Month: August 2020

ALIEN COMPANIONS, NULL

Like the Wizard of Oz companions, the characters in the first Alien movie are more archetypes than individuals with Enneagrams. 

Dallas is the Diplomat, Lambert is the Nervous One, Brett is the Working Man, Parker is the Tough One, and Kane is the Sacrifice. Ripley, the Survivor, only becomes something more because James Cameron writes her into a sequel. He brilliantly takes her archetype and fleshes it into a true character.

This kind of storytelling — driven by atmosphere and feelings, plot and reveal — appeals to some people. Other people prefer that a protagonist’s arc provide the backbone. However, if you like the movie with archetypes, this one is a great one. The setting, the mise en scène, has become part of our cultural language.

Except for Ash, whom I will talk about in another post, this lovely film mostly bypasses the Enneagram personalities.

ELLEN RIPLEY, SIX

She’s one of the greatest heroines ever put on film. Strong and vulnerable, active and contemplative, she’s encompasses everything we’d all want to be if thrown in the same situation. So, what’s Ripley’s Enneagram number?

Just the first two movies, though. Her character is consistent within that parameter.

She’s a BIG rule follower. If the Nostromo had listened to her about quarantine the movies wouldn’t even exist. She’s very frustrated with The Company for looking the other way about the xenomorph in order to pursue profit. Justice. Ripley wants it.

She doesn’t particularly strike me as a Body Type. Hicks trains her in the pulse rifle, and she learns well, but physical battle is not her go-to intuition. I’m going to say no to the Heart Type, too. Ripley cares deeply about people, but emotion is not a moving force for her. She’s fairly disengaged.

Head Type.

Sigourney Weaver is a specific build — tall, slender. None of these traits match a Woman Head Type, so it’s difficult to pinpoint which Ripley is. Five, Six, or Seven? All of these are average height or shorter in real life.

Ah. Six. I want to say Six because of the justice trait, but it’s actually the fear trait that gives the clue. Anyone could and would be afraid to return to xenomorph country, but for a delicious plot and character arc a writer needs to make their heroine confront the thing she least wants to do. A Six, of all the Head Types, will be impacted by fear and worry. Getting Ripley back into space is one of the great plot turns. It’s what makes her arc so wonderful, and what gives Weaver so much to play.

It’s also a bit of an anti-action hero Enneagram choice. Good stuff.

FRANK COSTANZA, EIGHT

Because Jerry Stiller, the actor who gave George’s dad his vivacity, recently passed, I wanted to include his character in the Seinfeld Enneagram study.

I immediately jump to Eight. That loud, instant reaction he does!

And, like most of us, the mansierre burns in my brain when I think of Frank. It just seems like only a Man Eight would have the barrel chest that needs restraining. Gosh, it makes me laugh. And Festivus! Who but an Eight would want feats of strength and the airing of grievances? It really is perfectly, succinctly funny.

As with the other characters, this one’s number is pushed to the extreme. Real life Eights will not engage so brutally and vociferously with others. That’s what makes the humor. He’s a pleasure to watch. Also, a little bit of a wince. Genius.

ELAINE BENES, FOUR

Another envy type in the Seinfeld pantheon. Except for Jerry, they’re all Heart Types! Very interesting.

If that’s so, is Elaine’s Enneagram number a Two, Three, or Four?

Not a Three. Heh. Definitely not. She’s a train wreck. No Three would be so incompetent, so constantly humiliated by life.

Not a Two. She’s not charitable enough. Again, it’s quite funny. Like George, she’s locked into a bit of a “worst trait” syndrome in service to the humor.

So, a Four. She does feel the highs and lows. She does have a moderately successful career, but not overwhelmingly so. Her relationship with Jerry is solidly now in the friend zone but it didn’t start that way. It’s interesting and ironic that a Nine (Jerry) seeking a companion would start with the female Four and end up at the male Four (George). It’s very Nine-ish for Jerry to choose the Four with the lesser impact on his own feelings and expression.

The actors have done a good job at differentiating the dueling Fours in the show, but sometimes Elaine feels like a duplicate. Socially, she operates at a much higher level than George. She’s functional. Still, though, like George she’s challenged by romance, work, and socially appropriate behavior. My favorite storyline for her is the time she worked for J. Peterman. When she wrote catalog copy for the odd items, she followed a plot that could only belong to Elaine.