In my current research around the concept of the divine masculine (or the sacred masculine), all paths seem to lead to one book: King, Warrior, Magician, Lover, The Archetypes of The Mature Masculine. Co-authored by Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette, the book is described as “a bestselling, Jungian introduction to the psychological foundation of a mature, authentic, and revitalized masculinity. (…) An exploratory journey that will help men and women reimagine and deepen their understanding of the masculine psyche.” (via Amazon)
The book is being shipped to me as I am writing this blog post: my intuition is that it will be insightful and transformative. In the meantime, I would like to share with you 4 video essays that made me want to dive deeper into the understanding of The Archetypes of The Mature Masculine. The videos are particularly well-researched and educational. They cleverly analyze popular movies to explain the archetypes.
(Note: the video essays are from a superb Youtube channel called Like Stories of Old. I included all relevant links to show your support at the end of the blog post.)
The Archetype of The King
Exploring the Archetype of the King in movies and television, based on Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette’s King, Warrior, Magician, Lover.
The Archetype of The Warrior
Exploring the Archetype of the Warrior in films, based on Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette’s King, Warrior, Magician, Lover and Carol S. Pearson’s The Hero Within.
The Archetype of The Magician
An analysis of the archetype of the Magician and an exploration of concepts such as initiation, ritual process and sacred space.
The Archetype of The Lover
An analysis of the struggle with the masculine identity in Barry Jenkins’ Best Picture winning film Moonlight using Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette’s book King, Warrior, Magician, Lover.
About the book: King, Warrior, Magician, Lover: Rediscovering the Archetypes of the Mature Masculine
Redefining age-old concepts of masculinity, Jungian analysts Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette make the argument that mature masculinity is not abusive or domineering, but generative, creative, and empowering of the self and others. Moore and Gillette clearly define the four mature male archetypes that stand out through myth and literature across history:
- the king (the energy of just and creative ordering),
- the warrior (the energy of aggressive but nonviolent action),
- the magician (the energy of initiation and transformation),
- and the lover (the energy that connects one to others and the world),
- as well as the four immature patterns that interfere with masculine potential (divine child, oedipal child, trickster and hero). (via Amazon)