- Abandon All Hope: The three damned souls of Brimstone Hall Room 664
- Ego: Sean Liu-Ogden
- Id: Melissa Jones
- Superego: Evan Daigle
- The three dragons in Age of Fire are practically cut out around this.
- Id: Auron — inclined to rash actions and going it alone. Advocates a "back to nature" philosophy.
- Ego: The Copper — A rational and calculating politician.
- Superego: Wistala — Moralistic, dislikes fighting (especially later on) and wants everyone to just get along. Often ends up being the mediator.
- Animorphs When the group first meets the Ellimist they disagree about taking his offer to save some people and let the Yeerks have the rest.
- Marco is the Id, saying that it might be like the Noah's ark, but it would end up being more like a zoo.
- Ax is the Superego, who will go along with what the leader decides but doesn't trust the Ellimist.
- Cassie, oddly enough disagrees with everyone else and states the practical option of this being for the greater good.
In The Separation, Rachel morphs a starfish and is split in two halves. When she morphs back to human form, she has split into two versions of herself — - The Id: A violently passionate but disorganised Rachel.
- The Superego: A gutless but intelligent Rachel.
- The Ego: What we get at the end of the book.
- Anne of Green Gables:
- Id: Anne — impulsive, imaginative, emotional.
- Ego: Matthew — quiet, shy, loving.
- Superego: Marilla — strict, stern, snarky.
- Ascendance of a Bookworm:
- Id: Sylvester — the most childish of the adult characters.
- Ego: Ferdinand — the protagonist's Stern Teacher.
- Superego: Karstedt — regularly ends up in the same room as the two others and clears a fairly low bar of being both more mature than Sylvester and more relaxed than Ferdinand.
- A to Z Mysteries:
- Id: Josh — unpredictable jokester who is likely to jump to conclusions.
- Ego: Dink — the most down-to-earth and unofficial leader of the kids.
- Superego: Ruth Rose — intelligent and argues with Josh.
- Avalon: Web of Magic:
- Id: Kara — impulsive, selfish, preoccupied with material pleasure, easily swayed by 'cute guys'
- Ego: Emily — down-to-earth, sensible, mediator between Adriane and Kara
- Superego: Adriane — the least morally corruptible, deep-rooted sense of right and wrong, self-righteous
- The Bartimaeus Trilogy, although only at the very end.
- Id: Bartimaeus — the irrepressible, sarcastic and often lazy spirit of air and fire.
- Superego: Nathaniel — the intellectual magician who, in general, disdains emotions (or tries to, anyway).
- Ego: Kitty — a balance of impulsiveness and motivation, and, more importantly, very much the glue keeping the former two working together.
- Bazil Broketail: When Norwul, Bazil and Lumbee form a triumvirate leading the Ardu army against Mirchaz, he is the id to Lumbee's ego and Bazil's superego.
- Brave New World:
- Id: Watson — passionate, restless, impulsive.
- Ego: Bernard — inferiority-complex, philosophical, outcast.
- Superego: John — emotional, intensely moral, righteous, conscientious.
- The Brothers Karamazov:
- Id: Dmitri — the elder brother is a womanizer, a drunkard and a hedonist.
- Ego: Alyosha — the younger brother is a sweet, meek boy who wanted to become a monk and is the only member of the family who manages to keep a good relationship with the others.
- Superego: Ivan — a cold, brilliant intellectual and atheist with much contempt for the rest of mankind.
- Chapterhouse: Dune:
- Id: Bellonda, by far the most emotional and impulsive of the trio. Really weirdly played as she's a Bene Gesserit-Mentat, so one would thing she'd be the most controlled and stoic of the group.
- Ego: Odrade, practical and balanced, she allows her emotions to come through but only when it's effective for her purpose.
- Superego: Tamalane, the model of the old school stoic Bene Gesserit, mellowed out in old age to the point of needing to be replaced and countering Bellonda's more visceral recommendations.
