The concept of destiny is most regularly invoked in everyday life at the moments when events are so “coincidental” that it gives one at least the impression that they were pre-ordained by some...Show moreThe concept of destiny is most regularly invoked in everyday life at the moments when events are so “coincidental” that it gives one at least the impression that they were pre-ordained by some mysterious, transcendent force or principle. Swiss psychologist Carl Gustav Jung proposes the synchronicity principle to explain such phenomena. This thesis asks: what are the implications of C.G. Jung’s depth psychology, and his synchronicity principle in particular, for the personal significance and attainment of destiny? Destiny can be said to be the knowing awareness of the realization of the course of one’s life which is always to some extent meaningful to the experiencing subject. The causality principle cannot account for the meaningful connections required for destiny, that is, it cannot explain why destiny is important to the individual. To understand the experience of destiny, Carl Jung’s principle of synchronicity might be more useful. Synchronistic phenomena require explanation from the perspective of a worldview that allows for the interconnectedness of all that exists. For the synchronicity principle to be effective as principle of explanation, then, it needs to stand in a necessary relationship to totality, which Jung understands as the archetypes in the collective unconscious, which form patterns. The conscious awareness and interpretation of the unfoldment of such archetypal patterns in life is what we might call destiny. Destiny, as knowledge about one’s life course is never concrete in showing what one might expect to happen but gives one a subtle glance at the larger pattern of reality to find oneself in the meaningful order of totality. One can come to know what role one is to play within the whole of reality on the basis of the interpretative framework that is offered by the archetypal expressions in synchronistic experiences. Destiny, in conclusion, is foremost about getting to know oneself: self-knowledge forms a hermeneutical framework from which one interprets (the events of) one’s life course. Synchronistic phenomena contribute to self-knowledge in a uniquely compelling and valuable way by offering unconscious guidance through meaningful co-incidences, but, finally, the responsibility rests with the individual whether to use this guidance to their advantage in obtaining destiny.Show less
This thesis explores the journey that Shadow Moon makes in American Gods by Neil Gaiman. This journey takes the shape of a guest for individuation. In this journey he encounters characters and...Show moreThis thesis explores the journey that Shadow Moon makes in American Gods by Neil Gaiman. This journey takes the shape of a guest for individuation. In this journey he encounters characters and symbols that represent Jungian ideas and through these encounters Shadow becomes a better person.Show less
Research master thesis | Linguistics (research) (MA)
open access
Agreement with conjoined noun phrases is an interesting topic of research for languages that have a gender distinction in the plural. The central aim of this thesis is to provide a comprehensive...Show moreAgreement with conjoined noun phrases is an interesting topic of research for languages that have a gender distinction in the plural. The central aim of this thesis is to provide a comprehensive account of agreement with conjoined noun phrases in one such language: Icelandic. It is generally assumed that there are two agreement options with conjoined noun phrases in languages: resolution and agreement with one conjunct. The focus in this thesis is on the availability of these options in Icelandic, and whether the distribution of resolution is affected by two typological hierarchies: The Individuation Hierarchy and the Agreement Hierarchy. Another principal aim is to establish whether the gender resolution rules that have been described for the language are always used by speakers and to what extent agreement with one conjunct is used. An agreement form elicitation survey was constructed to gain insight into these issues. It was completed by 405 native speakers of Icelandic. The results of this survey indicate that the distribution of resolution in Icelandic is indeed affected by the Individuation Hierarchy, while it does not adhere to the prediction made by the Agreement Hierarchy. This is argued to be due to interaction effects of the two hierarchies and the approach of the present study. Gender resolution rules are followed by speakers in most cases. However, speakers use neuter agreement in resolution where it was not anticipated. The same applies to singular agreement: when agreement with one conjunct was expected, the neuter singular is widely used instead. Two gender defaults are argued to account for these patterns: a normal case default in resolution and an exceptional case default in singular agreement.Show less
