James Newell is an educator, counselor, personal coach, professional musician, and the director of the Depth Psychology Alliance. James earned his master’s degree in Pastoral Counseling and Theology from Vanderbilt University Divinity School, with a focus on Jungian psychology. He earned his doctorate in History of Religions from the Vanderbilt University Graduate School of Religion. James has taught online and face to face courses for Central Michigan University, Western Kentucky University, Excelsior College, Thomas Edison State University, and other institutions.
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What others are saying...

Dr. James Newell is a gifted teacher

Bonnie Bright, PhD, founder of the Depth Psychology Alliance

Dr. James Newell is a gifted teacher and scholar who has effectively organized an impressive amount of detailed research and information into a series of powerful classes and courses on Jung and Jung’s psychology, now available on Depth Psychology Academy. Students at all levels can gain a depth of understanding about how Jung’s ideas can change our lives and our world as Dr. Newell explains each topic very clearly and at exactly the right pace for students of all levels to take it in.

Dr. James Newell is highly knowledgeable in Jungian Psychology

Monica Flores, Ed.D

Dr. James Newell is highly knowledgeable in Jungian Psychology. I learned so much from him about Jung and Jungian psychology when I began taking courses in depth psychology from the Depth Psychology Alliance online courses. Dr. Newell is open-minded and consistent. He has a smooth voice that can hold anyone’s attention. I enthusiastically recommend taking these courses through the Depth Psychology Academy.

James is a knowledgeable and caring instructor with an engaging teaching style

Ann Amberg, MCS, Transpersonal Leadership Consultant

I highly recommend Dr. James Newell’s courses. Upon completion of my certificate in Depth Psychology I had gained the confidence, focus and knowledge to support my success in my current PhD program in Jungian and Archetypal Studies at Pacifica Graduate Institute. James is a knowledgeable and caring instructor with an engaging teaching style. All of the Depth Psychology Alliance courses I took: Introduction to Jungian Psychology, Active Imagination, Fairy Tales, Dreams, and many more, were phenomenal and I am most grateful for the opportunity to study with James.

The courses I have taken with Dr. Newell have perfectly prepped me for my graduate studies in psychoanalysis

Nirlap Bettenhauser, student

This is an outstanding educational program where one can learn multiple areas of Jungian Psychology. These courses are very well structured with an appropriate course load and high quality texts. Plus the price is incredibly reasonable. The courses I have taken with Dr. Newell have been intellectually engaging and have perfectly prepped me for my graduate studies in psychoanalysis. Not something I expected to receive from the academy, but very grateful I did.

An Investment in Your Future

Study the anatomy of the psyche through its simplest symbolic expressions

This course provides essential tools for working with fairy tale imagery in clinical practice, creative work, and personal development. Learn why Jung valued fairy tales as keys to understanding unconscious processes, and discover how oral storytelling traditions preserved psychological truths across generations. Through amplification techniques, you'll connect dream images to archetypal patterns and recognize the individuation journey reflected in tales like Beauty and the Beast, Hansel and Gretel, and others.

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Course curriculum

1

Welcome to Jung 106: Jung and Fairy Tales!
2

Module 1: The Mainstream Interpretation of Fairy Tales
- M1/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M1/2: Video Lesson: The Mainstream Approach to Fairy Tales
- M1/3: Video Lesson Quiz
- M1/4: Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on chapters 1 & 2 in the textbook)
- M1/3: List of Additional Resources
- M1/4: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M1/5: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M1/6: Additional, Optional Video
- M1/7: Additional, Optional Video
- M1/8: Additional, Optional Video
- M1/9: Reviewing Module 1
3

Module 2: Marie Louise von Franz
- M2/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M2/2: Video Lesson: Marie Louise von Franz
- M2/3: Video Quiz
- M2/4: Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on chapter 3 in the textbook)
- M2/3: List of Additional Resources
- M2/4: An Additional, Optional Resource for Study
- M2/5: An Additional, Optional Resource for Study
- M2/8: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M2/9: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M2/10: Reviewing Module 2
4

Module 3: Individuation in Fairy Tales
- M3/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M3/2: Video Lesson: Individuation in Fairy Tales
- M3/3: Video Lesson Quiz
- M3/4: Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on chapter 4 in the textbook)
- M3/3: List of Additional Resources.
- M3/4: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M3/5: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M3/6: An additional, Optional Video Resource
- M3/7: Reviewing Module 3
5

Module 4: Redemption Motifs in Fairy Tales
- M4/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M4/2: Video Lesson: Redemption Motifs in Fairy Tales
- M4/3: Video Lesson Quiz
- M4/4: Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on chapter 5 in the textbook)
- M4/5: List of Additional Resources
- M4/3: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M4/4: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M4/5: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M4/6: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M4/7: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M4/8: Reviewing Module 4
6

Module 5: The Shadow and Evil in Fairy Tales
- M5/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M5/2: Video Lesson: The Shadow and Evil in Fairy Tales
- M5/3: Module 5 Video Quiz
- M5/4: Module 5 Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on the 1st half of chapter 7 in the textbook)
- M5/3: List of Additional Resources
- M5/4: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M5/5: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M5/6: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M5/7: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M5/8: Reviewing Module 5
7

Module 6: Anima and Animus in Fairy Tales
- M6/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M6/2: Video Lesson: The Anima and Animus in Fairy Tales
- M6/3: Module 6 Video Lesson Quiz
- M6/4: Module 6 Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on the 2nd half of chapter 7 in the textbook)
- M6/3: List of Additional Resources
- M6/4: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M6/5: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M6/7: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M6/8: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M6/9: Reviewing Module 6
8

Module 7: Other Jungians on Fairy Tales
- M7/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M7/2: Module 7 Video Lesson: Other Jungians on Fairy Tales
- M7/3: Module 7 Video Lesson Quiz
- M7/4: Module 7 Readings Quiz (All questions are based on The Handless Maiden by Robert Johnson).
- M7/3: List of Additional Resources
- M7/4: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M7/5: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M7/6: An Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M7/7: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M7/8: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M7/9: Reviewing Module 7
9

Module 8: Fairy Tales and the 2,000,000-Year-Old Self
- M8/1: Learning and Assessment Activities
- M8/2: Video Lesson: Fairy Tales and the 2,000,000-Year-Old Self
- M8/3: Module 8 Video Lesson Quiz
- M8/4: Module 8 Readings Quiz - (All questions are based on chapter 6 in the textbook)
- M8/3: List of Additional Resources.
- M8/4: Additional, Optional Reading Resource for Study
- M8/5: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M8/6: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- Copy of M8/7: An Additional, Optional Video Resource
- M8/8: Reviewing Module 8

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Learn at your own pace

This course serves Jungian analysts and therapists, educators, artists, storytellers, parents, and anyone interested in the psychological foundations of folklore and imagination. Both Jung and Marie Louise von Franz have demonstrated that fairy tales mirror archetypal structures more clearly than elaborate mythological material, offering unparalleled insight into the collective psyche. Whether you're deepening clinical skills, enriching creative practice, or pursuing personal psychological understanding, this course reveals how fairy tales function as maps of inner development. As Jung said, we work with “the 2,000,000-year-old person that is in all of us” – the age-old wisdom that fairy tales preserve and transmit. Enroll now to explore how these deceptively simple stories illuminate the deepest patterns of human consciousness.

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