About Jean, Eren, and Armin in perspective of Jungian psychology
This thoughts suddenly crossed my mind upon watching latest Isayama's interview about the character who is mostly like him.
He used to answered Armin if I'm not mistaken. But lately he claimed that he see a lot of himself in Eren... A part of him that he "reject". Yes, it's "shadow".
I know that Armin is a boy. But i never see him as a boy. But at the same time, he wasn't a girl. I know he wasn't and never a girl. So what is Armin's gender to me? Being an intuitive person about psychology, sometimes it's difficult to me to explain but i will try my best and i hope I'm not being misleading.
Armin is the feminine side of the author.
Let me explain. We all who ever seriously write stories more than three titles will realized that we have our own character creation's stereotype. This is my base argument in this article: that each characters representing part of the author's reality. Whether it is part of his own psychology, or part of other people around the author's.
Feminine is about intuition, hunches, emotion, love, kindness, gentleness. Yes i know Armin has dream and fight for it, and he is the most logical person in the series... Now wait a minute. I want to argue on that claim that Armin is NOT the most logical person in the series. *cough*Erwin*cough*Jean*cough*Hange*cough*Reiner*cough*
Remember the scene in retaking Wall Maria when Berthold is rampage and Armin just got stuck, he don't know what to do? (it's the scene where he was going to "die" and eat Bertholdt). His idea is based on his observations and leads to hunches. Sometimes he can explain it, sometimes not (like how he know that someone is hidding inside the wall, and eventually exposed Reiner), that is one of Armin's intuition. It's a female quality. Btw, did you know that courage, sometimes is also feminine quality? The bravery to protect, as mother would protect her children even if it costs her life.
If Armin using his logic all the time, he wouldn't choose to enlist in Scouting Legion. He would just choose to be an MP to live a pleasure life, have kids, gets old and leave the world's problem to some idiots who would throw their life away for others. And if Armin uses his logic as dominant trait, he would be careful to not suggesting his comrades to return to Commander's spot to ask for next task because he would knew right away that it will sandwiched the entire scouting legions with Beast titan and Collosal titan as the bread.
But Eren himself also doesn't showing logic (masculine signature traits) in most of the stories. So why he is a masculine? Eren is very very aggressive. And that is his masculine quality that to be balanced with Mikasa. Mikasa, despite being one of the strongest (he almost kill Levi in a little wrestling fight, btw) she carries feminine quality which is to protect her loved ones. When Eren fights, he calculated his moves, his enemies moves and act accordingly, i see this as masculine traits. In contrary, Mikasa uses her intuition when she fights. We never being shown her thinking what to do next, she just acts intuitively.
So this is concluded to me that Armin-Jean is a pair of masculine and feminine, and Eren-Mikasa also a pair of masculine and feminine based on their shared categories (brain and brawl).
Of course the brain and brawl itself also a pair of human's functional system that often said to be a pair.
Therefore, it's logical that Jean (masculine brain) interested in Mikasa (feminine brawl), as Armin (feminine brain) close to Eren (masculine brawl).
Back to Jungian psychology...
I had mentioned above that Eren is representing the author's Shadow side. A part of him that he rejects, that he fear most, someting part of him that he sacrifice in order to be fit in with society... That's shadow.
Armin is probably his true self.
And Jean... Well maybe Jean is his ego.. But i like to think that that role now is being handled well by Floch (he suddenly appeared as Jean starting to get along with the main character gang). Perhaps Jean is a figure of his friend who maybe once bullied the author or whatever, that his part is "challenge". Jean always be Eren or Armin's challenge. But i wonder if it's intentional that Jean always sounds softer when he talk to Armin? So probably Jean is a representative of someone who is close to the author that their part is challenge the author to achieve their dreams. The challenger could be anyone, not necessarily bad person. Could be over critical parent, could be doubting friends... Anyone.
Well i hope anyone who read this doesn't take it seriously because it's 6:05 am and I'm still trying to get myself sleep.
I hope Jean survive the series. 👍🍻
