Carl Gustav Jung

In the novel The Pilgrim by Timothy Findley a doctor named Carl Jung takes on the case of the mysterious man named Pilgrim. This case becomes an obsession of Jung’s and he finds himself facing his own struggle for sanity. After doing research however, I found that Carl Gustav Jung was not a fictional character and was in fact a real doctor at the Burghölzli Psychiatric Clinic in Sweden. Carl Jung was born on July 26, 1875 in Kesswil, Thurgau, Switzerland and died June 6, 1961 at the age of 85 in Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland. Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist, an influential thinker and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is often considered the first modern psychologist to state that the human psyche is "by nature religious" and to explore it in depth. Though not the first to analyze dreams, he has become perhaps one of the most well known pioneers in the field of dream analysis.

I find it incredibly intriguing that Timothy Findley was able to mix such a great blend of Fiction and Reality in this Novel. From the very clinic Pilgrim was admitted in, to the very psychiatrist treating him Timothy Findley used accurate and historical facts. I also enjoy how while Carl Jung is reading Pilgrims’ journals that they are not entirely made up but instead contain real historic events that had  a tremendous effect on the world.  

The Clinic

From the very beginning of the novel the reader is told that Pilgrim is taken to Burghölzli Psychiatric clinic in Sweden. In order to gain a better understanding of the setting in this novel I had to go onto the internet and do some research into what the Burghölzli Psychiatric clinic was like. First off, I learned that ‘Burghölzli’ was the name given to the psychiatric hospital located inside of the University of Zürich, Switzerland, and that ‘Burghölzli’ is a wooded hill in the district of Riesbach of southeastern Zürich. The clinic was created in the 1860s for the humane treatment of the mentally ill. From 1870 until 1879, the hospital had three directors, Bernhard von Gudden, Gustav Huguenin and Eduard Hitzig. All three men practiced medicine from a biological basis, with brain pathology and physiology being the general focus of their research. It wasn’t until the fourth director Auguste-Henri Forel took charge that the hospital gained a reputation in the medical world. 

Pilgrim in the spotlight

      Not much is given to the reader when describing what Pilgrim looks like; Timothy Findley probably did this intentionally to build up the mystery around Pilgrim. The reader is left to create, for the most part, their own in vision of Pilgrim and what this mysterious man may look like. However, in the details that are given about Pilgrim, he is described to be an angel like figure.  “He stood in the vestibule staring blankly, still maintaining his angle like image – six foot-six of drooping shoulders, lifeless arms and wings that at last had folded.” (Findley 7) As the story unfolds the reader learns more and more about Pilgrim. He proclaims that no one will believe him when he says that he can not die, due to a curse placed on him in mythological times, and this looks very true because after several suicide attempts he has not died. Pilgrim is a well educated man full of anger, particularly towards the arts. To me, it is unclear why he gets so angry towards art, but i believe it has something to do with what happened to him all those years ago.   

Is it really true!?!?!

      “And yet, to date Jung’s observation of Pilgrim, nothing had indicated he was possessed, as folklore would have it. Nothing had indicated he was a medium – a seer – a “speaker.” He had seemed to be entirely himself, however remote and damaged.” (Findley 113) This quote shows the despite all of Jung’s research into Pilgrim and his past he can not find any evidence of insanity or even find fault in what little Pilgrim has told him. As difficult as it is to believe that someone can not die, it would appear the Jung may have no other option then to accept that maybe, just maybe Pilgrim is not insane and that he really did experience and live through all the things that he and the journals say he did.

A Confusing layout

      The Pilgrim is becoming slightly confusing for me to read because the story is constantly bouncing back and forth between Pilgrim’s time at the mental hospital and Jung reading Pilgrims journals. After a while this becomes very confusing and sometimes you don’t know what is going on. However, this is the writing style Timothy Findley is known for. All his work is very far fetched and, in a sense, wild. In the same way this book is confusing to me I also find it very interesting, I love the writing style and the way the book is laid out. To understand it the reader must follow along very carefully or they will lose track of what is happening. Although this book is confusing and has many different smaller stories in it, it is a very gripping novel, and the premise is very interesting to me. 

The Journals... Is he SANE??

The journals are definitely are symbol of Pilgrims Sanity. These journals date back to ancient times, as far back as Leonardo Davinci and explore his alleged homosexuality, they explore Greek mythology, and even Teresa de Cepeda Y Ahumada, the medium of miracles in the ancient world; consequently explaining some of the most renowned art work ever created. Jung has no proof other then the journals that Pilgrim is not insane, and for many those journals would simply be dismissed but Jung continues to do research and becomes obsessed with Pilgrim and his prior life experiences.

Conflict...

The main conflict in this book is between the Psychiatrist Jung and Pilgrim. Everyone is convinced that Pilgrim is delusional and insane because he thinks that he has lived through the ages. Several tests are done to Pilgrim and no hard evidence of his insanity can be found. In a further attempt to understand Pilgrim, Jung gets a hold of his journals and begins to read. He is baffled by what is written in the journals and how the dates go all the way back to ancient times. This becomes Jung’s obsession and takes over his life. After some time of trying to figure Pilgrim out, Jung starts to go insane himself. So far no one has been able to find a reasonable explanation for Pilgrims’ journals and claims of life, but one thing is for certain, Pilgrim IS NOT insane.