Exploring Jungian Archetypes and the Theory of the Collective Unconscious in J. C. Oates’s “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?”

Abstract

The concepts of archetypes and the collective unconscious are the most recognised among Carl G. Jung’s contributions. The collective unconscious is a component of the human psyche distinct from the personal unconscious and not derived from individual experience; therefore, it does not constitute a personal realization. Jung’s theory centres on the Collective Unconscious, which he defines as a repository of “racial memories,” primal images, and experiential patterns known as archetypes. Jungian literary criticism sharply contrasts with psychoanalytic criticism. Although he initially followed Sigmund Freud, Jung’s interpretation of depth psychology diverges significantly from that of his predecessor, creating a fundamental difference between Jungian literary criticism and psychoanalytic criticism. The purpose of this paper is to apply Jung’s theory, “Archetypes and The Collective Unconscious,” to the characters in J. C. Oates’s short story “Where Are You Going, Where Have You Been?” by analysing the archetypes of persona, anima/animus, shadow, and the self within the story to understand how these archetypes interact to shape the psyche of each character and their psychological behaviours throughout the story.