Five Volumes of Lectures Given at the Jung Institute Concerning Fairy Tales [later published as An Introduction to the Interpretation of Fairytales]

A collection of five volumes of lectures on fairy tales given in English by Marie-Luise von Franz, at the Carl Jung Institute between 1956-1963, representing the first editions (they were later collected and edited into Franz's seminal 1970 book An Introduction to the Interpretation of Fairytales). Quartos. 74pp., 85pp., 151pp., 193pp., and 95pp. Quarter cloth stapled with stiff paper wraps and mimeographed sheets. Overall near fine with some bumped corners, sunning, and scattered ink notes. Each volume includes a notation at the top of its first page stating, in slightly varying language: "These Notes are intended as an Aide Memoire to Students who attend the Course and do not constitute a verbatim report. Dr. von Franz has glanced through them briefly but is not responsible for any errors in reporting." As such, the text varies from published versions of these lectures, with some asides and comments directed to her students in Zurich that are not incorporated into later texts.

Franz was one of Carl Jung's most brilliant and dedicated disciples, a world-renowned expert in the interpretation of fairy tales, and was hailed in her The New York Times obituary as "the queen of Jungian psychology." Her decade-long study of world fairy tales helped her confirm numerous instances of epochal synchronicities, a Jung-created term for the expected coincidences resulting from the repetition of symbols and motifs in unrelated cultures. She first met Jung at 18, becoming his student and research assistant. In 1948 she co-founded the C.G. Jung Institute in Zurich and succeeded Jung as its leader after his death in 1961. Franz contributed to many of Jung's major studies, particularly the psychology of medieval alchemy, interpreted more than 65,000 dreams during her career, pioneered the study of the archetypal nature of numbers and mathematics, and was Jung's standard bearer until her death in 1998.

A scarce set of first editions of these highly influential Franz lectures which paved the way for the later writings of Bruno Bettelheim and today's prevalent use of fairy tale motifs in adult fiction and entertainment.

Books:

1. "The Psychological Meaning or Redemption Motifs in Fairy Tales." Quarto. 8, 9, 11, 11, 12, 11, 12pp. Near fine with one bumped corner and some sunning to the wraps. Seven lectures given during the fall semester of 1956 in which Franz discusses redemption in fairy tales involving protagonists being bewitched or cursed and later redeemed in terms of Christian faith and psychological ideas. OCLC locates no copies.

2. "The Problem of the Shadow in Fairy Tales." Quarto. 12, 11, 12, 11, 13, 8, 18pp. Near fine with some sunning to the wrappers and two very minor ink notes to one page. Seven lectures given during the fall semester of 1957 that focus on shadows in fairy tales – in the guise of giants, monsters, ghosts, and demons – and how they manifest differently with men and women. OCLC locates one copy.

3. "Problem of Feminine Psychology in Fairy Tales." Quarto. 16, 13, 13, 16, 17, 13, 17, 14, 16, 16pp. About near fine with a bump to one corner, a touch of wear at the crown, and a few splash marks on the front wrap. Ten lectures, given during the fall semester of 1958, on how the feminine is revealed in various fairy tales, including "Sleeping Beauty," "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs," and "Rumpelstiltskin." OCLC locates two copies.

4. "An Introduction to the Psychology of Fairy Tales." Quarto. 21, 21, 21, 15, 17pp. Near fine with scattered ink notations to the interior pages. Five lectures, given during the winter semester of 1963, that reveal some of the basic tenants of Jungian interpretation of fairy tales and how they relate to dreams. OCLC locates one copy.

5. "The Individuation Process in Fairy Tales." Quarto. 21, 22, 20, 20, 18, 19, 17, 19, 19, 18pp. About near fine with two corners bumped, and some wear at the spine ends with a piece of clear tape. Ten lectures, given during the spring semester of 1963, on the images of birds in fairy tales and various themes of psychological and spiritual transformation, as seen in "The White Parrot," "The Bath Badgerd," "Prince Hassan Pasha," "The Bird Flower Triller," "The Nightingale Gisar," and "The Bird Wehmus." OCLC locates three copies.