Tuesday, October 23, 2007

Archetype as a guiding template for humanity

Aiko said...
I have been looking at your google book preview. What do you mean by "the original man?"
October 16, 2007 1:03 PM

Aiko, your question is a very good one so I thought I would include it in a new post and new discussion of the role of archetypes in the development of our personal and collective consciousness.

In my play, Without a Word, the main character, Word, is described as the original man. Many writers have used the concept of "everyman" for their characters, but the original man is a little different. Word is the original man in the biblical sense, meaning he has functions and attributes that, together with the play's other characters, create the original man or the collective man or humanity as one. For instance, some bible scholars have theorized that the 12 apostles are each an attribute or archetype that together, create the Christ, or collective man. Here is an example: http://mollybroganenterprises.com/business%20form%20model.pdf

Throughout the play, Word articulates his process of integration as he becomes aware of his personal and collective archetypes, i.e., the other characters in the play. This is a process that we engage in throughout our lives, consciously or subconsciously. In microcosm, it is the fruition of an idea. In macrocosm, if we reach a point in our lives where we consciously understand self as other, and can feel the thread of connection in all of us, and hold that connection as sacred, we no longer need to hold the archetype in separation and can fully integrate.

By the end of the play, Word has integrated the other characters and owns his role as the original man. Every day I feel myself closer to this integration and every day marvel and how it effects the quality of my life. I can only imagine how wonderful the world can be when we are all consciously aware of the sacred nature of our relationships, including the relationship with self. I can feel it coming. I believe it will be brilliant.

Thanks for asking. If you have more questions, please feel free to post. We can recreate this play together. Molly Brogan