I
t is in the second half of life that, if we are fortunate and have wise guidance, we will plumb the depths of our soul.
James Hollis is undoubtedly a wise guide and in “The Middle Passage: From Misery to Meaning in Midlife” he is focussing on the Mid-life crisis. He shows how we travel this Middle Passage consciously, thereby rendering our lives more meaningful and the second half of life immeasurably richer.
It is in the second half of life that, if we are fortunate and have wise guidance, we will plumb the depths of our soul.
James Hollis is undoubtedly a wise guide and in “The Middle Passage: From Misery to Meaning in Midlife” he is focussing on the Mid-life crisis. He shows how we travel this Middle Passage consciously, thereby rendering our lives more meaningful and the second half of life immeasurably richer.
S
o, why do so many go through so much disruption in their middle years? Why then? Why do we consider it to be a crisis?
The Middle Passage presents us with an opportunity to re-examine our lives and to ask: "Who am I apart from my history and the roles I have played?" It is an occasion for redefining and reorienting the personality, a necessary rite of passage between the extended adolescence of the first adulthood and our inevitable appointment with old age and mortality.
The Middle Passage addresses the following issues:
> How did we acquire our original sense of self?
> What are the changes that herald the Middle Passage?
> How does one revision the sense of self?
> What is the relationship between Jung's concept of individuation and our commitment to others?
> What attitudes and behaviour support individuation and help us move from misery to meaning?
“The capacity for growth depends on one’s ability to internalize and to take personal responsibility. If we forever see our life as a problem caused by others, a problem to be "solved," then no change will occur.”
This book shows how we may travel the Middle Passage consciously, thereby rendering our lives more meaningful and the second half of life immeasurably richer.
