MBTI Type: ESFJ
Dominant Extroverted Feeling – ease of emotional communication and shaping their actions around how their decisions affect others: Galinda is not a healthy Fe-dom in that rather than genuinely caring about Elphaba, she mistreats her and recruits all her classmates’ support against her, in her song “Loathing” (“Galinda, we just want you to know we’re all on your side! We share your loathing!”). She often does things for public approval, and is willing to make nice with the Wizard despite learning about his crimes (she accuses Elphaba of “flying off the handle,” and tries to convince her that if she just apologizes, it can all be all right!). In “solidarity” with Dr. Dillamond, Galinda changes her mind to “just Glinda.” Galinda also frames her letter home in Fe terms, when she talks about how she behaves in accordance with what her parents would want. When she sees Fiyero, she immediately goes up to him and expresses her interest, then tells everyone that she cares about him, and confides her “secret” to Elphaba that “I’m going to marry him,” but he doesn’t know it yet. She successfully hides her true feelings from the Munchkins when informed of the Witch’s death, even though it pains her to see them set an effigy of Elphaba on fire.
Auxiliary Introverted Sensing – working with what exists and their personal history to make an immediate impact: She does not show a ton of middle functions, although to some extent, traditionalism and her family are important to her. She keeps in contact with her parents, and has certain expectations of what she wants from her time at Shiz, which includes becoming a sorceress. But she mostly focuses on appearances, being beautiful and desirable, hauling around her wardrobe, and improving Elphaba’s looks, shoes, and behaviors to match her own, because if it works for Galinda, it might just work for her friend too! (Si tends to think what worked for me will work for you, and it’s not always aware that different situations or personalities will produce different results.) She just wants to marry a prince and live happily ever after. Galinda is unfortunately somewhat disinterested in anything intellectual (she doesn’t even know what a library is called) and becomes distressed when Fiero starts “thinking” where he never did before. Even though Galinda can be adventurous, it often doesn’t occur to her to initiate activities on her own; Fiyero persuades her to break the school rules and attend the Ozzdust Ballroom.
Tertiary Extroverted Intuition – an interest in many different possibilities and in seeing connections between unrelated ideas: Galinda does show flexibility in her state of mind; she goes from hating and wanting to humiliate Elphaba to loving and supporting her within the course of one night, after she finds out Elphaba got Madame Morrible to give her (Galinda) magic lessons. She sees potential for her new best friend to become popular and well liked, in a variety of ways through teaching her social skills, how to dress and do her hair and perform hair flips. But she never once realizes what is going on with Oz, or what is bubbling beneath the surface on a political level. She is shocked to find out the Wizard is a fraud.
Inferior Introverted Thinking – critical under stress, can get hung up on the “logic” of things: Galinda doesn’t “think” much and she finds it distressing when Fiyero does, but she is also aware of the potential consequences of her friend’s actions at the end of Part One. She cautions her that if she does this, she will lose her dream of being with the Wizard forever, and concludes that she hopes her choice makes her happy in the end.
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Enneagram: 2w3
Enneagram 2 – a warm and caring helper, who focuses on doing all they can for specific chosen others: Galinda’s opening line is, “It IS good to see me, isn’t it?” Her comment after her parents drop her off at Shiz is, “Oh, they’re going to miss me so much.” She has an entire song about what a good person she is, who sees those “less fortunate than I, and let’s face it, who isn’t?” and how she is going to give Elphaba a “makeover,” so she can be “Popular” (“just not quite as popular as me!”). She sees herself as a perfect and patient, long-suffering role model, when in reality her actions are anything but kind. Initially she makes fun of Elphaba, she feels entitled to a private suite and so she piles her stuff in her roommate’s way, and then she gives her a hideous hat by which to humiliate her at the dance while pretending to be a kind person. Galinda’s pride makes her feel entitled to get whatever she wants, but she does become nicer to her friend over time. Still, she cares more about appearances than anything, which causes her to eventually choose not to go with Elphaba once she crosses the wizard.
3 wing brings in a desire to stand out and impress others by showcasing whatever their skill might be: Galinda wants to be the center of attention and welcomes it, she doesn’t like to hear that she has no potential, and she ambitiously intends to become a sorceress. Her desire to excel, stand out, and get “in” with the people who are powerful, important, etc., is why she chooses to align with the wrong side in the war against Elphaba. She is bursting with self-importance and self-confidence, and isn’t above being deceitful to manipulate people (such as asking Bock to be her hero and invite Nessa to the dance).
Learn all about your Enneagram type in 9 Kinds of Quirky: The 9 Enneagram Types!
