Questions for SEIs/ISFps or probably SEI's

[marooned]

Jung has a superior description of Si in chapter X of Psychological types. Read all of it from 6. Sensation to 7 Introverted Sensation Type and also beginning of 9 Introverted Intuitive type where he mentions Si the last time. Then read it again, many times, print it and make notes in the margin, sleep with it.

The problem is that his description is almost too good and gets misunderstood. Just keep in mind that he is all the time talking about sensory impressions, not raw sensations (see my signature) and he is trying to characterize them, although it is very hard to express in words. Also keep in mind that he is talking about the same thing as socionics.

So admittedly I've never fully understood Jung's Si descriptions, conveniently read to us below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mx3moSvZa4U
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-c-Qqr2cuOg

Jung basically seems to be saying that the Si type takes in a subjective impression of the "object" while generally "cleaving" that off from the objective nature of the object. He uses the example of having multiple people paint the same object (like a vase, or a landscape, or human face or whatever) and points out how each painting will come out looking different due to the subjective aspect of sensing. People bring forth their impressions of the object in their paintings of it, and arguably in a way that overrides the object itself (if one were to assume something like a photograph to be the "objective representation" of that object). Even if someone were trying to do nothing but create an "objective drawing" of the object (no subjective impression), this elusive subjective sensing factor will probably still come into play.

I am not sure to what extent he means this as a metaphor or how literally to take it. I start thinking of my mom who paints the glory of nature a lot (as I shall randomly call it) in landscapes with all sorts of vibrant colors and it's that she's trying to recreate nature as she sees it, which is in some ways "subjectively magical" in that it's bringing out a physical vision of nature that differs from how it would appear objectively (as say in a photograph). There aren't any metaphors in what she paints, or any mystical imagery, it is a strictly sensing activity IOW--but it draws out very clearly the subjective aspect of sensing (the "vision" is an Si one).

However, Jung also talks about the repressed extroverted intuition in the introverted sensing type which he describes as taking on an "archaic" form. I am assuming he means it draws upon all manner of imagery and symbol from the collective unconscious, but because it's this repressed more crude form of extroverted intuition that is buried in the unconscious, it in a way becomes terrifying or perhaps even delusional. For this I was thinking of the example of how in some cultures black corvid birds (e.g. crows) have been associated with macabre imagery and death. They've been seen picking over the corpses of people who died from horrifying events (like plagues) and for this reason they've culturally been associated with evil or with the demonic or perhaps one might see one and fear it will swallow their soul (I don't know all the particular stories). This to me would seem like a possible example to match what Jung talks about as this archaic extroverted intuition at play. The object crow is neutral as all objects are, but it takes on a malevolent form in the imaginations of those held sway by these cultural influences, causing them to perceive what is simply a bird in a "delusional" way.

So if I add these two things together, I would imagine the introverted sensing type probably goes through the day experiencing a version of their surroundings that is highly subjective (this subjective aspect of sensing as from the painting example) while also seeing objects metaphorically such that they can become akin to benevolent or malevolent deities when this "archaic" extroverted intuition is at work.

It is also described as a type that can barely speak or articulate itself, and I don't know how far to go with these descriptions from Jung. I assume this is a metaphor for the difficulties the introverted sensing type has in interacting with what is assumed to be an objective world. Their subjective sensing expression is best expressed artistically and doesn't have an expression available to it through objective means. However, the way in which he goes on about it, it's easy to imagine a far more debilitated person and I keep recalling how he's encountered a lot of these "types" in clinical settings for people who are a bit off their rockers. (It's as though) Jung after all would be looking at what today we would call a schizophrenic and trying to type them, likely as the introverted sensing or introverted intuitive type, and seeing this madness from them as actually a consequence of being one of these subjective perceiving types who has lost all manner of identification with anything objective, as all these ideas are tied together for him in a system (I agree with Jung that he is the introverted thinking type lol).