“Persona, the mask, or image we present to the world. Designed to make a particular impression on others, while concealing our true nature.” - Carl Jung
We all wear masks, whether we realize it or not. In fact, since the day we are born, we learn how to cultivate many different masks, allowing us to function in a variety of life’s scenarios. Is this a bad thing? Absolutely not! Humans generally exist within a society that requires us to develop relationships, contribute to an economy, share physical, intellectual, and artistic talents, and navigate complex institutions that are a part of day-to-day life. Our masks serve to help us fit into the cultural and generational characteristics of our time.
So, what’s the problem?
While our mask or persona helps us to interact in ways that society deems acceptable, sometimes, we can overly attach to this mask or persona, and subsequently, bury our truest selves. While many primal urges (Freud would have called this the Id) would be highly inappropriate if unleased on a whim (imagine biting someone when you are angry, for example), these feelings still exist within us and need a healthy outlet. If we pretend these feelings don’t exist, all in the name of adhering to the image or persona we’ve created, we will inevitably start to feel the stirrings of these repressed urges.
And it’s not just anger, it’s MANY other things.
Jung called our repressed selves our shadow figures—more on that another time—and they can be anything from our inner child, the opposing gender to that of which we identity, the wise sage, the joker, the mother, the father, and all the many archetypal figures that define the human experience. When it comes to our persona or image, most try very hard to deny those negative aspects, because they don’t want to appear weak, angry, broken, vulnerable, sad, or inappropriate. A good example is the religious person who gets caught in a sexually inappropriate relationship despite preaching a life of monogamy or celibacy. Clearly, the mask this individual wore was hiding weighty desires.
“The shadow is a moral problem that challenges the whole ego-personality, for no one can become conscious of the shadow without considerable moral effort. To become conscious of it involves recognizing the dark aspects of the personality as present and real. This act is the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.”
Carl Jung, Aion (1951). CW 9, Part II: P.14
Darryl Sharp's Jung Lexicon further explains the shadow, as a:
…hidden or unconscious aspects of oneself, both good and bad, which the ego has either repressed or never recognized...the shadow is not, however, only the dark underside of the personality. It also consists of instincts, abilities and positive moral qualities that have long been buried or never been conscious.
Before we delve into our shadow selves, we must first recognize the masks we have created to cover theses aspects of ourselves. When we explore our persona, we are also recognizing our ego as its foundation. The ego is how we see ourselves or how we want to see ourselves, based on our external life experiences. These experiences can include everything from our family status, appearance, religious beliefs, education, gender identification, age, and race.
In a nutshell, our ego is our perceived image, and our persona is that image brought to life.
For example, we may wake up sad, exhausted, hair a mess, and fed up with life; but our ego tells us we must be happy, energetic, well put together, and positive. Then, our persona gets to work bringing that image to life. We put on a mask of a smiling face, with boundless energy, snapping a selfie as we head to the gym in our Lulu’s, while posting mantras of endless positivity. Now, tell me this isn’t the world we live in? Social media is the collective unconscious of ego personification.
Again, is that so wrong?
Well, from that perspective, we are denying the negative messages that our psyche is sharing with us: we’re feeling down, worn out, spent, and frustrated. Those feelings exist for a reason. Interestingly enough, those types of feelings, sometimes labeled as depression, often precede profound self-discovery and renewal. Depression is anger turned inward and anger is often denial of self, whereas denial of self is fear of the truth of who we are. When we attach to our ego, we are denying ourselves healing and growth, because our ego wants us to stay exactly the way we are: perfect; well, perfect at least according to the persona we’ve developed for ourselves. We become over-attached to an idea—presented by our ego—of how we should be, and to a persona that will not allow us vulnerability.
This is when ego and persona can be damaging to our health, well-being, and psychological growth. Again, let me reiterate, we need our ego and persona to some degree, however, there comes a point in time when we must separate that mask and put it on the shelf from time-to-time.
Self, dreams, & symbols As we psychologically evolve and growth, we begin to recognize and know Self. What is Self? Self is the integration of the unconscious mind with the conscious minds. Self is our absolute truth. Self understands our ego and persona as a projection of an image, while also recognizing the many other aspects within our psyche. Until we delve into our unconscious mind, the Self often presents itself to us in riddles and symbols.
For example, we may dream of a co-worker who is very different than we are, doing something that is central to the story of our dream. Let’s say, that in this dream, our co-worker is giving us a gift or leading us along a path, hugging us, or opening a door to a house. We may think, “Hmmm… why is Jane Doe in my dream? I must have just been recalling our latest exchange before I fell asleep and that’s why she appeared.” That rationalization could be true, however, when seeing dreams through a Jungian lens, we understand that the people in our dreams are really aspects of ourselves.
Early on in our journey of self discovery, those who appear in our dreams often represent our shadow qualities. In this instance, perhaps Jane Doe is outwardly emotional person, who displays vulnerability readily (and maybe to your distain or frustration) in front of most people. Perhaps you strive to present yourself as strong, emotional controlled, and reliable. In this instance, Jane Doe is symbolizing an area of yourself that you have repressed and that wants to come to the surface.
Does that sound heavy? Sure!
Self-discovery at this level is complex but worth it. What’s exciting about this work is this it is rich in symbolism and once you dive in, the messages pop up everywhere. Here are some examples of such instances:
Perhaps a dragonfly flew into your house; well, what does a dragonfly mean symbolically?
Maybe you dreamed about your childhood dog last night? Stop and think, “what did that dog mean to me and what does a dog represent?”.
Have you recently heard the same obscure song, multiple times in one day? Look up the lyrics! Then ask yourself, “what could they possibly mean and how could they relate to me and my journey?”.
Are you feeling some emotional stirrings, you don’t understand? Give that feeling a name and write to it in your journal. Or, better yet, write as that aspect of youself. What do those names emotions have to tell you?
But let’s take a few steps backs, before we take on the heavier stuff.
Here are some important things to consider or ask yourself, when taking the first steps into psychological wholeness. Let's figure out how to define our mask or persona:
What did my parents do for a living?
What type of household and community did I grow up in?
Did I have a religious background? If so, what were the stories and guidelines that this religious practice imparted?
What type of education have I had and was getting good grades and participating in extracurriculars important?
Am I active on social media?
What do I think about my physical appearance and what efforts do I make to uphold this appearance, if any?
What type of career do I have and what position do I hold?
To what gender do I identify?
How do I describe my personality?
How do I think or hope others perceive me?
What’s good about me?
What’s bad about me?
What happens when I’m angry? What does anger feel like in my body? What makes me angry?
What made me happy as a child?
Who am I without my job, my health, my looks, my status, my community standing, or my family?
And that’s just a start, albeit a good one. Defining the mask or persona we have cultivated is key to understanding your entire Self. Seeing and understanding your persona can help you determine and draw out what lies within your unconscious mind. Then, once you see and understand what has been repressed in the name of protecting your ego, you can become your truest and whole Self. You will also begin the process of healing from the many experiences that led to you hiding those aspects of yourself in the first place. It is at this point that our psyche or soul can come closer to the surface and lead us purposefully on our journey.
In The Portable Jung, Joseph Campbell explains:
Jung’s concept is that the aim of one’s life, psychologically speaking, should be not to suppress or repress, but to come to know one’s other side, and so both to enjoy and to control the whole range of one’s capacities; i.e., in the full sense, to “know oneself.”
Are you ready to get to know your other side? Do you want to become the fullest version of yourself? Can you describe your persona? Your first steps await!
Love and support to you on your journey.
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