Beyond Jung – Control, Creation, and the Future of Nature

The phenomena of climate change and the rapid advancement of artificial intelligence reveal a defining feature of humanity: the aspiration to control, reshape, and surpass the natural world. At the heart of both lies a mode of creativity and god-like ambition that seeks mastery over nature and the power to create new, autonomous entities. Originating as a human-made being shaped from earth and animated through sacred knowledge, the image of the Golem serves as a powerful metaphor for this impulse. It is interpreted here as a symbolic expression of the desire not only to dominate the natural world, but also to transcend it through technological means.

This mode of human creativity, driven by the urge to control rather than to participate in the natural order, often overlooks the profound interdependence between human systems and ecological stability. Its consequences are increasingly evident in the accelerating disruption of the climate and in the development of autonomous technologies that affect our lives in far-reaching ways. This talk uses the Golem myth as a symbolic framework to examine the ethical and psychological tensions inherent in acts of creation, the limits of control, and the urgent need to reconsider humanity’s relationship with both the natural world and technological innovation.

Dr Orsolya Lukács is a Lecturer of Psychoanalytic Studies and the Director of Education for the Department of Psychosocial and Psychoanalytic Studies at the University of Essex. Her primary academic interests lie in the interdisciplinary nature of analytical psychology, particularly its intersections with physics, its applications to emerging fields such as artificial intelligence, and its relevance to critical societal issues like climate change. She is also deeply interested in the history of analytical psychology and the role of talking therapies in shaping and driving societal change and is drawn to explorations of time, the interplay between mind and matter, intuition, imagination, creativity, theories of consciousness, virtual realities, and the evolving concept of the Self. Her upcoming book, C. G. Jung and Albert Einstein: Analytical Psychology, Relativity and the Universe will be published by Routledge. She has also contributed a chapter, entitled ‘Jung, Ecopsychology and Climate Change’ to the forthcoming The Second Handbook of Jungian Psychology, edited by Renos Papadopoulos and Stephen Garratt, and to be published by Routledge.