Meeting the Green Knight: Myth, Mortality, and Finding Our Way Through Uncertainty
Stay tuned for possible screening of The Green Knight (David Lowery, 2021)!
Friday, September 11, 7:30 pm
In-Person Presentation at
Loyola University New Orleans
Danna Student Ctr
Learn Lab
6363 St Charles Ave
John Bucher, PhD
Summary: Why has a mysterious medieval tale about a Christmas game, a magical knight, and a single blow from an axe continued to haunt readers for over seven centuries? In this presentation, mythologist and Joseph Campbell Foundation Executive Director JohnBucher explores Sir Gawain and the Green Knight through the lenses of Jungian psychology, Joseph Campbell's work on myth, and contemporary narrative psychology. Using both the medieval poem and A24's The Green Knight as guides, the presentation examines how myth serves not as an escape from uncertainty but as a way of orienting ourselves within it. At a moment when many inherited stories about success, identity, and meaning are breaking down, The Green Knight offers an enduring invitation: to meet uncertainty with courage, relinquish false identities, and become more fully ourselves.
CEU Learning Objectives
After this presentation, participants will be able to:
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Interpret major symbols and narrative structures in Sir Gawain and the Green Knight through the perspectives of Jungian psychology and Joseph Campbell's comparative mythology.
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Evaluate how encounters with uncertainty, mortality, and the Shadow function as catalysts for individuation and psychological development within mythic narratives.
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Apply insights from The Green Knight to contemporary questions of identity, meaning-making, and psychological orientation during periods of personal or cultural transition.
Bio: John Bucher is a mythologist and story expert who has been featured on the BBC, the History Channel, the LA Times, The Hollywood Reporter, and on numerous other international outlets. He serves as Executive Director for the Joseph Campbell Foundation and is a writer, storyteller, teacher, and speaker. John explores mythology as the stories we use to make sense of the world around us. He serves on the Board of the Philosophical Research Society and on the National Leadership Council for Be the People, an apolitical movement dedicated to reigniting the American spirit and bringing out the best of who we are through practices of dignity, problem solving, and sharing stories. He has collaborated with government and cultural leaders around the world as well as organizations including HBO, DC Comics, Paramount Pictures, Nickelodeon, A24 Films, Atlas Obscura, The J. Paul Getty Museum, and The Lucas Museum of Narrative Art, bringing his deep understanding of narrative and myth to a wide array of audiences. He is the author of six influential books on storytelling and has worked with New York Times Best-Selling authors, YouTube influencers, Eisner winners, Emmy winners, Academy Award nominees, magicians, and cast members from Saturday Night Live. Holding a PhD in Mythology & Depth Psychology, he integrates scholarly insights with storytelling techniques, exploring the profound connections between story, myth, culture, and personal identity. His expertise has helped shape compelling narratives across various platforms, enriching the way stories are told and experienced globally.
$20 for general registration (free for members)
$20 for 1.5 CEUs for counselors (LPC, PLPC) & social workers (LCSW, LMSW)
The C. G. Jung Society of New Orleans has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education provider, ACEP No. 5388. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. The C. G. Jung Society of New Orleans is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
Most programs are approved for Social Work contact hours through Tulane School of Social Work and for LPC clock hours through the National Board for Certified Counselors (NBCC). The C. G. Jung Sciety of New Orleans has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No. 5388. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. The C. G. Jung Society of New Orleans is solely responsible for all aspects of the program.