Popular Representations of Personality
The Colors of Magic: The Gathering
What is Magic: The Gathering?
Magic is a trading card game that blends the strategy of Chess with the randomness of Poker. The cards themselves are like the pieces of chess, but they depict ferocious creatures, magical landscapes, and powerful spells which are collectively used to defeat your opponent.
What are the colors? What do they represent?
White: Peace through structure
White wants nothing more than world peace, or the greatest good for the greatest number. White thinks the best way to achieve this is with government, law, and morality.
Examples of White characters: Superman, King Arthur
Blue: Perfection through knowledge
Blue believes that everyone enters the world as a blank slate, and their goal should be to perfect themselves. Blue’s ultimate goal is omniscience, knowing all. Blue thinks the best way to achieve this is with reason, technology, and knowledge.
Examples of Blue characters: Spock, Lisa Simpson
Black: Power through opportunity
Black believes that the purpose of any individual should be to make their own life as good as possible. Black’s ultimate goal is omnipotence, the power to do anything. Black thinks the best way to achieve this is with any means necessary, seizing every opportunity, and taking advantage of others.
Examples of Black characters: George Costanza, Lex Luthor
Red: Freedom through action
Red believes that the purpose of life is to live it, and therefore its ultimate goal is the freedom for everyone to do so. Red thinks the best way to achieve this is to follow one’s emotions, take action, and abolish rules.
Examples of Red characters: Homer Simpson, Romeo & Juliet
Green: Acceptance through wisdom
Green believes the world is perfect the way it is, and nature should be left alone. Its ultimate goal is a world where has been allowed to run rampant. Green thinks the best way to achieve this is to support growth of the natural and to destroy unnatural things.
Examples of Green characters: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Winnie the Pooh
Wait, what does this have to do with psychological testing? Why should psychologists care?
The colors of Magic are one of many representations of personality. Fans of the game identify characters in popular culture, celebrities, and even themselves using the colors. Any representation of personality, regardless of the number of studies supporting them, is interesting to psychologists, insofar as actual people make decisions based on it.
Furthermore, an understanding of the colors of Magic could be incorporated into existing personality psychology, aiding in developing novel test items, discovering missing aspects of personality, or simply enriching existing ones.
Still curious?
Fans of the game have created a test that will place you in one color, and the makers of Magic have published a test that will place you in a “guild” of two colors.
Here’s a key for the uninitiated:
Blue-White = AzoriusWhite-Black = OrzhovBlack-Blue = DimirBlue-Red = IzzetRed-Black = RakdosBlack-Green = GolgariGreen-Red = GruulRed-White = BorosWhite-Green = SelesnyaGreen-Blue = Simic
I’m Green-Blue, what are you?