- The Charlie Parker Series:
- Id: Angel — passionate, emotional, loving
- Ego: Parker — the leader, acts as a balance between the id and superego (as stated in The Reapers)
- Superego: Louis — cold, logical, detached
- A Christmas Carol: The ghosts of Christmas
- Ego: Ghost of Christmas Past
- Id: Ghost of Christmas Present
- Superego: Ghost of Christmas Future
- Chronicles of the Kencyrath:
- Circle of Three
- Id: Cooper Rivers — Rocker girl, the rebel of the three
- Ego: Kate Morgan — the "normal" of the three; frequently torn between what she wants and what others expect of her.
- Superego: Annie Crandall — the brain of the three; approaches everything with cool, scientific logic
- Courtship Rite: The three brother-protagonists, as reflected in the roles they chose in childhood.
- Id: Joesai is "the loins", the tough, taciturn brawler.
- Ego: Gaet is "the heart", the cheerful, carefree one who makes friends easily and always finds ways to resolve disputes.
- Superego: Hoemei is "the brain", the dour, detail-oriented family administrator.
- The Dark Tower had two:
- One is a fairly traditional Freudian Trio:
- Id: Roland — Instinct.
- Superego: Cuthbert — Wit and cunning.
- Ego: Alain — Intuition and mediation.
- The other is a more explicit interpretation of the Freudian roles (and is actually a set of Split Personalities):
- Id: Detta — Murderous.
- Superego: Odetta — Ethical, but unable to fight.
- Ego: Susannah — Functional blend of the two.
- The last book also brought us the Three Stephen Kings:
- Id: Fumalo — Badmouthed, uninhibited
- Ego: Feemalo — Goodmouthed, Polite
- Superego: Fimalo — Arbiter, Id shuts up when he talks
- One is a fairly traditional Freudian Trio:
- David Copperfield:
- Id: Steerforth — Troublemaker, selfish, tries to influence David.
- Ego: David — Everyman type, kind enough, but goes one way or the other.
- Superego: Agnes — Selfless, loving, tries to lead David down the right path, is actually referred to as his "good angel."
- The Demonata:
- Id: Grubbs — Impulsive, often doesn't think before acting.
- Superego: Kernal — Wanted to give up fighting the Demonata and withdraw to keep at least some beings alive. Oh, and he had his * eyes* dug out by Grubbs.
- Ego: Bec — Mediates between the other two members of the Kah-Gash. Especially at the end, where she negotiates with Lord Loss and brings about the end of both universes.
- Discworld:
- The Witches of Lancre
- Superego: Granny Weatherwax — although she's described as having a big ego, she's definitely the most rational and chilly of the three.
- Id: Nanny Ogg
- Ego: Magrat Garlick — her role being specifically described as "running around getting the other two to make up after they'd had a row". A rare example of the ego definitely not being the leader.
- The de Magpyr vampires from Carpe Jugulum
- Superego: The count — wants to rationalise vampirism and secure his domination.
- Ego: Vlad — while controlled and relatively unimpulsive, is more interested in grabbing what interests him right now.
- Id: Lachrimosa — impatient, cruel, wants to be more straightforwardly violent.
- The Witches of Lancre
- The Dresden Files:
- Superego: Lt. Murphy — Dutiful Policewoman.
- Ego: Harry Dresden — Somewhat rebellious, but never for the sake of rebelliousness alone.
- Id: Thomas Raith — Hedonistic, pleasure-seeking. Hell, he feeds off of emotions just to live.
- The times Harry's three-man team switches around, the other characters usually fill one of these slots — Michael Carpenter (Superego), Kincaid (Id), etc. If Sanya is brought into the mix, Harry is oftentimes shoved to the Id, and Sanya becomes the Ego.
- Id: Gard — concerned with battle and survival
- Superego: Hendricks — philosopher, moralist
- Ego: Marcone
- Eden Green:
- Superego: Eden the over-analytical
- Ego: Veronica the would-be peacemaker
- Id: Tedrin the impulsive psychopath
- The Eighth Doctor Adventures swaps the roles around a few times over the course of the series:
- Id: Fitz — A consummate hedonist who loves smoking, drinking and sex
- Ego: Sam — While her characterization is all over the place, she ends up at ego by default. She's more serious and logical than Fitz, but much more openly emotional and idealistic than the Doctor
- Superego: The Doctor — Capable of making hard choices that neither of the others can make [like Mercy Killing the villain in Revolution Man]
- Id: Fitz (Still the same)
- Ego: The Doctor (More logical and driven than Fitz, but passionate and in constant wonder at the universe)
- Superego: Compassion (Coldly logical and ruthlessly pragmatic. However, Compassion offers an interesting take on Id of all things. Coming from a society completely controlled by the media signals constantly pouring into their heads, the Remote would change opinions and actions depending on the currant mood of the collective as a whole, making them extremely impulsive)
- Id: Fitz (natch)
- Ego: The Doctor (Often the balancing act between Fitz and Anji's Sibling Rivalry arguments, he's the confident leader even with his amnesia)
- Superego: Anji (The Only Sane Man in the team, who serves to bring both of them back to reality when they're off getting distracted. Also the most driven of the group since she just wants to get home)
- Id: Trix (Hedonistic and impulsive, with questionable loyalties)
- Ego: Fitz (Fitz finally graduates from Id, due in part to vast amounts of Character Development but also just comparison to Trix)
- Superego: The Doctor
- In the The Emerald Atlas:
- Ender's Game and its sequels have a power trio of the three major sentient species:
- Superego: Buggers — Highly organized, virtually no concept of the individual, communicate psychically faster than the speed of light, very technologically advanced, put the survival of their species first but don't seek to destroy other species.
- Id: Humans — Very high-tech, artistic, individualistic, but also prone to irrational decisions and chaos. Have a bad habit of nearly destroying other sentient species. Good overall, but can still be pretty dastardly.
- Ego: Pequeninos — Very low-tech compared to other species, tied to their traditions, have a much greater concept of the individual than buggers but still less than humans, generally open-minded. Tribes fight with each other, but outside of these battles, they try to avoid conflict.
- One can group the three Wiggin children in the same way:
- Id: Peter Wiggin — Borderline(?) psychopath, extremely ambitious, driven.
- Superego: Valentine Wiggin — Responsible, conscientious.
- Ego: Andrew "Ender" Wiggin — Strikes a balance between the two.
- The Fire-Us Trilogy: The three (original) older children fill out a trio.
- Id: Mommy is motherly, making decisions based on emotion, even if they are impractical or downright dangerous. She also has violent fits.
- Ego: Hunter, the sole balanced member of the family, who attempts to mediate when Mommy and Teacher disagree on how to lead it.
- Superego: Teacher, an introvert who spends all of her time writing in and/or studying the Book, and thinks as practically and unsentimentally as she needs to in order to protect those that she cares most about.
- Flowers for Algernon:
- Superego: Charlie — self-doubting, rational, and scientifically-minded, emotionally unfulfilled
- Id: Faye Lilliman — Overtly sexual, artistic, and whimsical
- Ego: Alice Kinnian — Compassionate, emotionally mature, educated, balances intellect and emotions
- Foundation and Earth:
- Id: Golan Trevize is the temperamental and impulsive hero of the group. Gaia remarked in ‘’Foundation's Edge’’ that Trevize can be ‘’right’’ in a way that nobody else is, due to the way he unconsciously synthesizes information. He dislikes Gaia because he is frightened of losing his individuality, and thinks of a galactic Assimilation Plot as the worst thing that can happen to humanity. He has embarked on a journey to find Earth, in the hope that finding it will help him understand why Gaia is the ‘’right’’ answer for humanity’s destiny.
- Superego: Blissenobiarella/Gaia represents the complete sublimation of an individual to the social order, where the social order includes the planet/galaxy, including the inanimate parts. She/they/Gaia refers to people like Trevize and Pelorat as "Isolates", people who must struggle with rules and authority to conform to the social conventions of a population. She/they/Gaia operates by nearly constant democratic decision-making, and seeing the way Isolates rationalize breaking the rules and mistrust proves to her/them/Gaia that Isolates are always operating self-destructively instead of cooperatively. Bliss/Gaia is just as emotional as Trevize is, which often leads to high-tension arguments about who is right.
