The 7 Female Archetypes

What does it mean to be a woman? These days femininity is incredibly layered and complex. However, whether conscious or not, we can still relate to seven female archetypes, originally explored by Swiss psychiatrist and psychoanalyst Carl Jung, to understand something more about ourselves.

The mother, the maiden, the queen, the huntress, the sage, the mystic, and the lover are some of those models that have been used to describe universal patterns in behaviour through which we see and experience the world. How can we use our intrinsic nature represented by them for good?

We can use archetypes to reflect on the qualities that we already possess, the gaps in our inner narrative we may want to fill, those personal issues we would like to solve and the energy we want to cultivate more of. And what better season than summer to reflect upon our journey and the woman we have become?

For instance, you might find it interesting to get to know that if you are a sensual and playful lady who always craves intimacy and thrilling relationships, the best archetype to relate to might be the Lover. This model runs wild and free but often finds it difficult to control emotions and use sexuality to manipulate people. On the other hand, if you find yourself sensitive, naive and empathetic, positive and excited about life, you might feel closer to the Maiden but sometimes feel trapped by circumstances as you tend to be too passive. 

And how about the Mother? Women represented by this archetype are first and foremost caretakers. Protective, compassionate and generous, they are happy to be able to look after others. However, they often put people’s needs before their own.

If you are unapologetically confident and highly extroverted, with a strong allegiance to duty, propriety, and natural leadership, you’ll probably find the Queen as an archetype that well represents your personality. However, you might be in need of reframing some of your beliefs: your idealization of commitment might make you feel incomplete without a man by your side and often unable to bond closely with other women, seeing them as a threat to your throne.

Of course, there are other independent women’s archetypes for those women who want to achieve great things in life. The Huntress is one of those. This model is the embodiment of female dominance, success, freedom, and fearlessness. If you feel well represented by her, know that your busy schedule may be a good excuse to fitting someone else into your full life and you’ll probably be in need of smoothing some of your traits.

Those women who have learned from their mistakes and have turned their wounds into wisdom, have great deep knowledge and discipline, will probably find their main traits in the archetype of the Wise woman. Unfortunately, this model represents ladies who are too confident and often fail to invest in their emotional intelligence.

Tapping into their own souls, it’s instead something that easily occurs to women close to the Mystic, the archetype that symbolizes someone focused on cultivating inner peace. Introspective and intuitive, this type of woman naturally leans into her spiritual side, however, she tends to be too introverted at times, especially with her emotions.

Which archetype do you resonate with most? Whether you might be a mix of different patterns or just one, they all offer great insight into our strengths and weaknesses. Let’s take this summer holiday to celebrate the goddess within.

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