Quoting [MENTION=7595]INTP[/MENTION] in this thread:
http://www.typologycentral.com/foru...ty-matrices/59189-fe-second-vs-fe-last-2.html (post #12), quoting this article
http://www.nyaap.org/jung-lexicon/a he cites:
"The inferior function is practically identical with the dark side of the human personality.["Concerning Rebirth," CW 9i, par. 222.
My dark side is always triggered by emotion.
Positive as well as negative occurrences can constellate the inferior counter-function. When this happens, sensitiveness appears.
Sensi-tiveness is a sure sign of of the presence of inferiority. This provides the psychological basis for
discord and misunderstanding, not only as between two people, but also in ourselves. The essence of the inferior function is autonomy: it is independent, it attacks, it fascinates and so spins us about that we are no longer masters of ourselves and can no longer rightly distinguish between ourselves and others["The Problem of the Attitude-Type," CW 7, par. 85.]"
I certainly have over-sensitivity in the area of Fe. It's really the only way to get under my skin- to basically attack my reputation or make Fe judgments about me. Conversely, if someone attacks me with analytical thought, I can either refute it or assimilate their information if they're right, so it doesn't bother me. This causes a lot of discord and misunderstanding between me and other people, as well as the Fe-Fi difference. I mentioned I have inner conflict in the beginning of my previous post.
"The inferior function is always of the same nature, rational or irrational, as the primary function: when thinking is most developed, the other rational function, feeling, is inferior; if sensation is dominant, then intuition, the other irrational function, is the fourth function, and so on. This accords with general experience:
the thinker is tripped up by feeling values; the practical sensation type gets into a rut, blind to the possibilities seen by intuition;
the feeling type is deaf to logical thinking; and the intuitive, at home in the inner world, runs afoul of concrete reality."
Again. I'm not deaf to logical thinking- I always accept and appreciate it. But when I'm emotional or under stress my own ability to think logically suffers and i start throwing out a lot of (inferior) Fe judgments.
"One may be aware of the perceptions or judgments associated with the inferior function, but these are generally over-ridden by the superior function.
Thinking types, for example, do not give their feelings much weight. Sensation types have intuitions, but they are not motivated by them. Similarly,
feeling types brush away disturbing thoughts and intuitives ignore what is right in front of them.
Although the inferior function may be conscious as a phenomenon its true significance nevertheless remains unrecognized. It behaves like many repressed or insufficiently appreciated contents, which are partly conscious and partly unconscious . . . . Thus in normal cases the inferior function remains conscious, at least in its effects; but in a neurosis it sinks wholly or in part into the unconscious. ["Definitions," CW 6, par. 764.]"
In contrast, I do take my feelings seriously, and I enjoy them; I just don't tend to give much weight to their contribution to knowledge of truth or their usefulness in being in touch with reality. Since I value truth and connection with reality so much, if feeling is clouding my judgment I tend to want to ignore it and try to make it disappear (which I've learned doesn't work very well). Also, another big source of inner conflict for me is between what I feel and what I think is sensible or what I deem appropriate. I want to make my feelings conform (but it doesn't always work, and sometimes there is good reason not to).
I don't brush away disturbing thoughts; thoughts don't disturb me. They're either true or not, and I'm not afraid of either possibility, or of examining them for truth.
"To the extent that a person functions too one-sidedly, the inferior function becomes correspondingly primitive and troublesome. The overly dominant primary function takes energy away from the inferior function, which falls into the unconscious. There it is prone to be activated in an unnatural way, giving rise to
infantile desires and other symptoms of imbalance. This is the situation in neurosis.
In order to
extricate the inferior function from the unconscious by analysis, the unconscious fantasy formations that have now been activated must be
brought to the surface. The conscious realization of these fantasies brings the inferior function to consciousness and makes further development possible.[Ibid., par. 764.]"
I'm not so aware of this in relation to Fe, but I do analyze my fantasies for usefulness in learning social skills (and what I want socially). If Fe is inferior, then Fi is a shadow function and even further in the unconscious. (Regarding infantile, I've thought for awhile that my shadow Fi is like my inner child, and in dealing with my feelings I should treat myself like I would a child. My emotions are very childlike.) My deepest and most mysterious feelings are Fi in nature, and I "bring them to the surface" with Ni or Si, and analyze them. This is the process I use in working out all my problems. I ask my unconscious mind what I'm feeling and why, then try to uncover underlying beliefs such as "I'm going to fail" or "This person doesn't like me," or "No one will ever love me," then ask myself whether this is true, and then tell myself the truth. All my negative feelings are based on incorrect beliefs, which I have to drag up out of my unconsciousness and then change.
"When it becomes desirable or necessary to develop the inferior function, this can only happen gradually."
...which I mentioned in the second paragraph in my previous post...
"Attempts to assimilate the inferior function are usually accompanied by a deterioration in the primary function. The
thinking type can’t write an essay, the sensation type gets lost and forgets appointments, the intuitive loses touch with possibilities, and the
feeling type can’t decide what something’s worth."
I get scatter-brained when I'm stressed out and can't learn or think properly. In contrast, I never get depressed or apathetic or feel like things are worthless.
"So long as a function is still so fused with one or more other functions-thinking with feeling, feeling with sensation, etc.-that it is unable to operate on its own, it is in an archaic condition, i.e., not differentiated, not separated from the whole as a special part and existing by itself. Undifferentiated thinking is incapable of thinking apart from other functions; it is continually mixed up with sensations, feelings, intuitions, just as undifferentiated feeling is mixed up with sensations and fantasies.["Definitions," CW 6, par. 705.]"
I've mentioned in one or both of my type threads how tied my feelings are to sensation- my happy feelings are based on some kind of positive physical experience, like eating, being hugged, hearing affirming words, listening to music, etc. I feel like I have a piece of reality to hold onto and I'm not sinking into some abyss of chaos. I also have happy feelings tied to pure thought and awareness of truth. I attributed this to Fe being under Si and Fi being under Se, but I don't know. In any case, when I get upset about something I feel like none of my functions are working properly- I misremember things (Si), don't notice my environment and relevant data (Se and Te), can't evaluate context (Ne I guess), imagine all the terrible things that could happen (Ni), and get generally paranoid (Fe), which tells me that Fi is a shadow function and probably last.
"An undifferentiated function is characterized by
ambivalence (every position entails its own negative), which leads to characteristic inhibitions in its use.
Yes.
I've read a lot about inferior Fe and shadow Fi, and related to it 100%. That was one of the main reasons I thought I was INTP.
But I could be wrong.
Edit: Inferior Se fits me ok too. I'm going to read more about it.
I didn't think I would when I started the thread. I thought I'd just get more harassment.
