C. G. Jung and Albert Einstein: From the physical to the psychical relativity of space and time

Despite Carl Gustav Jung’s acknowledgement of Albert Einstein’s influence on his thinking, and despite the significant number of studies into Jung’s interest in physics – and his collaboration with the theoretical physicist Wolfgang Pauli – so far there has been no thorough investigation into the connection between Jung and Einstein. This thesis researches the historical context of the relationship between Jung and Einstein, and the extent of Einstein’s influence on Jung’s concepts and system of psychology, and thereby redresses the balance of the theoretical argument about the intellectual influences on Jung from the field of physics. First, it explores the dynamics and importance of the relationship between the two men, and reconstructs the narrative of this connection. It identifies other key figures who played a mediating role between Jung and Einstein and investigates their involvement in conveying Einstein’s special and general theories of relativity to Jung as well as their part in the formation and subsequent deterioration of the relationship between Jung and Einstein. Secondly, this thesis analyses Einstein’s influence on Jung's reconceptualization of libido as psychic energy, and Jung’s employment of the theory of relativity in his writings, which culminates in his conception of the ‘psychic relativity of space and time’, the idea that underpins his theory of synchronicity.