Bedknobs and Broomsticks

I listened to this lecture where Lois Khan talks about Rumpelstiltskin and it rang true for me when she says that the major psychological task for women is to separate out a sense of their own masculine from their inner image of what men are, and the stereotypical energy that surrounds them.

She says that the crux of this story is the woman's ability to name her own masculine, otherwise animus – as both the father and the king who lock her in a tower, and Rumpelstilzkin himself – will steal her creative potential, which is symbolized in the story as her firstborn child. Solving the mystery of Rumpelstiltskin represents naming her own masculine ability to discriminate, delineate, and decide – then she's no longer locked in a tower, and her creativity belongs to her.

I saw a similar pattern in Bedknobs and Broomsticks. Angela Lansbury's character has actual creative power; she can make things happen but believes she can't tap into it without Mr. Brown, who offers mail order lessons on magic spells. When she goes to find him, he gets excited and tries to bend those powers to his own agenda.

Mr. Brown sings to Eglantine:

Let us strike a bargain
You possess a gift
But I can speak the jargon
That will give your gift the needed lift

You possess the know-how
And I command the show-how
Oh, how successful you could be
With me

Eglantine, Eglantine
Oh, how you shine
Your lot and my lot
Have got to combine

---

As the shine sells the boot
And the blossoms, the fruit
All you need to succeed in your plan
Is the proper ally
Upon whom to rely
And I'm your man

For I have an acumen
That's nigh superhuman
I sell things that nobody can

So I humbly suggest
You accept my behest
I'm your man

---

As the words sell the tune
And the moonbeams, the moon
All you need to succeed in your plan
Is a champion rare
With a flourish and a flair
And I'm your man

All you need to succeed in your plan
Is a champion rare with a flourish and a flair
And I'm your man

Animus, in its negative form, wants to use the woman as a vehicle for its own creativity. The push-pull here creates the impetus to really figure out what it is that you want. I have always been able to adapt my own energy to the men around me, and there's something life-giving and expansive about that. But the real job is within, as I figure out what my own values, goals, and priorities are. This takes time, and it can seem like an impossible task, but with focus and transparency, I'm learning more about how I want to move through the world.