Introduction
Type 8 is not so easy to imagine because its mindset is mostly absent from our cultures. Any justice maker ever imagined by an author, a movie or a work of art is quite far from an 8. Type 8 is a clear domineering personality. The type is not very difficult to explain but it does not connect to anything we know culturally.
A situation where an 8 would be the most at ease is appealing to us, like an injustice needing an immediate and strong response: bullies, abusive authority, crimes… We can imagine what an 8 would do but the personality that goes with it is unknown. Not only 8s are rare, but all types connected to 8 (2,5, 7w8, 9w8) are rare as well.
If type 8 had to be summed up in a few words, it combines two surprising opposites:
- He has a natural outlaw attitude, disregards any conformist conception of the law.
- He has a spontaneous sense of justice, morality, and honesty.
These apparent contradictions can be reconciled by a simple idea: he is the law.
Even if 8s and 1s are not alike, they have a similar concern for morals. A 1 needs to justify his choices by whatever rule he learnt or imagined as an idealization of what reality should be. His self-righteousness is usually inadequate, except to ensure the compliance to already accepted rules.
Instead, an 8 relies on his sole instinct and produces the law in opposition to his environment as he experiences real-life situations. He can be so controlling that few people can stand his presence.
Description
Domineering
An 8 is clearly and visibly domineering. Next to him, people feel almost pushed against the wall. It is related to personal boundaries. The gut center emphasizes personal autonomy and involves an instinctive control.
A 9 has a withdrawn or neutral attitude. His passive resistance blurs personal boundaries and neutralizes control. A 1 creates rigid reasons to stand against the world: he resents being forced to do something or alter his perspective.
An 8 removes obstacles. He has a spontaneous strategy to take control. A certain aggressive and self-reliant energy emanates from him and puts weight on persons around. Like a 1 or a 9, an 8 values objectivity. He is even more physically grounded than 1s or 9s: no-nonsense, direct, openly focussed on survival. His objectivity makes resisting 8’s commanding attitude difficult because whatever argument he forcefully puts forward, he is usually right.
Type 8 is one of the most sensitive types. He is consciously afraid of being hurt and controlled. He knows of his unusually high vulnerability, which partly explains his bullet proof armour.
Justice maker, vengeance
An 8’s state of mind is the same as if, in a faraway past, he was judged and sentenced for a crime he did not commit. He does not hold a grudge (it would be type 1) but he perceives injustice in an acute manner and feels justified in his mission to not let it happen, which often requires to strike first. Injustice against him (or someone in his zone of control) triggers a strong reaction. He will unmask and judge the accuser before his adversary has a chance to do anything.
Usually, an 8 makes sure justice goes the way he wants. He is clearly the most assertive and self-assured type. He has a naturally improved sense of his personal rights, which for the usual circumstances of life allows him to get what he wants without much resistance.
Type 8 is not whimsical about his desires, and most of these are motivated by a grounded sense of survival without excessive greed. An 8 makes sure he has the practical means required to be strong, self-reliant, and totally autonomous.
He is quite understanding of the needs of others and if he feels in control, he will not take too much for himself. He is clearly generous. But any threat to his survival or a sense of weakness, vulnerability, or uncertainty emitted by someone, will cause his taking control. He will turn the situation to his advantage and only then, he will relax and grant what people need according to him.
Whatever situation turns out to be abusive because of a manipulation or an immoral move by someone else, an 8 makes sure the balance is quickly restored. As much as possible, the opponent meets a bitter fate. Since vengeance takes his best energy, an 8 does not make it hasty or uncontrolled. It is prepared, organized, strategized, and executed in the right proportion. His vengeance is rarely extreme, it is an execution of justice. An 8 makes vengeance adapted to the offense. He reproduces the official justice in a purely instinctive way, ignoring conformist justifications such as the “common good” or ideals. From his point of view, vengeance is only for his own satisfaction.
An 8 holds no long-term grudges like a 1. Once the vengeance is accomplished, an 8 mostly forgets the offense and keeps no visible emotional trace.
Forcefulness
Forcefulness is usually defined as the quality of expressing opinions strongly and demanding attention or action (Cambridge Dictionary). Indeed, an 8 enforces his opinions onto others. It can be easily confused with type 7: authoritative. I will expand on the difference later.
Forcefulness is an excess of force during action. One possible way to imagine it: an 8 does not open the doors, he bangs to doors open. Everything is made stronger, more impacting and energized by anger.
An 8 tends to believe his autonomy relies on his strength and perceives a lack of strength as a threat to his self-reliance. Depending on someone or something is impossible to conceive, since it would expose him to losing his willpower, independence and ultimately his ground when vengeance is required. He needs to prove to himself that he has an unbreakable energy and will.
8w7 vs 8w9
A 7 wing adds authority and strategy to the grounded strength of type 8. 8w7 is simply commanding and the best captured by this description.
8w9 has more shades of grey. He accumulates power, focusses on justice too and is almost as assertive as 8w7, but tends to delay decisions, avoid confrontation about practical choices, which can have a blocking effect. 8w9 is more like a judge of the balance of power between people under his control.
Disambiguation
8 vs 1
Some high temperament 1s look like 8s. They show the same dissatisfaction with the law and concern for justice. Some 1s even enjoy a good physical fight against abuses.
The Enneagram Institute published a good disambiguation: Misidentifying Ones and Eights. The spirit of the text is very good (there are a few mistakes though).
We can add a few surface traits:
- 1s are self-controlled, not 8s
- 1s consider anger is bad, not 8s
- 1s are compliant to rules that make sense, not 8s
Being self-righteous for a 1 is rather unhealthy, not for a 8. An 8 focusses his righteousness where justice is really at stake. A self-righteous 1 tries to enforce rules that only make sense relative to his own ideal and is too much influenced by his tunnel vision.
8 vs 7
The only type that can be seriously confused with type 8 is type 7. Both types are assertive, and type 7 is often a little domineering, even with a 6 wing. Type 7 is multifaceted. Most 7s do not look like 8s but some do. Some authors define lust as “wanting more”. “Wanting more” is gluttony. Lust is desiring with an excess of strength.
A 7 becomes 8-like when a certain ideal (it can be anything from personal gain to something purely disinterested) leads to establish himself as an authority, gather people and promote his ideas and a certain direction to go. Exercising authority cannot always be done nicely, and aggressive measures are sometimes required (like laying trips). When “up”, some 7s can have authoritarian outbursts of temper. The 7>1 arrow turns the free-minded exploration of a 7 into more aggressive judgmental stances.
One key difference is that an aggressive 7 is usually a bit paranoid. An 8 can be aggressive without the slightest dose of paranoia. Being very domineering for a 7 is rather unhealthy, not for a 8.
Notes
Type 8 is rather rare. I have known only one SP/SO 8w7 and one SP/SX 8w9. My description is focussed on average levels. Past a certain level of neurosis, 8s are no longer honest. Lust for power can justify any form of cruelty. Stalin and Saddam Hussein are the only two famous 8s (both 8w7) sufficiently unhealthy to not represent the average levels well.
Resources
- Eclectic Ennergies: Type 8
- Ocean Mooshine: Arica part 3
Enneagram Elements 