The Literary Enneagram: Characters from the Inside Out

by Judith Searle

As entertaining as it is illuminating, THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM offers a fresh version of the standard "Great Books" course, using characters from literature to show the inner dynamics of the nine Enneagram personality types and their variations. This book - FOR STUDENTS OF THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM offers an exciting new key to Western literature through clarifying the basic psychological patterns of characters in classic and contemporary novels, stories, and plays. - FOR THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM demonstrates simply and eloquently that the true basis of human psychological differences lies in inner experience rather than outer behavior. Judith Searle's work validates the Enneagram as a universal template for human psychology by showing how characters created by authors unfamiliar with the Enneagram conform to the character arcs the system predicts. - FOR THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM offers screenwriters, fiction writers and playwrights a powerful tool for character development, a template for creating character grids, and a basis for devising character-driven plot twists that seem both inevitable and surprising. - FOR THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM offers guidelines for creating characters that live and breathe on stage and screen as well as on the page. Performers who understand their own Enneagram style can make the "type casting" that is so prevalent in the entertainment industry work for them. - And, FOR READERS OF THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM offers a richer understanding of literary characters and valuable insights into ways their psychology relates to the reader's own personality patterns and relationships with others. THE LITERARY ENNEAGRAM OFFERS A NEW PERSPECTIVE ON SUCH CHARACTERS Peter Pan, Scarlett O'Hara, Scrooge, Madame Bovary, Clarice Starling, Jay Gatsby, Sherlock Holmes, Mrs. Dalloway, Bridget Jones, Othello, King Lear, Lady Macbeth, T.S. Garp, Blanche DuBois, Captain Ahab, Molly Bloom, Walter Mitty, Humbert Humbert, Anna Karenina, Holden Caulfield, Holly Golightly, The Wife of Bath, Hamlet and more...

Genres: Nonfiction, Psychology, Writing

356 pages, Paperback

First published July 24, 2001

Reviews

[Cindy Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful for character development; if you are having trouble determining a realistic arc for your characters, then read this.

[Charity · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had to sell my unborn child to the Lord of Fantasy to get my hands on this book, and I'm glad I did.

Okay, so I had to pay more than the usual amount for it on Amazon Marketplace. I'm a cheapskate, but selling my unborn child to the Lord of Fantasy sounds more epic.

Basically, this book is what it claims to be -- an exploration of the nine Enneagram types through literary characters, some more well known than others. The author caught me off guard a few times (Mr. Darcy, a 2? What? But the more I thought about how he overruns Bingley in a desire to "help" him avoid fortune-hunters, the more I realized she had a point) and I nodded my head at other times (there really is no better example of a healthy 1 than Atticus Finch from "To Kill a Mockingbird").

More importantly, though, she finally made me understand Enneagram 3's. Using Scarlett O'Hara was a stroke of brilliance.

She writes a bit about the character, and quotes scenes from the books in question to illustrate her point -- referencing Scarlett, Rhett, Ripley from "The Talented Mr. Ripley," "The Death of a Salesman," Anna Karenina, Bridget Jones, and many others. I thought the chapters on 1, 3, 4, and 7 were the most vibrant, but felt a bit disappointed in her choices for 6 (though Hamlet is a good one). She takes the time to find examples for both wings for every type, and the three social variants, which I appreciated.

It's a shame this book is somewhat hard to find (and costly) since it's a valuable resource. Though, I also wished it were a little more up do date, with more modern (or at least, better known in our times) characters. Most people will recognize Scarlett and Anna Karenina enough to understand a 3w4 and a 4w3 when you use them as examples, but a lot of the other characters are more obscure, so I must search further on my own for "ideal examples" to use in conversations.

[Jill Bowman · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an interesting book. I really enjoyed delving into characters’ enneagram and learning where they fit. Some of the best characters (and conversely, the opposite is true) are written by authors who understand the true personalities of the characters and remain true to that, no matter the cost.

I haven’t read about 1/3 of the literature in this book so I skimmed those parts. I’ll check back with the book after I’ve remedied that situation! 😁

I found this on The Currently Reading podcast and I’m quite thankful to them for the suggestion.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was so incredibly absorbing! Searle looks at characterization and interpersonal dynamics in several classic works: Peter Pan, Mrs. Dalloway, Middlemarch, Sense and Sensibility, Moby Dick, Madame Bovary, The Portrait of a Lady, The Great Gatsby, Hamlet, To Kill a Mockingbird, The Scarlet Letter, Wuthering Heights, A Tale of Two Cities, Breakfast at Tiffany's, The Crucible, Lolita, to name but a few. Some of these are mentioned in passing. Some are discussed in detail.

She can be overly critical of her subjects. (I'm referring, of course, to fictional characters!) I don't always share her personal bias but I was fascinated by her insights. This book lends perspective to (and, in many ways, reframes) every book I've read and everyone I know.

[planetkimi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I'm a 4. I resisted the urge to skip straight to the four part, and dutifully read it from start to around the chapter on sevens. And then I got distracted and started reading other things. It is a very interesting book, I was just lured away by something shinier, I suppose.

[Emily Huffman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great guide linking classic characters of literature to their Enneagram type. Will be perfect for character outlines.