The twelve archetypes
by andrea on Aug.17, 2009, under Week 9
As we near the end of our process, one of our final steps is to find the archetype for the G.O.P. Why do we do this? Well, finding a brand’s archetype helps us understand its impact on consumer psychology. It helps us understand what attracts consumers to the brand.
We’ve got to decide which — if any — is appropriate for the G.O.P. Does the Republican Party fall under more than one archetype? Is it the ruler? Or maybe the hero with a splash of the outlaw? Or do we need to create a new category entirely?
Tell us what you think in the comments and why you feel this way.
Meet the twelve after the jump.
Introducing the Archetypes
The Innocent: Wholesome, pure, forgiving, trusting, honest, happy, optimistic, enjoys simple pleasure
The Explorer: A searcher and seeker, adventurous, restless, independent, self-directed, self-sufficient, desires excitement and values freedom
The Sage: Thinker, philosopher, reflective expert, adviser, teacher, confident, in control, self-contained, credible
The Regular Guy/Girl: Unpretentious, straight shooter, people-oriented, reliable, dependable, practical, down-to-earth, values routines, predictability, the status quo, and tradition
The Lover: Seeks true love, intimacy, and sensuality, passionate, sexy, seductive, erotic, seeks the pleasure to indulge, follows emotions
The Jester: A clown and trickster, playful, takes things lightly, creates a little fun and chaos, impulsive, spontaneous, lives in the moment
The Hero: Warrior, competitive, aggressive, winner, principled, idealist, challenges wrongs, improves the world, proud, courageous, brave, sacrifices himself for the greater good
The Outlaw: Rebellious, shocking, outrageous, disruptive, feared, powerful, countercultural, revolutionary, liberated
The Magician: Shaman, healer, spiritual, holistic, intuitive, values magical moments and special rituals, a catalyst for change, charismatic
The Caregiver: Altruistic, selfless, nurturing, compassionate, sympathetic, supportive, generous
The Creator: Innovative, imaginative, artistic, experimental, willing to take risks, ambitious, desires to turn ideas into reality
The Ruler: Manager, organizer, a “take charge” attitude, efficient, productive, confident, responsible, role model
August 18th, 2009 on 3:00 pm
Currently, the republican party is The Ruler. I’m new to the party, and I can’t help but to be appalled by the “top down” structure the republicans use. They demand absolute loyalty from their members, even when their leaders behave in ways contrary to traditionally conservative values, and even when their chairmen go so far as to break bylaws so they can run roughshod over meetings and get their way. No wonder so many people have left the republican party!
I would like the party to develop a “bottom up” grassroots structure instead. I think that would enable it to express what I consider to be the ideal archetype, The Hero.
August 19th, 2009 on 9:26 am
JCH - without a doubt, the GOP has a lot to learn about listening to its constituents…just as ALL politicians do, as shown by the Dems latest attacks on voters themselves.
But riddle me this…if the Dems are so “democratic”, why did the Dem Ldrship Council create Super Delegates to make sure their elite get to virtually handpick Presidential nominees, complete with the ability to cast & recast their delegate vote as many times as they wish? Do you as a citizen voter get to change your vote at any point in the primaries?
August 19th, 2009 on 4:12 pm
The GOP needs to be a mix of these things. I agree with JCH, though: The Hero who, maybe, has the ability to become The Ruler. I’d want it to be The Sage — but I guess it just needs to be a party of sages, while the party itself (as a whole) is something different.
A dash of The Nurturer would be nice, too.
August 20th, 2009 on 7:26 pm
DB - I have no idea how the democrats do things, but I wouldn’t be the least bit surprised if they have chairmen who run roughshod over meetings, too.
August 20th, 2009 on 8:14 pm
JCH - the Dems created Super Delegates after the McGovern landslide, because the party elites didn’t want McGovern, but he won the primaries. After that, they came up with the idea of Super Delegates to pass out to party big wigs/ex politicians/etc in a number that amounts to about 20% of the total delegate count from all states in primaries. This 20% ensures them, that they basically get to select the candidate they want, as they’re allowed to cast/re-cast their SD votes as early & change as often as they wish. I just get a kick out of the irony of Dems believing their leadership worries about desire of “the people”, as their primaries are rigged enough to make it pretty tough for anyone, but who their leaders choose to become the nominee (ie, they’d have to win landslides in every state with their lack of winner take all state delegates process).
Sorry for the confusion, was thinking you were another liberal poster here. Always like to get Dems take on Super Delegates and explanation as to how that’s “democratic”.