- Ego: Janov Pelorat represents a balance between being impulsive individualism and collective consensus. With Bliss, he is engaged in attempting to become Gaia, and she warns him that it will only really make him "less Isolate", rather than truly joining. He often observes while Trevize and Bliss argue over Individualism vs Collectivism, occasionally awarding the argument to one side or the other. He is actually the least emotionally-driven of the group, caught up in old myths and histories concerning Earth, helping Trevize in his search.
- The later books of The General Series by S. M. Stirling and David Drake.
- The computer known as Center (Superego), the "ghost" of Raj Whitehall (Id), and their victim (i.e. the poor yutz barbarian they've roped into being the person who will bring civilization to his homeworld) gets to be "Ego" as he has to put together Raj's wise experience with war and humanity with Center's cold logic and near-infinite knowledge.
- Harry Potter:
- Id: Ron — generally messy, eats at every opportunity to do so, is almost always the first one to advocate breaking a rule, good cause or not, has intuitive and social knowledge of the magical world gained by being a native but isn't up-to-snuff on how magic works on a scientific level
- Superego: Hermione — likes organization and neatness, the one who most often refuses to eat if something perceived as more important is at play, is almost always the first one to advocate sticking to the rules or the established way of doing things, has academic and theoretical knowledge of the magical world gained by education and research but is ignorant of a lot of magical social conventions (i.e. house-elves, "giants are really all that bad, it's just wizard propaganda", the tales of Beedle the Bard)
- Ego: Harry — not messy, not tidy, eats normally, breaks rules for a good cause but will usually play it safe, has neither intuitive nor academic knowledge and usually relies on the other two to explain things.
- Lampshaded in the sixth movie
Professor Mc Gonagall: Why is it, when something happens, it is always you three?- Also Lampshaded when the narrative refers to that "little voice" in Harry's head telling him what to do. It sounds just like Hermione...
- A Secondary trio is presented in Deathly Hallows during the main trio's absense from Hogwarts. Though they do not fit the bill as easily as the main three, they are:
- Ego: Neville — completely devoted to Dumbledore's Army and the La Résistance taking place at Hogwarts.
- Id: Ginny — Brave and loyal, but a bit of a hot-head and impulsive.
- Superego: Luna — Very smart and an idealist.
- The Marauders also fit this fairly well if you retroactively exclude Peter:
- Superego: Lupin — calm, studious, the most prone to common sense out of the three
- Ego: James — over-confident and mischievous, but less reckless than Sirius
- Id: Sirius — the rebel of the group, doles out the harshest bullying to Snape and is driven to intense emotion
- Some would argue that James is the "id" and Sirius is the "ego".
- In-universe in Deathly Hallows, the titular three characters of "The Tale of the Three Brothers" qualify. Their chosen gifts from Death each correspond with their role in the trio. When reading the story, Harry, Ron and Hermione each have their own unique ideas about the "best" gift of the three, corresponding to their own roles. note
- Id: The First Brother receives the Elder Wand, which is more powerful than any wand ever crafted before it, because he desires nothing more than power over others.
- Ego: The Second Brother receives the Resurrection Stone, which has the power to bring back the dead, because he has a compulsive desire to save loved ones from Death.
- Superego: The Third Brother receives the Cloak of Invisibility, which allows him to successfully hide from Death until he's lived into old age, because he knows to ask for the only gift guaranteed to keep him safe.
- The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
- Id: Ford Prefect is reactionary, prone to acting first, planning later (if ever), wild and unpredictable.
- Ego: Arthur Dent is generally on an even keel, even when outlandish things happen he keeps (moderately) cool.
- Superego: Tricia McMillan is smart, idealistic, and usually the one drolly commenting on the situation.
- Do we have one for The Hobbit? Bilbo, Gandalf and Thorin certainly have airs of this, but matching them is trickier than you'd think — is Bilbo the reconciliatory Ego between the driven Thorin and the detached Gandalf, or is it Gandalf between the instinctual Id Bilbo and the proud, calculating Thorin? Or is it even Gandalf who is the Id, tempting the irresponsible Tookish side out of Bilbo while Thorin would rather he do the sensible thing and stay at home, out of the way of those more qualified for the quest?
