The resurgence of myth in the 1970s in the poetry of Ted Hughes and R.S. Thomas : a Jungian perspective.

This thesis attempts to introduce Jungian concepts to the
study of poetry through a critical examination of the
poetry written in the 1970s by Ted Hughes and R.S.Thomas.
My Introduction examines two contrasting approaches to
literature, the mythical and the historical, defines
myth, and introduces aspects of a Jungian approach to
literature, including the many-angled approach and
analogy.
Chapter One explains the Jungian concepts of the
Archetype and the Collective Unconscious in a discussion
of Crow, and also explores the mythological material
relevant to the poems of Crow.
Chapter Two deals with the Jungian idea of Compensation,
and brings this, as well as the idea of the archetype and
the collective unconscious, to bear on the mythological
material relevant to Gaudete.
Chapter Three introduces Jung's Individuation process and
discusses the mythological sources of Cave Birds, in
particular Ancient Egyptian myth and Alchemy. At the end
of the chapter there is a brief discussion of Jung and
Hughes, acting as a sort of conclusion to my discussions
of Hughes.
Chapter Four uses the philosophy of Kierkegaard to
explore the 1970s poetry of R.S.Thomas within a Jungian
framework which includes ideas of the archetype, the
collective unconscious, compensation and individuation.
Jung's idea of Psychological Types is also briefly
explored in this chapter.
Chapter Five finds in Gnostic literature clear parallels
with R.S.Thomas' poetry, and, using the Jungian concepts
already mentioned, goes on to suggest that R.S.Thomas
attempts to modify Christianity in accordance with the
beliefs of the Gnostics.
My Conclusion finds that many of the authorities quoted
in this thesis call for a reorientation of society along
the lines of the mythologies discussed in earlier
chapters, and goes on to suggest that there is an
unexplored unconscious history of the West.