By Megan Haskell //
Greta and I love the Enneagram. It’s a relatively simple personality matrix that can fast-track the early prewriting phase while building depth in our protagonist. In fact, we use it extensively with our Fiction Plot Map tool to craft our character arcs and find the happy middle between plotting and pantsing. (More on that, later.)
But what about the villain? Or the love interest? Or the sidekick?
No one wants to have cardboard cutouts or stereotypes in their stories. That’s not what attracts readers, and it’s not much fun to write, either. We need drama between characters; hidden agendas, secret fears, and personality clashes. It’s what we experience every day, and it’s what makes a character truly come alive.
It’s also incredibly difficult to do well.
Once again, the Enneagram is here to help.
The 9 Enneagram Personality Types
Before we get into creating conflicts and relationships, it’s important to have a basic understanding of the nine Enneagram personality types, as described at The Enneagram Institute.
- The Reformer: Rational and idealistic, prone to perfectionism, fears being corrupt or evil, desires integrity and balance.
- The Helper: Caring and generous, but sometimes possessive, fears being unworthy or unloved, desires love.
- The Achiever: Ambitious and adaptable, but also image-conscious, fears being worthless, desires success.
- The Individualist: Sensitive, dramatic, and temperamental, fears being insignificant, desires an identity.
- The Investigator: Intense, perceptive, and innovative, sometimes isolated, fears being useless or helpless, desires to be capable and competent.
- The Loyalist: Committed and responsible, but often anxious or suspicious, fears being without support or guidance, desires security.
- The Enthusiast: Fun-loving and adventurous, spontaneous, fears being deprived or in pain, desires contentment and satisfaction.
- The Challenger: Powerful and dominating, decisive and confrontational, fears being harmed or controlled by others, desires to be in control of self and own destiny.
- The Peacemaker: Easygoing and complacent, reassuring, fears loss and separation, desires inner stability.
An Example: The Lord of the Rings
To explain how you can use different personality types to give your characters depth and create interesting relationships, I’m going to walk through a few of the types as they relate to some of the characters from The Lord of the Rings.
Before we get started, I need to add a disclaimer that I am not an expert on the Enneagram. The following are my opinions with regard to the characters. You may disagree with my assessment, and that’s fine! We’re building a deeper understanding of character and personality, and that’s really the goal.
The Protagonist and the Sidekick
Frodo is our protagonist, and he takes on the quest to destroy the one ring not because he fears being useless or desires power, but because he’s responsible. He sees the danger the ring represents, particularly to the innocent and unassuming inhabitants of the Shire, and tries to hand it off to Gandalf to protect or destroy. However, when the wizard refuses the power and its corrupting influence, Frodo agrees to take it to the elves. It’s important to note that he only takes the quest at the behest of a friend, a man he trusts and admires. And though taking the ring is a risk to his personal safety, it ensures the security of his community. Once the fellowship is formed, he is committed to the team, and to the success of his mission, but always looks for guidance and support from others.
Frodo is a Type 6 Loyalist.
Frodo’s faithful sidekick is, of course, Samwise Gamgee. He’s obviously a caregiver, wanting to help Frodo through his quest. He goes through a period of possessiveness when he believes Frodo is trusting Gollum too much. He fears he’s being replaced. Sam is a Type 2 Helper.
How do these two interact through the books (or movies?)
Going back to the Enneagram Institute website, there’s a great section on the compatibility between personality types. I’ve referred to it many times while writing to make sure the character motivations align with their behaviors and interactions.
In this case, the Loyalist and the Helper are complementary personality types. They both take their responsibilities seriously and are community oriented. Frodo recognizes that Sam may be the only person he can fully trust. And Frodo keeps Sam centered in home and family, helping to soothe his homesickness. Together, they remain tethered to the Shire and keep each other grounded in the very skills that will let them succeed on their quest: friendship, loyalty, perseverance, and humility.
The Fellowship
I’m not going to go through all of the characters in The Lord of the Rings—that would be a very long post—but I wanted to highlight a few of the other relationships to show how the different personality types can work together.
Gandalf is a Type 5 Investigator. He is inquisitive and cerebral, going off alone to search for answers in the ancient texts while Frodo takes the ring to the elves. He’s also perceptive. He sees that as a Type 6 Loyalist, Frodo will need support for his journey—which is why he arranges for first Sam to go with him, and later the rest of the fellowship—but he himself prefers to walk alone. He doesn’t even take up the leadership role within the fellowship of the ring, leaving that instead to Aragorn.
