The Animus
Latin: spirit, mind
The masculine image in the psyche of a woman.
The Animus: what does it mean in analytical psychology?
The counterpart of the anima: the masculine element in the unconscious of a woman, as Jung described it. Where the anima brings mood, the animus brings opinion and conviction. It speaks in judgments, rules, and pronouncements, sometimes as a council of fathers or authorities.
In its developed form it becomes a bridge to spirit and meaning, to reflection and the creative word. Emma Jung, whose essay remains the classic account, traced it through stages from power to deed, word, and meaning.
The Animus: where does it appear in myth and tradition?
The animus appears in myth and tale as the lover who must not be seen, like Eros with Psyche; as the demon lover and Bluebeard; as the ferryman; and as the wise and distant prophet.
From the Sources
Jung writes that in a woman the compensating figure is masculine in character, and can therefore be called the animus; the anima, he says, is a compensating figure to masculine consciousness.
“…a compensating figure to masculine consciousness. In a woman, however, the compensating figure is masculine in character, and therefore can be appropriately termed the animus.”
C. G. Jung, M.D., LL.D., Two Essays on Analytical Psychology, 'The Relation of the Ego to the Unconscious', Part II, Chapter II, 'Anima and Animus', p. 225. Authorized translation by H. G. and C. F. Baynes; London: Bailliere, Tindall and Cox, 1928 (Internet Archive OCR text). The text, read in part
Jung describes certain qualities found in such intensity only in the outer attitude of men as manly traits which, being excluded from a woman's outer attitude, become qualities of her soul.
“…which qualities are found in such intensity only in the outer attitude of men. These are manly traits, whose exclusion from the womanly outer attitude makes them qualities of the soul.”
C. G. Jung, Psychological Types or The Psychology of Individuation, Chapter XI, 'Definitions', no. 48, 'Soul', p. 595. Translated by H. Godwin Baynes, M.B., B.C. Cantab; London: Kegan Paul, Trench, Trubner & Co., Ltd.; New York: Harcourt, Brace & Company, Inc. (Internet Archive OCR text). The text, read in part
Each passage is quoted from the text named, which the press fetched and read, and was checked word for word against a fresh copy of it; the link opens that copy. Passages are given as printed, without the editors’ footnote numbers, and with words broken across lines joined.
Where to Read
- “The Syzygy: Anima and Animus,” in Aion, CW 9ii
- “Anima and Animus,” in Two Essays on Analytical Psychology, CW 7
- Emma Jung, Animus and Anima (1957)
Jung’s writings are cited by the volume of the Collected Works (CW), Bollingen Series / Princeton, 1953–79.
Related Symbols
In the Glossary: Anima and animus, Spirit.
Also among The Persons of the Psyche
“Learn as much as you can about symbolism; then forget it all when you are analysing a dream.”
Cite This Entry
“The Animus.” In Symbols of the Psyche, the Symbolarium. The Thinking Press, 2026. https://thethinkingpress.org/symbolarium/psyche/animus.
Symbols That Share Its Terms
Salome (The blind daughter) · The Wise Old Man (Senex sapiens) · Violet (The ultraviolet) · The Wind · Breath (Pneuma, spiritus, ruach) · The Prison (The captive spirit)
Nearby in the alphabet: The Angel: The messenger between the worlds. The Anthropos: The first man, whose body is the world. The Antichrist: The shadow of the redeemer, returning at the end of an age.