Cinderella, the Tao, and Ecopsychology

Presented by
Dennis Merritt, PhD, LCSW

When

Sunday, March 23, 2025    
11:00 am PDT - 2:00 pm PDT
Download ICS Google Calendar iCalendar Office 365 Outlook Live

Please note this is a 3 hour program

This program will be recorded and made available publicly on our YouTube channel.
You do not need to have registered to view the video.

Fairy tales are the purest and simplest expression of collective unconscious psychic processes…. They represent the archetypes in their simplest, barest, and most concise form.

Marie Louise von Franz

Working with fairy tales is one of the best ways to develop an archetypal and symbolic perspective on dreams, life and the analytic process. After a brief introduction to fairy tales and methods of interpretation, we will work with one of the most universal fairytale motifs on the planet—Cinderella. Prominent issues revolve around abandonment, loss, grief and narcissism. Significant ecopsychological aspects of the Grimm’s version of this tale will be highlighted together with a relationship to the concept of the Tao. Time permitting, the Grimm’s version will be compared with the Perrault-Disney version.

Dennis Merritt, PhD, LCSW, obtained a PhD from Berkeley in insect pathology (microbial control of insect pests), an MA in Humanistic Psychology from Sonoma State, and is a graduate of C. G. Jung Institute in Zurich. He authored the four volumes of The Dairy Farmer’s Guide to the Universe: Jung, Hermes, and Ecopsychology. Working with fairytales has enabled him to develop an archetypal and symbolic perspective that he applies to dream interpretation, cultural issues, and the psychology behind global warming as referenced in his blog JungianEcopsychology.com. Dr. Merritt practices as a Jungian analyst and ecopsychologist in Milwaukee and is a senior member of the C. G. Jung Institute of Chicago. Over 36 years of participation in Lakota Sioux ceremonies has strongly influenced his worldview.

Learning objectives:

  • Describe how analyzing fairy tales cultivates a symbolic and archetypal perspective on analysis and cultural phenomena.
  • Explain the basics of fairy tale interpretation.
  • Describe the ecopsychological dimensions of Grimm’s Cinderella.
  • Describe how Grimm’s Cinderella is psychologically more potent than the Perrault/Disney version.
Registration (Free)

​Registration is free but REQUIRED in order to view the program live.  You will not be admitted to the Zoom session unless you have registered.  Use this Zoom link to register for this program.  After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information, including the Zoom link, about joining the meeting.

​Continuing Education (CE)

​This course meets the qualifications for 3 CE hours for LMFTs, LCSWs, LPCCs, and/or LEPs.

  • Use the CE Registration page to pay $20 and register to be awarded 3 CE hours for this program.  
  • Attend the entire program (Zoom records the attendance times of attendees).
  • Submit the online program evaluation form which will be emailed to registrants who have completed the program.

A Certificate of Completion will then be emailed within two weeks.

​For more information about the awarding of continuing education units, visit our CE web page.

​​If you are not satisfied with a program, please email us your grievance.