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Home > Roles Index > The Sage Role The Sage Role
BY PHILLIP WITTMEYER
Acting, dancing, and entertaining are some of the occupations where Sages find fulfillment for this need to express themselves — anything that has to do with performing on stage or before a camera. This type of thing is especially suitable for Sages in the Positive Pole of Expression. They enjoy the movement, the display, the spectacle, the representation, and the exhibition of the histrionic art. Many Sages find satisfying careers in teaching, reporting, public speaking, and newscasting — anything that has to do with getting a message out to the public. This type of thing is especially suitable for Sages in the Negative Pole of Oration. They enjoy hearing themselves talk, and the words flow so easily from their mouths, that this type of activity comes very naturally to them. They have the "gift of gab". Many Sages also get into politics these days, since politics has become such a media event, with leaders always before the camera and in the press. This fulfills the Sage's need to be in the public eye. Sages have wisdom, they look good, and they speak well. Thus they are able to appeal to a large segment of the public, and thereby get elected. In historical times, Sages were such things as bards, minstrels, and storytellers. In whatever occupation Sages find themselves, they apply a measure of artistry and aesthetics to it. Sages want the eyes of the world to be focused upon them. They love to be the center of attention, and to be in the limelight. Like a person with the Goal of Acceptance, Sages want to be pleasant and easy to get along with. They are typically very charming and cooperative. They desire to be suave, polished, classy, and graceful in their behavior. Like a person in the Power Mode, Sages are normally self-confident in their behavior, and proceed as if they "had their act together." Like a person with the Feature of Greed, Sages can be very much into loving themselves. They want everything coming in to them, and nothing going out. They often use, exploit, and manipulate other people in order to get what they want. In a manner of speaking, Sages view themselves as the center of the universe. That is, they are very subjective about everything — they consider how events in their lives relate to themselves personally: "What does this mean to me? How does this affect me?" Like an Idealist, Sages typically have an innocent, utopian, high-minded attitude toward life. They are friendly and gregarious — everybody is their brother. They feel at home in a crowd, and are always learning, absorbing, and taking in thoughts and ideas from the environment. Sages soak up knowledge like sponges — they usually read a lot. Sages are typically philosophical minded, concerned with the higher meaning of things in their lives. They want to see the pattern of life, and get the big picture. Wisdom is generally the province of Sages. It is often said of Sages that they are "dingey". They have some trouble with physical reality because their minds and thoughts are usually in the abstract, artistic or philosophical realms. At an extreme, Sages tend to live in their own dreamy fantasy world. Sages often fall prey to their own imaginations, and are victims of their own delusions. They have a hard time facing reality. They are prone to think that the real world works like their imaginary world. Obviously this can get them into trouble when this proves not to be the case. It is wise for Sages to find people who are more down to earth (for instance, Artisans) to take care of the everyday affairs of life so that they can devote themselves to their artistic or fantasy lives, or to their philosophical musings about the abstract meaning of things. This factor shows up very much in the profession in which Sages are commonly involved — acting. Sages come up with ideas for stories with profound meaning. And then they play the starring roles in the radio, movie, or television productions of these stories. But it takes persons with technical know-how to make them happen, to bring the stories into the real, tangible world — lights, cameras, stage scenery, special effects: the "nuts and bolts" of the production. This is where Artisans come in. It takes the Sage/Artisan Complementary team to complete the Expression Dimension. Sages view the world as a stage and themselves as actors. They are attuned to the dramatic and theatrical elements of life. Even if they are not involved in a career of acting, Sages are natural-born actors. They love to "ham it up" before an audience. Sages regard other people as their audience, before whom it is their privilege to perform continually. Some might think that to put on a show for others is being phony, because acting is not real. But Sages really find their fulfillment in acting — this is their sincerity and their integrity. Sages are naturally good at imitating, impersonating, and mimicking other people. They easily take on, assume, and absorb the traits of other people, then express these traits back out to the world in their performances. Because Sages interpret life in terms of drama, they often lead lives that are suitable material for a soap opera. After all, they want to live a good story, not just tell a good story. In their personal lives, they play out all the great issues: power and weakness, comedy and tragedy, romance and loneliness, courage and cowardice, success and failure, and so on. Life is not meaningful to them unless they are playing out these various grand dramas. Sages are very much concerned with how they look to others. How they appear to strangers is very important to them. They rarely go out in public without fixing up and dressing up. They are naturally photogenic — they look good in pictures and on camera. If there is a physical appearance that is common to many Sages, it is that they are pleasing, attractive, distinctive, and attention-getting. The most distinguished, beautiful, and handsome people are likely Sages, because of their concern for self-image. Image, rather than substance, is their interest. The Hollywood glitz, glitter and glamour scene is the ultimate expression of this. This superficial and surface approach to life can be difficult for many Sages to overcome. Sages have a lot of depth of wisdom, if only they do not dress it up too much with a story that just sounds good or a picture that simply looks good. Sages emphasize the cover of the book rather than the book itself. Themselves may "judge the book by its cover", and thus be fooled by unscrupulous individuals with smooth tongues and honest appearances. This brings us to another factor regarding Sages. Sages are usually rather shrewd and clever, being concerned as they are with wisdom. But they can turn this to the abuse of others because of their selfishness. In their worst manifestation, Sages tend to think the world owes them a living just because they are attractive and charming. They expect others to give them gifts of appreciation, to throw money at their feet for a great performance. For this reason, Sages may think that they are justified in taking advantage of other people. They think fools are fair game if they can talk them out of their money. Sages can often make a living off of swindling and bilking alone. As consummate actors, Sages are the archetypal "con artists". By looking good and sounding good, they dupe gullible people into buying into their get-rich-quick schemes. Even if they are not dishonest, Sages still think they can talk their way into or out of anything. They can be glib and loquacious, especially if they are in the Negative Pole of Oration. They are inclined to believe that just saying it makes it so, without having to do any real work to make it so. Another problem with Sages is that they are so needful of attention for themselves that they are not always capable of giving attention to others. Sages are inwardly focused, and very much aware of themselves and their own needs and desires. They are so wrapped up in, and so much of their energy is spent in, their own life drama, that they do not have the time or energy for others. Also, since they are so public-at-large oriented, they find it difficult to concentrate their attention on individuals who may be desirous of their help or attention. In other words, Sages tend to spread themselves too thin to be of much assistance to just one person. There have been quite a number of famous Sages. And with good reason. Sages seek fame. They want to be known — the more to whom their name and face is know the more successful the Sage regards himself. Some famous Sages who fulfilled their Role very well are: Cervantes (writer), Handel, Puccini, Scriabin, and Mozart (musician composers), Johnny Carson (talk show host), Joan Rivers (comedienne), Alan Alda, Shirley McClain, Marilyn Monroe, Elizabeth Taylor, and John Wayne (actors), Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, Franklin Roosevelt, and Harry Truman (political figures), Immanuel Kant and Bertrand Russell (philosophers), Billy Graham and Jim Jones (preachers), and Michael Jackson (singer).
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Like the Artisan, the Sage role is also one of Expression. In
this case, the expression is usually intangible, in contrast to the Artisan.
Sages are typically involved in expressing themselves through such intangibles
as words: verbally in teaching or public speaking; or in movement: dancing and
acting. Sages are, metaphorically speaking, the face of the body
of mankind. They give expression to the higher mental activities of society with
such offerings as philosophy, theater, and the arts. As the face of mankind,
Sages give voice to the thoughts of the culture. They show in their countenance
what is going on in the consciousness of society. Sages have a need to express
themselves before the public at large.
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Phil Wittmeyer is a longtime Michael student and scholar of the teachings.
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