KM Weiland
Character arcs aren’t just the stuff of good fiction. They’re also the essence of all personal growth and transformation. Little wonder, then, that some of the best shortcuts writers can find for identifying the most powerful character-arc options are those found in personal development tools such as the Enneagram.
These days, most of us are familiar with the Enneagram as a popular personality theory, which focuses on an interconnected circle of nine possible types.
The Road Back to You by Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile (affiliate link)
I like the way Ian Morgan Cron and Suzanne Stabile describe the Enneagram in their excellent beginners’ book The Road Back to You:
The Enneagram teaches that there are nine different personality styles in the world, one of which we naturally gravitate toward and adopt in childhood to cope and feel safe. Each type or number has a distinct way of seeing the world and an underlying motivation that powerfully influences how that type thinks, feels, and behaves….
For some people, just being able to recognize themselves in one of the nine types is fun, interesting, and enough to satisfy their curiosity. But the Enneagram also offers a deep rabbit hole for those interested in its many complex layers of theory. An age-old tradition, it comes down to us as not just a personality-typing system but as an “ego-transcendence tool.”
In short, it’s all about transformation. I’ve been studying the Enneagram and using it as a cornerstone of my own personal growth for almost five years now, and I’m not exaggerating when I say its insights have been a major role player in turning my life inside-out and upside-down, in all the best ways. If you’re interested in doing the hard and sometimes scary work of looking deep into your own shadows and rediscovering all the good stuff you’ve lost down there, the Enneagram is an incomparable roadmap for the journey. It is simple on the surface, but grows in profundity the deeper you go. You can take it at your own pace and reap rewards at any level.
And the other thing the Enneagram is great at?
Creating Character Arcs (Amazon affiliate link)
Helping those of us who are writers understand the mechanics of amazing character arcs. Thanks to the polarities and dichotomies revealed in every one of the nine types, the Enneagram also offers solid shortcuts for finding the Lies and Truths that are driving your characters through your stories.
What Is the Enneagram?
Experts will tell you that your Enneagram number is not who you are; it’s who you’re not.
At its simplest, the Enneagram is a map of nine possible ways in which a child’s psyche learns to interact with the external world. These nine methods of survival are highly sophisticated and effective. However, they are limited. In “choosing” to be one type, we necessarily cut off the eight other parts of ourselves. To one degree or another, this creates imbalances in each type, which in turn can lead to dysfunction, confusion, and even suffering.
The Enneagram, then, helps us see which number we’ve identified with, so we can learn how to grow past this shallow ego identity and into a fuller realization of our whole selves. Sounds like a character arc to me!
9 Positive Character Arcs in the Enneagram
The Wisdom of the Enneagram by Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson (affiliate link)
Today, I want to quickly explore nine positive character arcs in the Enneagram personality system. The information I’m sharing here is drawn from my own experience and study, but most specifically from the work of Don Richard Riso and Russ Hudson. Although I appreciate the incredible depth and complexity they bring to their teachings on the Enneagram, I also like the simplicity of the words they choose when comparing certain aspects of the various types. The suggested Lie the Character Believes as shown for each type and some of the other phrasings are quoted from their book The Wisdom of the Enneagram.
Both this book and their earlier work Personality Types (which I mentioned in my post: “5 Ways to Use the Enneagram to Write Better Characters“) are filled with charts, graphs, and scannable type comparisons that are rich fodder for any novelist or character-arc enthusiast. A brief perusal of either book makes it easy to start picking out possible Lies, Truths, Needs, Wants, and backstory Ghosts for your characters—which you can then personalize for your story.
If you’re interested in further study of the Enneagram, I also recommend The Complete Enneagram by Beatrice Chestnut and the podcasts “Enneagram 2.0” by Beatrice Chestnut and Uranio Paes and “The Enneagram Journey” by Suzanne Stabile.
Type One
1. The Reformer’s Arc: Resentment to Integrity
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to make mistakes.”
Also sometimes called the Perfectionist, Type Ones at their best represent responsibility and idealism. At their worst, they come across as judgmental and obsessive. Their core vice (or “passion“) is an under-the-surface resentment, born out of their frustration that their attempts to make a better world are stymied and/or unappreciated.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by an unconscious fear of their own badness or defectiveness. Their arc challenges them to come into true integrity by claiming all parts of themselves, recognizing the good not just in themselves but in the world around them. They offer the gift of being able to improve the world for themselves and others. When done from a place of love, this enables them to find a higher purpose.
Type One: Mr. Darcy in Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice (all character examples typed by Charity Bishop of the great personality Tumblr Funky MBTI Fiction)
2. The Helper’s Arc: Pride to Unconditional Love
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to have your own needs.”
Also sometimes called the Caretaker, Type Twos at their best represent kindness and generosity. At their worst, they come across as intrusive and needy. Their core vice is a sense of pride that particularly focuses on their need to believe in their own virtue, usually demonstrated by showing compassion or aid to others at the expense of their own needs.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by a probably unconscious fear that they are not worthy of being loved—and therefore must earn it through their good deeds to others. Their arc challenges them to grow beyond just a pretense of love and into a truly unconditional love that, by also encompassing their own needs, allows them to more fully and authentically serve others. When healthy, they offer the gift of nurturing and caring for the world around them.
