Hostile brothers

1. Etymology

Hostile brothers names an archetypal motif associated with the opposites constellated in a conflict situation. Related: Gilgamesh and Enkidu; Cain and Abel; ego–shadow tug of war.

2. Plain summary

When conflict constellates the opposites, mythology often stages them as hostile brothers—Gilgamesh against Enkidu, Cain against Abel. Psychologically the motif is generally read as the tug of war between ego and shadow: one brother the accepted stance, the other the denied.

Examples (exhaustive house list for this Index lemma — common hostile-brothers motifs named across Jung’s essays and standard Jungian lexica; not a claim that Jung’s CW contains only these):
archetypal conflict motif; opposites constellated; Gilgamesh–Enkidu; Cain–Abel; ego vs shadow; sibling rivalry as projection screen; kinship with enantiodromia / crucifixion suspension (distinct).

3. Academic elucidation

In analytical psychology hostile brothers is opposites-in-conflict motif—short Sharp definition with CW sample at CW 5 ¶678 (Gilgamesh–Enkidu / ego–shadow). Samuels: no dedicated head this pass.

4. Lexicon

Sharp (1991)

Hostile brothers. An archetypal motif associated with the opposites constellated in a conflict situation. Examples… Gilgamesh and Enkidu… Cain and Abel. Psychologically, it is generally interpreted in terms of the tug of war between ego and shadow.

(Sharp, 1991)

Samuels, Shorter & Plaut (1986) — no dedicated hostile brothers head (list) this vessel pass:

(No dedicated Samuels head.) Related under shadow / opposites / hero

5. CW concordance — sample, not exhaustive

Rider and horse form a centaur-like unit, like man and his shadow, i.e., the higher and lower man, ego-consciousness and shadow, Gilgamesh and Enkidu.
(Jung, 1912/1967, CW 5, p. 692, ¶678)

See also: shadow; ego; opposites; hero; projection; individuation.

References

Jung, C. G. (1967). Symbols of transformation. In H. Read, M. Fordham, G. Adler, & W. McGuire (Eds.), The collected works of C. G. Jung (R. F. C. Hull, Trans.) (2nd ed., Vol. 5, p. 692, ¶678). Princeton University Press. (Original work published 1912)

Samuels, A., Shorter, B., & Plaut, F. (1986). A critical dictionary of Jungian analysis. Routledge.

Sharp, D. (1991). Jung lexicon: A primer of terms & concepts. Inner City Books.