collective unconscious

American  

noun

1. (in Jungian psychology) inborn unconscious psychic material common to humankind, accumulated by the experience of all preceding generations.

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collective unconscious British  

noun

1. psychol (in Jungian psychological theory) a part of the unconscious mind incorporating patterns of memories, instincts, and experiences common to all mankind. These patterns are inherited, may be arranged into archetypes, and are observable through their effects on dreams, behaviour, etc

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collective unconscious Cultural  

1. Memories of mental patterns that are shared by members of a single culture or, more broadly, by all human beings; originally proposed by the psychologist Carl Jung to explain psychological traits shared by all people. He theorized that the collective unconscious appears as archetypes: patterns and symbols (see also symbol) that occur in dreams, mythology, and fairy tales.

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Etymology

Origin of collective unconscious

First recorded in 1915–20

Example Sentences

“There is a sort of collective unconscious understanding amongst anyone who’s been a young actress — you get it,” says Deutch.

From Los Angeles Times

But the December single — an uptempo, longing love song set at Christmastime — immediately shot up the charts and never went away, returning each holiday season and “lodging in the world’s collective unconscious like no Christmas song in at least half a century,” according to a previous Times report.

From Los Angeles Times

He would understand irony as an archetype drawn from our collective unconscious.

From Salon

It also boasts the hook of reviving proven IP, and though it’s not exactly “Star Trek,” the original ran for nine years and is rerunning still; it has a seat in the collective unconscious.

From Los Angeles Times

At a time when conversations around self-discovery are surging, the analyst’s theories on the collective unconscious, archetypes and shadow are increasingly influencing the work of social media-savvy healers, therapists and life coaches.

From Los Angeles Times