Dissertations - 2010

Forgiveness: an inner search

Ariane Tescaro Garcia

Advisor: Durval Luiz de Faria
Keywords: forgiveness, analytical psychology, jungian psychology

This study aims to understand from the perspective of Analytical Psychology the role of forgiveness in the psyche. As the concept of forgiveness is extremely tied to religion, it is essential to understand it primarily within the religious context, and then to explore how it is experienced psychologically. From the perspective of Jungian Symbolic Psychology, it was possible to apprehended how the development of Judeo-Christian religion was understood and lived symbolically in our society and how the current patterns of awareness not only influenced the experience of forgiveness, but also its opposite aspect, revenge. From this foundation, we sought to understand the meaning of forgiveness in the process of individuation, raising the hypothesis that it can halt the process when lived in a superficial way, or facilitate it, when experienced in a genuine manner. Another aspect addressed was the importance of forgiveness in the analytical process. Finally, an analysis of the film Invictus, who discusses the forgiveness-revenge polarity both personally and culturally, was made in order to illustrate the theoretical work developed.