Thuggishness is almost endemic in modern society. Historians will say that it always has been. But there are good psychological — almost supernatural — reasons for this

It may surprise most people to learn that they have an inner thug. The psychologust CG Jung called it our Shadow — all those bits we don’t like about ourselves. Over the years, especially in youth, we repress these contents and they form an autonomous complex which becomes our “Personal Unconscious”. Since this “self” controls our basic energy feeds, it affects everything we do, usually in a negative and restrictive way.

The inner thug often appears in dreams, sometimes as a fierce black dog. If we aren’t on good terms with our Shadow self, it will attack us. If we accept our inner thug, it will be more friendly, though we still feel anxious around it.

If we absorb the unconscious thug into our conscious self, the dog turns into a pussy cat and works with us not against our interests. Jung made the case for wholeness in his writings on “Individuation”. Here’s what he said:

“Awareness of … the requirements of the total personality eliminate the conditions under which autonomous complexes can survive.”

Goodbye Inner Thug!