Ah Halloween, the one socially acceptable time of year when children and adults alike are allowed to dress nearly any way they wish, guilt-free and in public. Many dress to scare, some to shock and others still to reveal. Whatever costume one does choose provides a glimmer of insight into the personality behind the mask.
"I think that you can go to Jung's idea of 'the shadow,'" ventures Darwin Dorr, Ph.D., a psychology professor at Wichita State University, by way of explanation. Carl Jung defined the shadow as an unconscious part of personality; a darker side, usually kept hidden from public view.
"The shadow is the unconscious part of you that you don't particularly like," says Dorr. You may see a demure woman costumed as a dominatrix, he suggests, or a straight man dressed in drag. "People cast in a role that does not portray who they really are often find it to be a deepening experience."
