# Quote — Marie-Louise von Franz, Archetypal Dimensions of the Psyche

> On the fourth level, he embodies the mind and becomes a mediator of creative and religious inner experiences, through which life acquires an individual meaning. At this stage he confers on a woman a spiritual and intellectual solidity that counterbalances her essentially soft nature. He can then act as a liaison connecting her with the spiritual life of the time. When this occurs, women are often more open to new, creative ideas than men. That is why in the past women were often used as mediums able to make knowledge of the future available to the world of the spirit. The creative courage in the truth conferred by the animus gives a woman the daring to enunciate new ideas that can inspire men to new enterprises. Often in history women have recognized the value of new creative ideas earlier than men, who are more emotionally conservative. The nature of woman is more closely related to the irrational, and this makes a woman better able to open to new inspirations from the unconscious. The very fact that women normally participate less in public life than men do makes it possible for their animus to act as a "hidden prince" in the darkness of private life and bring about beneficial results.

- Author: [Marie-Louise von Franz](https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz.md)
- Book: [Archetypal Dimensions of the Psyche](https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz/archetypal-dimensions-of-the-psyche.md)
- Page: 322
- Source: [Wikiquote](https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Marie-Louise_von_Franz#The_Animus,_a_Woman's_Inner_Man) ([CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/))
- Quote page: https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz/archetypal-dimensions-of-the-psyche/on-the-fourth

## More from this book

> The favorite themes that the animus of the woman dredges up within her sound like this: "I am seeking nothing but love, but 'he' doesn't love me." Or, "There are only two possibilities in this situation," both of which of course are unpleasant (the negative animus never believes in exceptions). One can seldom contradict the animus, for it/he is always right; the only problem is that his opinion is not based on the actual situation. For the most part he gives utterance to seemingly reasonable views, which, however, are slightly at a tangent to what is under discussion.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz/archetypal-dimensions-of-the-psyche/the-favorite-themes.md)

> When a person has inwardly struggled with his anima or with her animus for a sufficiently long time and has reached the point where he or she is no longer identified with it in an unconscious fashion, the unconscious once again takes on a new symbolic form in relating with the ego. It then appears in the form of the psychic core, that is, the Self. In the dreams of a woman, the Self, when it personifies itself, manifests as a superior female figure, for example, as a priestess, a sorceress, an earth mother, or a nature or love goddess. In the dreams of a man, it takes the form of some-one who confers initiations (an Indian guru), a wise old man, a nature spirit, a hero, and so forth. An Austrian fairy tale recounts the following:

p. 324 — [Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz/archetypal-dimensions-of-the-psyche/when-a-person.md)

> The embodiment of the unconscious of a woman as a figure of the opposite sex, the animus, also has positive and negative features. The animus, however, does not express itself so often in women as an erotic fantasy or mood, but rather as "sacred" convictions. When these latter are expressed loudly and energetically in a masculine style, this masculine side of a woman is easily recognizable. However, it can also manifest in a woman who appears very feminine externally as a quiet but relentless power that is hard as iron. Suddenly one comes up against something in her that is cold, stubborn, and completely inaccessible.

[Quote page](https://www.leafyquotes.com/marie-louise-von-franz/archetypal-dimensions-of-the-psyche/the-embodiment-of-the.md)