Image as Symbol: Exploring the Symbolic Quality of Image

Pete Williams, PhD, Jungian analyst

Regarding works of art as symbols, Jung observed the following: “Their pregnant language cries out to us that they mean more than they say. We can put our finger on the symbol at once, even though we may not be able to unriddle its meaning. A symbol remains a perpetual challenge to our thoughts and feelings. This is why a symbolic work is so stimulating and also why it grips us so intensely.”

Symbol is one of the ways in which the psyche introduces unconscious material to consciousness. As a very specific form of symbolic expression, Jung described the mandala as “a symbol of totality which pertains and adheres to the realization of the Self.” In this lecture, we will discuss various ways each of us may discover personal meaning in symbolic images.

Pete Williams is a Jungian Analyst in private practice in Atlanta. In addition to his training as an analyst, he holds a PhD in Depth Psychology.