Character of the
sanguine temperament
The sanguine person is quickly aroused and vehemently
excited by whatever influences him. The reaction follows immediately, but the
impression lasts but a short time. Consequently the remembrance of the
impression does not easily cause new excitement.
Role
In our distant past, the sanguine members of the pack
might have played a supportive, encouraging, social role. They would have been
the glue that kept the group together.
In modern society, you might see them as entertainers,
singers, dancers, or perhaps simply as the energetic people at parties. In
fantasy, they might be Bards.
Sanguine Type
Overview
1. Superficiality.
The sanguine person does not penetrate the depth, the essence of things; he
does not embrace the whole, but is satisfied with the surface shallow understanding
and with a part of the whole. Before he has mastered one subject, his interest
relaxes because new impressions have already captured his attention. He loves
light work which attracts attention, where there is no need of deep thought, or
great effort. To be sure, it is hard to convince a sanguine person that he is
superficial; on the contrary, he imagines that he has understood the subject
wholly and perfectly.
2. Instability.
Because the impressions made upon a sanguine person do not last, they are
easily followed by others. The consequence is a great instability which must be
taken into account by anyone who deals with such persons, if he does not wish
to be disappointed.
3. Tendency to the
external. The sanguine does not like to enter into his inner self, but
directs his attention to the external environment. In this respect he is the
very opposite of the melancholic person who is given to introspection, who
prefers to be absorbed by deep thoughts and more or less ignores the external.
This leaning to the external is shown in the keen interest which the sanguine
pays to his own appearance, as well as to that of others; to a beautiful face,
to fine and modern clothes, and to good manners. In the sanguine the five
senses are especially active, while the choleric uses rather his reason and
will and the melancholic his feelings. The sanguine sees everything, hears
everything, talks about everything. He is noted for his facility and liveliness
of speech, his inexhaustible variety of topics and flow of words which often
make him disagreeable to others.
4. Optimism.
The sanguine looks at everything from the bright side. He is optimistic,
overlooks difficulties, and is always sure of success. If he fails, he does not
worry about it too long but consoles himself easily. His cheerfulness explains
his inclination to make fun on others, to tease them and to play tricks on
them. He takes it for granted that others are willing to accept such things in
good humor and he is very much surprised if they appear to be unhappy or angry
on him.
5. Absence of deep
passions. The passions of the sanguine are quickly excited, but they do not
make a deep and lasting impression.
6. Practicality.
Sanguine possesses common sense, he is usually very rational and practical.
Sanguine
temperament: Main Advantages
1. The sanguine person has many qualities which can be
properly valued by friends and coworkers.
a) The sanguine is an extrovert; he readily makes
acquaintance with other people, is very communicative, talkative, and
associates easily with strangers.
b) He is friendly in speech and behavior and can pleasantly
entertain his fellow men by his interesting views and stories.
c) He is very pleasant and willing to help. He assists
not so coldly and distantly as a choleric, and not so warmly and touchingly as
the melancholic, but at least in such a pleasant way that they are kindly
received.
d) He is compassionate and is always ready his friends by
a friendly remark in time of crisis.
e) He has a outstanding ability to bring his friends and
coworkers attention to their faults without causing in a relatively nice way.
He does not find it hard to correct others. If it is necessary to inform
someone of bad news, it is well to assign a person of sanguine temperament for
this task.
f) A sanguine is quickly energized by an offence and may
show his anger violently, but he cools down quickly and does not keep bad
feelings for long. He is quick to “forgive and forget” - and expect others to
do the same - because he lives in the moment rather than dwelling in the past.
2. The sanguine person has many qualities by which can be
properly valued by management.
a) He is flexible, compliant, and obedient with no
visible efforts and tensions.
b) He is honest and will share openly his difficulties
and challenges.
c) When pointed on his errors, he hardly ever is
offensive, and accepts the requirements and corrective actions requests
properly.
d) Sanguine can be great motivators, as he may
enthusiastically encourage others towards action, and always sees things
positively, optimistically, and would convince others to see things that way
too.
