The Web of Mediality
Most journeys have a path from beginning to end, which is somewhat direct. The journey of this book is different, for it is a journey through “the web of mediality.” This web moves in and out in many directions from the central point of mediality, with long and short strands that intersect and support each other. As we follow a single thread in this web, we quickly discover that it’s mysteriously interlaced with other threads. Soon what seemed to be a simple strand is seen as supported by other filaments and also supportive of the others. As we follow these strands, we will discover that some of them are sticky and uncomfortable, but since it is the medial that is spinning the web, she can be playful as well as insightful, and her web is beautiful.
I hope you will come on the journey along this luminous web to delve into the mystery of medial women, whether you are medial, wonder if you might be medial, love a medial woman, are a therapist or analyst who has a medial woman in your practice, or you are just curious.
This journey begins nearly a century ago with a woman named Toni Wolff, who was an assistant to Carl Jung and was the first to name and write about the medial woman. Though her writing comes from a different era and some of her thoughts are outdated, she has opened a dimension of the feminine that is timeless. She guides us on our journey. I’ve also invited contemporary medial women to join us as we move into this experience. As we tell stories and share dreams, active imagination, poetry, and reflections, you may shed a tear, smile, or possibly laugh-out-loud. You will discover that I’ve written these words in a non-linear style that reflects mediality.
Together we shall be tracing the interlacing strands of a web that has existed in darkness, and as we shine light on its different filaments, we will discover that they become translucent and reflect the many colors of mediality. Together we will venture into this web of mediality in all its shimmering colors and cob-webby shadows.
The farther we move along the web and as more light begins to shine through, I trust you will discover insights into what it is to be a medial woman. I hope you will find this journey enlightening, as well as rich and enjoyable.
Present Western culture needs a deep transformative voice in the midst of social crisis and change, and the medial woman is often this voice, for it is she who sees through the web.
