Abstract:

In this study, Turning Red animation, a joint production of Disney and Pixar, is examined with its archetypal dimension. Collective unconscious and archetypes are among the most crucial understandings that Carl Gustav Jung, the founder of Analytical Psychology, contributed to the science of psyche. The collective unconscious consists of images and archetypes shared by all humanity (Indick, 2011). Archetypes represent the basic human disposition to understand and share common psychological issues such as the experience of having a mother and father, the desire for love, or the need for spiritual healing and rebirth (Indick, 2011). Archetypes that express themselves through symbols and images enable the reshaping of every consciousness they come into contact with. Jung states that ignoring archetypes, in other words, throwing them into the unconscious, causes destruction of psychic structure. Therefore he attaches importance to the effort to understand archetypes. Analytical Psychology aims to strengthen the consciousness with analysis of archetypes and make it more mature against the unconscious. Various manifestations of archetypes appear in the cultural products of societies. In this context, we can explain popular culture products with their archetypal dimensions, the reflections of the collective unconscious. In this study, we examined Turning Red from a Jungian point of view through the symbols and representations about mother, shadow, child, initiation and individuation archetypes. In conclusion, we discussed archetypes and representations in the film and their meanings according to the collective consciousness and unconscious.

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