3. The sanguine does not long over unpleasant happenings.
Many things which cause a melancholic person a great, deal of anxiety and
trouble do not affect the sanguine in the least, because he is an optimist and
as such overlooks difficulties and prefers to look at affairs from the sunny
side. Even if the sanguine is occasionally exasperated and sad, he soon finds
his balance again. His sadness does not last long, but gives way quickly to
happiness. Sanguine persons can get along well even with persons generally
difficult to work with.
4. The sanguine is not too picky and extremely easygoing,
and will usually like more things in his life than he dislikes. He tends,
however, to enjoy things that are trendy, popular, and can be accessed easily.
Sanguine
Temperament: Main Disadvantages
1. Self-importance
and pomposity. The pride of the sanguine person does not manifest itself as
excessive ambition or inflexibility, as it does in the choleric, nor as fear of
humiliation, as in the melancholic, but as a strong inclination to overvalue
his importance. The sanguine person finds a pure childish joy and satisfaction
in his personal appearance, in his clothes and work. He loves to behold himself
in the mirror. He feels happy when praised and is therefore very susceptible to
flattery.
2. Inclination to
flirtation and jealousy. The sanguine person is inclined to easy tendency
for intimacy and flirtation. However, his love is not deep and changes easily. Egotism
and tendency to love-affairs lead the sanguine person to jealousy. Because he
is easily influenced by exterior impressions or feelings of sympathy or
antipathy, it is hard for the sanguine person to be unbiased and just.
Superiors of this temperament often have favorites whom they prefer to others.
The sanguine is greatly inclined to flatter those whom he loves.
3. Cheerfulness and
love of pleasure. The sanguine person does not like to be alone; he loves
company and amusement; he wants to enjoy life, occasionally at any price.
4. Weak abilities
to perform hard efforts. Everything which requires the denial or limitation
of the pleasure gaining is very hard on the sanguine; for instance, to guard
the eyes, the ears, the tongue, to keep silence. He cannot restrict himself in
his favorite food, entertainments, or in relations with people.
5. Other
disadvantages of the sanguine temperament:
a) The decisions of the sanguine person are wrong in many
cases, because of lack of deep knowledge and understanding, inability to
foresee difficulties and potential dangers, and due to the shallow ability for
relationship with people.
b) The accomplishments of the sanguine may easily fail because
he always takes success for granted, and therefore does not give sufficient
attention to possible obstacles, and does not make necessary backup and
alternative plans.
c) Sanguine person usually has poor insight because he
always caters to the external and is reluctant to enter into himself, and to
give deeper thought to his own actions.
d) Sanguine person may move away from genuine friends
that he considers being boring or dull. Being friends with a Sanguine is often
as simple as knowing each other's face and name. Thus, in many cases he cannot
sustain deep and rich emotional friendship and romantic relationship.
Sanguine Traits
through the
Babies
* Positives: bright and wide eyed, amusing and adorable,
gurgles and coos, shows off, responsive to people.
* Negatives: screams for attention, knows he or she is
cute, needs constant company, gets into trouble, self-centered.
Children
* Positives: engaging personality, daring and eager,
innocent-appearing, cheerful and enthusiastic, fun-loving, bounces back
quickly, energized by people.
* Negatives: no follow-through, disorganized, easily
distracted, short interest span, emotional ups and downs, wants credit,
forgetful and fidgety, exaggerates.
Teens
* Positives: cheerleader type, charms others, gets
daring, joins clubs, popular, life of the party, creative and colorful, wants
to please, apologizes quickly.
* Negatives: deceptive, creative excuses, easily led
astray, craves attention, needs peer approval, con-artist potential, finds
studying dull, immature, no sense of money.
Adults
* Emotional Needs: attention from all, affection,
touching, approval of every deed, acceptance as is.
* Causes of Depression: life is no fun, no hope for the
future, feeling unloved.
* Stress Relief: go shopping, party with friends, eat to
cheer up.
* Energy Level: energized by people, high frenetic pace,
has periods of exhaustion.
As Parents
* Positives: Makes home fun is liked by children's
friends, turns disaster into humor.
* Negatives: Doesn't like difficulties of parenting,
always trying to avoid involvement in kid’s conflicts and hardship, and does
not take them seriously, may despise children if they are not what he is
expecting from them in terms of personality and achievements.
Sources and
Additional Information:
