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I Introduction

"The primordial image, or archetype, is a figure--be it a daemon, a human being, or a process-- that constantly recurs in the course of history and appears wherever creative fantasy is freely expressed. Essentially, therefore, it is a mythological figure. . . . In each of these images there is a little piece of human psychology and human fate, a remnant of the joys and sorrows that have been repeated countless times in our ancestral history. . . ." -Carl Jung

I have made a name for myself, though not a very well known one, within the underground art scene, for my dungeon paintings. I could not blame you if you thought these were merely aesthetic. I myself believed that, too. But after much introspection, after turning inwards, I realized that in my skull was a dungeon, which would manifest itself on the picture planes before me. When I saw this internal brick-bodied-beast, a giant of stones for flesh, and rooms for organs, lying inside of me, I realized that it wasn't mere aesthetic, after all, but rather something infinitely denser and more real than I had originally imagined. I wasn't painting images for my favorite aesthetic, I was painting my reality. Now let me tell you of the archetype of the dungeon.
II Realizing the Archetype

The dungeon is a symbol of imprisonment, of feeling trapped in a snare, or lost in a maze. It is a depressive atmosphere, full of fantastic forms, and cyclopean walls, meant to oppress you with despair and temptation. There are many traps and dead ends, stairs to nowhere, and no signs of escape. And what's more, is that even if you do escape, you can always build another one, and next thing you know, you've connected the new construction back with the old one. The dungeon is where potential lies in wait, in treasure chests behind locked doors, in the bellies of beasts that have swallowed them up and use them against you in a game of keep away. The dungeon is where others keep you so that they don't have to deal with you anymore. It is the archetype of the prison, of the maze, of the dark forest, the loner, the recluse, the shut in. One does not paint dungeons like these simply out of nostalgia for his favorite video games. He paints them because he lives in one.

Using my art in particular, it is usually symbolized with locks that have no keys, confusing hazes, symbols of death and decay, useless collectible items, no clear sign of exits, and doors that just lead deeper and into darker parts of the dungeon.

Doors with no keys in sight, likely something of great importance is locked away and therefore it is necessary that the key is not to be found should I remain unable to ascend from the depths.

Hazes and fogs of confusion, a state of malaise and inaction, or a lack of solid ground to stand upon, or a means to hinder ones sight.

Symbols of death to remind you that staying here will see you waste away, that you will die a prisoner should you remain.

Items to collect with no value, useless distractions and temptations, rewards for doing nothing conducive to living and prevailing. Easy rewards that are not locked away, nor take much effort on your part.

A lack of any sign of an exit, a means to make you feel like all your progress is in vain. No way of knowing if you're making good progress or not.

Paths and doors to take you deeper still, to give you the illusion of freedom. You can go anywhere you like, but is not here as good a spot to stay as it is to wander from room to room? Why bother wandering if you are not going to get anywhere? Surely, it's just as well that you stay put, and yet you always have the option to go somewhere else, but never anywhere beyond the confines of the oubliette you find yourself in.

It is more than just the darkest part of the forest. It is more than just an underworld. It is both of these things, and more. Not just a dangerous region, but a prison. It is the mental state of defeat and of monotony. The mental state of a slave, yet not quite a slave. It is the marble inside the maze, if only it could be taken out to freely roll where it may. It is the video game with clear boundaries and limitations, a means to "power up" locked away deeper inside the games code, but the character can never leave the game, and is given to do it all again, a puppet controlled by player one. It is dominance and submission. Mockery and humiliation. Depression and hopelessness. Walls of black pills hiding single white pills. It is cunning and wily, deceptive and contented with your plight. It is the villain, and you, it's victim, no matter how hard you rage against it. But rage against it you must.


III Razing the Dungeon

This is an archetype that must be fully understood in order to not only depict it rightly, but in order to overcome it. It is of the utmost importance that you become the intrepid explorer who deliberately seeks to escape with all the treasures in tow, all the demons slain, and all the shadows made one with your whole being. You must have the wit to solve the puzzle box that the dungeon becomes, the discipline to move forward no matter what, the fortitude to resist all temptations, the curiosity to learn it's contents, and the strength to knock down it's walls. You must search deep inside to find the part of your soul that has overcome these adversities. The Link of your soul, the Arthurian knight that explores the darkest regions of the forest, the Greek hero that traverses the underworld. You must be more than these, for the dungeon is more than the sum of their trials. It is more because you are not in their trials, nor are you currently equipped to overcome them. You are in this trial, and must equip yourself.

To escape, and to destroy the dungeon, you must become everything it despises. You must be the independent man. You must be strong. You must have skill and discipline. You must be conscious and mindful. The dungeon loves a depressed dreamer, and fears the disciplined wolf. The dungeon loves the curious child, but loathes the capable man. It believes you are incapable, and freely allows you to improve and to escape, knowing that you won't. But there is an important truth that you must be full aware of...YOU are the dungeon. And while the dungeon seems to want to keep you there, the very fact that you provide the tools needed to escape, means deep down, the dungeon wants to be rid of you. So forge yourself well behind the bricks and bars of your mind, so that you may bend and break them until you are free.