VDM Sorenson, P: Signs of Mid-Life

The drive within men for individual transformation and growth is too often hidden. Men search to be ideally masculine, ie capable of intimacy and vulnerability as well as being vital, decisive, confident and strong, while also grappling with the malaise and inner disturbances that frequently occur during mid-life. This work seeks some answers to the perennial question of what is a rich and sustaining inner life? Exploring images from the psyche of five mid-life males, it examines the contribution to transformation made through the embodiment of images from dreams, fantasies, stories and emotions. Reflecting on these images from the psyche, the author proposes that perhaps a realization of self-knowledge, definition and purpose is the key to the richness of life. Referring to divergent theories of psychology, art therapy and philosophy of aesthetics, this multi-method case study contributes subjective, empirical, theoretical and embodied data that engages, informs and enables deeper understanding of the richness of images from the contemporary mid-life Western-orientated male. As such it is essential reading for all those concerned with issues of inner life and well being.