My Self, My Many Selves

Book excerpt: 'The concept of the "self" has remained puzzling and controversial. Indeed, far from gaining clarity, it seems to become ever more complex; for many different people, starting from different premises and having different goals have come to "appropriate" this term. The author has made what seems to me to be a most valuable contribution by sticking firmly to an experiential approach. The author has thought hard and deeply about the different ways in which we experience the "I" and drawn on his own "I" experience as well as on those of his patients and Jung himself. 'The author tells us in his introduction that the main aim of his book is to illustrate the migratory nature of the feeling of "I" and that the goal of analysis is to "facilitate and open up interaction and intercommunication between our various selves".