Type Two: Isobel Crawley from Downton Abbey
3. The Achiever’s Arc: Vanity to Authenticity
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to have your own feelings and identity.”
Also sometimes called the Role Model, Type Threes at their best represent productivity and adaptability. At their worse, they come across as image-conscious and emotionally out of touch. Their core vice is a misdirected vanity, which they try to hide behind the mask of their accomplishments—a sort of self-deceit designed to cover up their inner sense of inadequacy.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by an unconscious fear that their only value lies in their external achievements. Their arc challenges them to grow beyond their over-identification with how they are viewed by others and into a deeply realized authenticity. When healthy, they offer the true gift of bearing witness to the intrinsic value in themselves and others.
Type Three: Philip Carlisle in The Greatest Showman
4. The Individualist’s Arc: Envy to Equanimity
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to be too functional or too happy.”
Also sometimes called the Romantic, Type Fours at their best represent creativity and idealism. At their worst, they come across as self-absorbed and unrealistic. Their core vice is a painful envy, born out of their sense that they are somehow more deficient than other people or that something essential is missing from their lives.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by an unconscious fear that they somehow lack personal identity or significance. Their arc challenges them to accept the beauty and perfection inherent within themselves, so they can recognize their own worth and move into a genuine sense of self-esteem. When healthy, they offer the gift of being able to release the past and live fully in the present.
Type Four: Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter series
5. The Investigator’s Arc: Avarice to Non-Attachment
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to be comfortable in the world.”
Also sometimes called the Observer, Type Fives at their best represent perceptiveness and self-reliance. At their worst, they come across as cynical and emotionally unavailable. Arguably the most introverted of the types, Fives’ core vice of “avarice” refers to a “lack mentality” that urges them to conserve their inner resources against a world that seems inclined to demand too much from them.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by an unconscious fear that, at their core, they are incompetent or incapable of meeting the demands of others. Their arc challenges them to grow into the surrender and serenity of non-attachment—an acceptance that each moment offers enough to meet their needs. When healthy, they offer the gift of being able to observe both themselves and others without judgment or expectations.
Type Five: Alan Grant in Jurassic Park
6. The Loyalist’s Arc: Anxiety to Inner Peace
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to trust yourself.”
Also sometimes called the Traditionalist, Type Sixes at their best represent loyalty and responsibility. At their worst, they come across as reactive and fearful. Their core vice is often talked about as fear, but is really more of a never-ending simmer of often nameless anxiety.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by the (actually pretty conscious) fear of being without support or guidance in a dangerous and untrustworthy world. Their arc challenges them to grow into, first, a powerful trust in their own reliability and, second, into a surrendered belief in the inherent goodness of life. When healthy, they offer the gift of true courage and capability in handling life’s challenges.
Type Six: Rapunzel in Tangled
7. The Enthusiast’s Arc: Gluttony to Joy
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to depend on anyone for anything.”
Also sometimes called the Energizer, Type Sevens at their best represent optimism and fun. At their worst, they come across as impulsive and undisciplined. Their core vice of “gluttony” refers to an insatiable desire to immerse themselves in experience after experience as a way of distracting themselves from inner fears and pain.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by unconscious fears of being deprived, abandoned, or trapped. Their arc challenges them to grow beyond a pursuit of shallow distraction into an embodied joy. When healthy, they offer the gift of sharing this joyful celebration of existence with everyone around them.
Type Seven: Jonathan Strange in Jonathan Strange and Mr Norrell
8. The Challenger’s Arc: Intensity to Innocence
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to be vulnerable or trust anyone.”
Also sometimes called the Leader, Type Eights at their best represent boldness and decisiveness. At their worst, they come across as domineering and combative. Their core vice is a lust to experience intensity in every moment of their lives, as a way to escape their own fears and deny their own weaknesses.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by the unconscious fear that they might experience helplessness under the the control or betrayal of someone else. Their arc challenges them to return to the trusting innocence of their lost childhoods. When healthy, they offer the gift of being able to stand up for not just themselves but for all those who need a protector.
Type Eight: Leia Organa in Star Wars
9. The Peacemaker’s Arc: Resignation to Right Action
Core Lie the Character Believes: “It’s not okay to assert yourself.”
Also sometimes called the Healer, Type Nines at their best represent tranquility and reliability. At their worst, they come across as passive-aggressive and apathetic. Their core vice is a resignation to their lot, a desire to remove themselves from the struggle of life, out of a belief that they cannot truly impact it for the good of themselves or others.
The deep-seated Lie of their personality is fueled by the unconscious fear that in taking certain stands (both internally and externally), they risk feeling disconnected and adrift from others. Their arc challenges them to rise into a discernment of and ability to take “right action” on behalf of themselves and others. When healthy, they offer the gift of bringing peace and healing to the world around them.
Type Nine: Edward Ferrars in Sense and Sensibility
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There you have it! Nine Positive Change Arcs for your characters (or yourself)! What I’ve shared here barely scratches the surface of Enneagram wisdom and teachings about the nine types. If you’re interested in pursuing the journey further, I highly recommend checking out some of the resources mentioned above.