from Devac I wouldn't lean away from too much. I'm sure you've heard of Jung's collective unconscious, a concept that has always fascinated me. I don't recall seeing the hat man, but I've had my share of nightmares, still do, and many of them are archetypical. We have to bring our children up to be resilient -- and courageous enough to face down their nightmares enemies - even if they are shadowy and hidden by hats!To your comment, I would rather lean away from 'hardwired' word.
Collective unconscious (German: kollektives Unbewusstes), a term coined by Carl Jung, refers to structures of the unconscious mind which are shared among beings of the same species. According to Jung, the human collective unconscious is populated by instincts and by archetypes: universal symbols such as the Great Mother, the Wise Old Man, the Shadow, the Tower, Water, the Tree of Life, and many more.