The key ideas

The Five Archetypes. How to Understand Yourself and Get Along with Others

Carey Davidson, 2020

Why is it that in the same room one person charges into the fray, another comforts, and a third stays silent in the corner? Carey Davidson applied the ancient Chinese idea of five elements, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water, to human characters. Her method helps you learn your leading type, see why you snap the same way every time you are under pressure, and live more gently alongside people who are wired differently. This is not a diagnosis but a map for self-knowledge and warmer relationships.

Who it is for

For anyone tired of making the same mistakes under stress, who wants to understand themselves, their loved ones, and their colleagues better.

Your comfort zone is not always your sacred path.

Five people in one room

Five people walk into the same hall where a loud party is in full swing. The first works out how to make the rounds of everyone useful in half an hour and still make it to the gym. The second heads for the liveliest group to tell a funny story. The third notices a woman bored in the corner and brings her a plate of snacks. The fourth is glad the city has a place like this, but thinks the evening should have started later. The fifth takes a table in the back to watch it all, already wondering why people need gatherings like this.

One hall, five different worlds. Carey Davidson insists it is not about mood or what we ate for breakfast. Behind our reactions lies a steady pattern, and once you recognize it, you stop fighting your own nature and quarreling with people who are wired differently.

Davidson built her 'five archetypes method' on the traditional Chinese medicine idea of five elements and on the work of the pediatrician Stephen Cowan. Let us be honest right away: this is the author's own system of self-knowledge, not a proven science of personality and not a way to give people a diagnosis.

Ahead you will learn which of the types leads you, why you snap the same way every time under pressure, and how to live alongside the people who irritate you. You are already taking the first step, choosing to look at yourself more closely. That is where it all begins.

All five live in each of us

For thousands of years traditional Chinese medicine has divided nature into five elements, Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. Davidson applied this idea to people and described five characters. All five live in each of us, but usually one steps forward and leads.

The Pioneer (Wood) is forceful and bold. This person sets a goal and heads for it through any obstacle, loves a challenge and gets angry when held back.

The Optimist (Fire) lives on joy and company. This person catches fire easily, sees the bright side of everything and lifts others with their energy.

The Caregiver (Earth) looks after people. This person remembers birthdays, feeds everyone, makes peace between those who have fallen out, and feels needed when making someone's life better.

The Architect (Metal) loves order, beauty and precision. This person brings things to perfection, values rules and knows how to stay composed.

The Philosopher (Water) looks deeper. This person needs quiet, sleep and time to think; they do not throw themselves into tasks or relationships in a rush.

None of them is better than the others. They are five different gifts, and each is needed for something: Wood gets you off the couch, Fire comforts a friend, Earth welcomes the newcomer, Metal sees the work through, Water helps you stop and see the task another way.

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About the author

Carey Davidson is the founder of Tournesol Wellness, a holistic health center in New York. She teaches the five archetypes method, which she built on traditional Chinese medicine and the work of the physician Stephen Cowan.

All books by this author: Carey Davidson

Terms from the book

  • Empathy
  • archetype
  • five archetypes method: The author's own system of self-knowledge: understand your leading type, your needs, and learn to get along with others. It is the author's framework, not a scientific classification of personality.
  • traditional Chinese medicine: An ancient way of looking at health in which the body, the feelings and nature are all connected. From it the author took the idea of the five elements.
  • Cowan: Stephen Cowan, an American pediatrician whose ideas about five 'types' of children inspired the author to create her method.
  • five elements: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal and Water. In the Chinese tradition they describe how everything in nature grows and changes; the author transfers this framework onto human characters.
  • Pioneer: The author's name for the Wood type: a bold, driven person who heads straight for the goal. An image from the book, not a scientific term.
  • Optimist: The author's name for the Fire type: a joyful, sociable person who sees the bright side and lifts others with their energy.
  • Caregiver: The author's name for the Earth type: a caring person for whom closeness, community and being needed matter most.
  • Architect: The author's name for the Metal type: a person of order, beauty and precision, who values rules and brings things to perfection.
  • Philosopher: The author's name for the Water type: a thoughtful person who needs quiet, calm and time before deciding and acting.
  • primary archetype: The one of the five types that leads in a person and sets their usual way of behaving. It stays with the person for life.
  • generating cycle: In the author's framework, the bond in which neighboring elements feed and soothe one another.
  • controlling cycle: In the author's framework, the bond in which opposite elements restrain and irritate one another. The author treats that irritation as a hint for growth.
  • Goleman: Daniel Goleman, an American psychologist, author of works on emotional intelligence. The author draws on his description of the kinds of empathy.

All terms

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