The Poetic Psyche: Jung, Poetry, and the Language of the Imaginal 

In this free online talk, Dr. Roula-Maria Dib explores the deep affinities between Jungian psychology and poetry as shared modes of imaginal knowing. Rather than approaching Jung as a system of ideas, the talk invites listeners to encounter him as a fellow traveller of poets—one who understood that the psyche speaks in images, symbols, and meaningful patterns rather than fixed concepts. Drawing on poetry, myth, synchronicity, and her work in poetic inquiry and arts-based therapy, Dib reflects on how poems function as sites of encounter: holding ambiguity, sustaining tension, and allowing meaning to emerge slowly and relationally. The talk also focuses on poetry as a discipline of attention—an openness to correspondence between inner and outer worlds, especially in times of difficulty and uncertainty. The talk will be followed by an audience Q&A.

Please note that this talk is free but you will need to register in order to receive the Zoom link. This talk will be recorded and made available to all who have registered.  Please note that this event has now taken place – the talk recording will be available soon on our Youtube channel.

is an award-winning scholar, poet, and editor whose work bridges literature, creative writing, Jungian psychology, and arts-based research. She is the founding director of the London Arts-Based Research Centre and Editor-in-Chief of Indelible, a literary and arts journal that fosters cross-disciplinary creative expression. Awarded the UK Global Talent Visa and endorsed by the British Academy, Roula has been recognized for her contributions to academia and the creative arts. She is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, and in 2022, she received the British Council’s Alumni Award for Culture and Creativity.

Her academic and creative work explores the deep connections between Jungian and literary theory, poetic inquiry, mythology, and transdisciplinary scholarship. Her book Jungian Metaphor in Modernist Literature (Routledge, 2020) was shortlisted for the International Association for Jungian Studies Book Awards, and her poetry collection Simply Being (Chiron Publications, 2021) has received critical acclaim. She is also a contributor to Patricia Leavy’s renowned Handbook of Arts-Based Research. Roula is an active curator of global academic and creative activities, having organized over 100 conferences and events. Through her Psychreative speaker series and international workshops, she continues to inspire dialogue between the humanities, the arts, and inner life.