The wolf and hope

Based on clinical experience, the author explores the meaning the image of the wolf may convey, when it appears in the dreams, games, and experiences of adults and children. It seems to emerge at pivotal moments in the life ofi ndividuals with serious deficiencies despite their strong vitality. The wolf seems to mark the passage from the archetype of the negative, devouring mother to a paternal archetype. This theme is related to the more general question of the role and purpose of instincts and archetypes in Jungian theory, of their place in the incessant dialogue between conscious and unconscious.