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Friday 7 May, 8pm

 

At MacKillop House Conference Centre,

50 Archibald Street, Lyneham

 

Peter Dicker

 

“The Undivided One: Dionysian Consciousness in the Clinic”

 

There are many obstacles to a true and sympathetic understanding

of the mythical Greek god, Dionysus (or the Roman ‘Bacchus’).

Culturally, our representations have tended towards the caricature:

from the truly mad and dangerous to the perpetually drunk old man,

overweight and riding an unsteady unicorn,

as in the buffoon of Disney films like Fantasia.

 

These portrayals have in common a perception of the Dionysian experience as in some way “inferior” and therefore able to be dismissed

as either too dangerous to trust or too ridiculous to take seriously.

 

In this presentation, Peter will contend that the subversive ‘madness’ of Dionysian consciousness can, now more than ever,

nourish our sanity in a modern world.

This will be shown more particularly through a ‘modern’ clinical presentation.

Along the way it will be necessary to loosen our grip, permit the ambiguous in all things and encounter the radical bisexual nature at the heart of the God.

 

Peter Dicker lives in the Illawarra,

a beautiful coastal region of New South Wales, Australia,

where he works as a psychologist in a public health clinic.

 

He is a former president of the Illawarra Jung Society

and is regarded as a passionate and articulate exponent of

James Hillman’s work, with a particular interest in its relevance

to the Australian scene.

 

Over the past two decades, Peter has explored and developed his interest in Jungian and Archetypal Psychology through numerous creative projects – lectures, essays, poetry and musical compositions.

He continues to maintain an ongoing passion for ideas,

especially in relation to matters of clinical and cultural concern.

 

 

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