Aragorn’s greatest fear is becoming evil or corrupt, which makes him a Type 1 Reformer. Though it is offered to him, he initially refuses to take up the quest to destroy the ring, knowing that like his ancestors, he would ultimately fall beneath its power. He cannot be trusted with it. This fear drives his actions, until at last he embraces his destiny and chooses to fight for good instead of flee from evil.
Like Type 2 (Sam), Type 1 (Aragorn) and Type 6 (Frodo) are complementary personalities. Both are highly responsible and duty bound. However, as the leader of the fellowship, Aragorn provides the support and security that Frodo desires. His responsibility is the success of the fellowship overall, while Frodo’s responsibility is specifically for the ring. And Frodo’s acceptance of the ring frees Aragorn from the fear of corruption that has driven so much of his life prior to the quest.
Each of the characters within the fellowship has a role to play. Merry is a Type 7 Enthusiast who acts as the comic relief and provides positive energy to the entire venture. Legolas is a Type 3 Achiever, bringing self-confidence and adaptability to the group. And Gimli is a Type 8 Challenger, always trying to prove his strength but also hardworking, protective, and honorable.
The Villains, Major and Minor
It’s just as important that we understand the villains’ personalities as it is for the heroes. In Lord of the Rings, there are actually a number of major and minor villains scattered throughout the story. Some, like the Ringwraiths, have no personality. They are simply minions or extensions of the greater evil. Others seem like heroes, but occasionally act villainous until they can rein in their worst natures.
Take Boromir. He’s is a Type 8 Challenger. He seeks control and believes he would use the ring for the good of Gondor. He struggles against Aragorn’s leadership and resents Frodo’s possession of the ring. He acts as a source of conflict within the fellowship itself. However, he overcomes his own failings and recognizes the danger inherent in his obsession. In his final moments, he courageously sacrifices himself to save Frodo, giving the hobbit the time he needs to escape and cementing his place as a legendary hero rather than a notorious villain.
Saruman similarly acts as a source of conflict, primarily for Gandalf. Saruman is a Type 3 Achiever. Image conscious and ambitious, he’s a man who wants to be admired and will do anything to achieve his version of success, even if it means aligning himself with evil in order to be on what he believes will be the “winning” team. He’s opportunistic, exploitative, and untrustworthy.
When confronted with his bad behavior, Saruman traps Gandalf in a tower, leaving him helpless (Type 5’s greatest fear). Eventually, Gandalf escapes Sauron using his wit rather than his might, by calling on the eagles via a humble moth (which, I grant, was a prime example of deus ex machina, but I digress). Saruman therefore acts as a foil against which Gandalf can be judged and foreshadows the ultimate defeat of Sauron by a humble hobbit (who also is saved by the eagles, but that’s just a bugaboo of mine).
Last, and greatest, we have Sauron. The big bad of The Lord of the Rings is quite clearly a Challenger. He wants power and control, and unlike Boromir, he will ruthlessly destroy everything and everyone who refuses to conform to his will. In fact, these two characters demonstrate the broad spectrum of healthy and unhealthy personality development.
Final Thoughts
The Enneagram is an incredible tool to explore for your character development. It provides a framework upon which you can build your protagonist and a quick reference for every other significant character in your book and the relationships between them. The more you explore the Enneagram, the more nuance and depth you’ll bring to your stories.
SPECIAL NOTE: Greta and I will be hosting another FREE webinar on May 6 at 11 a.m. This time, we’re going to discuss the basics of story structure and character development in “The Fiction Plot Map: Find Your Happy Place Between Plotting and Pantsing.” Sign up here: https://www.subscribepage.com/o8w4f3_copy.
We look forward to seeing you there!
MEGAN HASKELL is the award-winning author of The Sanyare Chronicles, a fast-paced dark fantasy adventure featuring a kick-ass heroine, snarky carnivorous pixies, and a quest across nine faerie realms. Sanyare: The Last Descendant (Book 1) received a Readers’ Favorite Bronze Award and was a finalist in the 2017 IAN Book of the Year Awards, and Sanyare: The Rebel Apprentice (Book 3), was named a finalist in the 2018 Book Excellence Awards. www.MeganHaskell.com.