Peter Deadpan
phallus impudicus
- Joined
- Dec 14, 2016
- Messages
- 8,864
I think "competitive suffering" is being interpreted far too literally. Just because a 4 may be suffering intensely does not mean it is in any way exaggerated to compete with others. Quote the contrary... 4s deeply understand suffering as a universal experience and something that cannot be defined or understood by anyone but the sufferer. Less than seeking attention or some "award" for suffering, a 4 craves someone in the crowd hearing them and truly understanding and seeing them, beyond whatever it is that they perceive about themselves to be defective.
Most 4s aren't actively competitive. It is an inactive type that at average to lower health levels (most people) is unable to act upon their desires and instead turns inward into an emotional landscape where they may explore and analyze their own feelings and subjective experience. It is here that they may "compete", imagining that they have what it is that others have that they don't. Social 4s may imagine recognition or fame, for example.
If a 4 is communicating pain, it's probably actually far worse internally than it seems externally because 4s want people to come to them, to their rescue. While they are transparent, they are deeply ashamed about certain things. They may hint at these shameful feelings, testing others to see who accepts and understands them basically.
Outright competition over suffering is an odd concept to me. I don't think getting stuck in one's own heaviness is a form of competition. If anything, it's like wearing blinders and being unable to see whatever isn't directly in front of oneself (like rumination basically). If someone is truly competing over suffering, there is something going on that goes beyond ennea-type.
Anyway, I don't want to get into it more for obvious reasons but it's been bothering me that this concept of competition over suffering has been such a focus as of late, and misrepresented beyond anything that represents the type at all.
People are human. Suffering is human. One can never know the suffering of another. It's really quite silly to compete over something so serious, significant, and painful.
Most 4s aren't actively competitive. It is an inactive type that at average to lower health levels (most people) is unable to act upon their desires and instead turns inward into an emotional landscape where they may explore and analyze their own feelings and subjective experience. It is here that they may "compete", imagining that they have what it is that others have that they don't. Social 4s may imagine recognition or fame, for example.
If a 4 is communicating pain, it's probably actually far worse internally than it seems externally because 4s want people to come to them, to their rescue. While they are transparent, they are deeply ashamed about certain things. They may hint at these shameful feelings, testing others to see who accepts and understands them basically.
Outright competition over suffering is an odd concept to me. I don't think getting stuck in one's own heaviness is a form of competition. If anything, it's like wearing blinders and being unable to see whatever isn't directly in front of oneself (like rumination basically). If someone is truly competing over suffering, there is something going on that goes beyond ennea-type.
Anyway, I don't want to get into it more for obvious reasons but it's been bothering me that this concept of competition over suffering has been such a focus as of late, and misrepresented beyond anything that represents the type at all.
People are human. Suffering is human. One can never know the suffering of another. It's really quite silly to compete over something so serious, significant, and painful.
