Moments of Truth CHIE; Persona 4 social links explained
Facing your true self is a central theme of Persona 4, and many of its best moments are rooted in moments of unvarnished truth.
I recently explored how Persona 4 balances a warm coming-of-age story with themes of unearthing painful baggage. If you haven’t played Persona 4, you should stop reading this piece immediately and check out that essay, which outlines why it’s a great RPG everyone should try.
If you have played Persona 4 and are ready for some heavy spoilers, by all means continue…
A cool byproduct of researching my previous essay is it gave me fresh insight on social links in Persona 4.
I was aware that friends and family become more forthcoming as you get to know them better. But I never noticed that every social link has at least one moment of complete honesty. It got to the point where I started looking for it, and I appreciated the thought and effort that went into creating this dynamic. It helped me understand some of the characters better too.
The following is a brief summary of Chie’s moments of truth, along with some perspective on her circumstances and behavior:
Chie Satonaka
Arcana: Chariot
Initial Trope: athletic pixie girl
Hidden Truth: wannabe hero with low self esteem
Steak, Kung-Fu flicks, and a love of exercise; Chie truly appreciates the finer things in life. She wears those interests on her sleeve, but beneath those broad brushstrokes is a nuanced mix of heroic aspirations and hidden insecurity.
Chie is the heart of the Investigation Team. Her motto is “Don’t think; feel” and she generally lives by it. While not the brightest bulb, her moral compass is rock solid. She knows what’s right and is fearless in defending what she cares for, all while harboring subtle self doubt. These themes permeate her character arc in Persona 4.
A good window into Chie’s perspective is her fixation with action movies. She likes stories that center on brave heroes who overcome long odds to protect everyone. To hear a classmate talk, Chie was the main character in several imaginary hero groups while they were growing up.
This dynamic is also present with her best friend Yukiko, who Chie felt compelled to protect from the onset of their friendship. During the mission to rescue Yukiko, Chie’s shadow points out the relationship had become tainted — at least partially — by jealousy and Chie’s low self esteem.
Chie makes up with Yukiko shortly after and apologizes, but she also recognizes that things need to change.
One vehicle for these changes are her regular training sessions with Yu, which form the framework of the Chie social link. Chie’s moments of truth are in these segments, but could easily be missed, because it takes the subtle tack of Chie being vulnerable enough to admit uncertainty on the best way to become a better person.
Chie is partially on the right track. Being part of the Investigation Team has been a positive influence, but it won’t solve the issues outlined by her shadow. Those are answers only she can provide, by looking within.
An unfortunate aspect of Chie is that she’s sometimes a poor judge of character. She clearly has feelings for old classmate Takeshi, who gives no indication of liking or respecting her — he’s too busy trying to use Chie to get closer to Yukiko. This plays in with a vibe that Chie often gives better than she gets and is let down by people she trusts.
Even so, Chie later jumps in to save Takeshi from a trio of bullies. He runs off, leaving Yu to provide backup when things are about to get physical.
Initially Chie is angry with Yu, indicating she could have handled things herself. She quicky apologizes though, acknowledging her rash behavior could put others at risk. Things have progressed past simply protecting a best friend, and Chie realizes she needs to raise her game. It’s a moment of growth, but she still beats herself up over it.
Chie also springs some honesty on Takeshi afterward, finally telling him to shut up about Yukiko. Unfortunately, he retaliates by telling the bullies about Chie — where she lives and about her best friend.
The lead bully brings this up when Chie tries to stop them from harassing a kid, saying they’ll hurt Yukiko. This brings things full circle back to Chie’s original motivation, and she responds with one of the most badass moments in RPG history.
Afterwards, Chie second guesses herself, but assures Yu her actions were coming from the right place. Things may have got twisted with Yukiko and Takeshi is a creep that didn’t deserve saving, but Chie is set on helping others.
The contrast of outward bravado and discreet doubt is one of Chie’s most winning qualities. It’s a testament to the writing, how easily her moments of candor can be obscured by her outsized personality. Noticing them only makes her more endearing. Chie is well aware of her limitations — but they don’t seem so imposing once her path is clear.
Chie’s arc is of a brave young woman learning to follow her heart more effectively and with an increasingly larger impact. It’s a nice bit of dramatic irony that Chie seems unaware of her good points, but they should be crystal clear to anyone who has played the game.
Nathan Lamb is a former reporter and news editor, who occasionally writes about video games for fun. His passions include the Persona series and history. He previously wrote about on the overarching themes of death and mortality in Persona 3.
