Jane Austen’s vision of the power of personal relationships to shape our lives is eloquently expressed in her great novel, Sense and Sensibility. As Austen describes the quest of two sisters for appropriate husbands, we witness their struggles with the constraints of their 19th century society and the blind spots natural to their Enneagram styles. In the differences between these two young women we see the power of true love to correct the imbalances of strongly contrasting personalities. In the end, love allows Elinor to express her One passion (sensibility), lessening her excessive self-discipline, while it encourages Marianne’s practicality (sense), reining in her excessive Four passion and self-absorption.

Clips from the film Sense and Sensibility, starring Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet, with Oscar-winning screenplay by Thompson, will be used to illustrate the ways a deep, loving relationship can stimulate personal growth and development within different personality types.

Judith Searle’s five published books include The Literary Enneagram: Characters from the Inside Out. A longtime member of the Screen Actors Guild and the Writers Guild of America, she offers workshops that teach the Enneagram through film and literary examples. . www.judithsearle.com.