- John Dies at the End:
- Ego: Dave — The Straight Man
- Superego: Amy — Moral center of the group
- Id: John — Batshit insane
- Journey to the West with Xuanzang/Tripitaka's three disciples.
- Id: Zhu Bajie/Pigsy, who is greedy, lazy, and almost entirely motivated by his base desires.
- Ego: Sha Wujing/Sandy. The most reasonable of the three and their Straight Man foil, usually keeping to himself.
- Superego: Sun Wukong/Monkey. Of the three disciples, he is the least affected by worldly needs, and also the cleverest. However, he's also quite Hot-Blooded, unlike most examples.
- Les Misérables:
- Les Amis
- Id: Courfeyrac — The Center - warm, friendly, loves women and fashion.
- Ego: Combeferre — The Guide - "Revolution, but Civilization."
- Superego: Enjolras — The Chief - the marble lover of liberty.
- Les Amis
- Lockwood & Co.:
- Id: Lucy — Highly sensitive Talent who bases her decisions on instincts and gut reactions. Constantly fighting with George.
- Superego: George — Analytical and intelligent; bases decisions on copious amounts of research. Constantly fighting with Lucy.
- Ego: Lockwood — The leader and decision-maker who is constantly mediating between Lucy and George.
- Looking for Alaska:
- Id: Alaska Young — Intelligent, but brash, impulsive, and arrogant; does what she feels like doing and doesn't care how it impacts anyone else until later.
- Superego: Miles "Pudge" Halter: Calm, kind, withdrawn, intelligent, and usually the most reasonable person of the three.
- Ego: Chip "The Colonel" Martin: Short-tempered, but incredibly intelligent, meticulous, and well-spoken.
- Lord of the Flies:
- Ego: Ralph — Wants to get off the island but is practical about it
- Superego: Piggy — Smartest and only one who remains logical throughout
- Id: Jack — Instinctual and acting on the most immediate need
- The Lord of the Rings
- Ego: Frodo
- Superego: Sam
- Id: Gollum
- The Lord of the Rings, the Three Walkers
- Ego: Aragorn
- Superego: Legolas
- Id: Gimli (in the movie, anyway).
- That's also the way their respective races work—Humans (Ego), Elves (Superego), and Dwarves (Id).
- The Lord of the Rings, the three main Wizards:
- Ego: Gandalf
- Superego: Saruman
- Id: Radagast
- The Men in the Jungle:
- Id: Willem Vanderling — Adapts to the endless brutality on Sangre quite easily, becoming a murderer and cannibal in a matter of weeks.
- Ego: Bart Fraden — Is willing to commit stupefyingly horrid war crimes for the sake of overthrowing the planet's corrupt elite (It Makes Sense in Context).
- Superego: Sophia O'Hara — Has the most conscience of any character in the novel (though that isn't saying much). Frequently questions Fraden's "leadership" and attempts to instruct him morally, despite ultimately being ineffectual.
- The Mystery Kids:
- Ego: Holly Adams — the most enthusiastic mystery fan and the best at deductive reasoning
- Id: Miranda Hunt — the impulsive one who loves bad jokes but has occasional inspirations
- Superego: Peter Hamilton — the technical expert with a love of gadgetry and a car numberplate collection
- Nancy Drew:
- Ego: Nancy Drew
- Id: Bess Marvin
- Superego: George Fayne
- The Other Boleyn Girl keeps it all in the family:
- Ego: George Boleyn — Manages between Mary and Anne. Follows the family norms for the most part but also sometimes goes after his own desires.
- Id: Anne Boleyn — Passionate, prone to temper-tantrums, driven by her desires
- Superego: Mary Boleyn — For the most part, follows what society and her family expects of her.
- Percy Jackson and the Olympians:
- Id: Percy
- Superego: Annabeth
- Ego: Grover
- Annabeth, Thalia, And Luke, before Grover found and took them to Camp Half-Blood, count as well
- Superego: Annabeth
- Id: Luke
- Ego: Thalia
- The Picture of Dorian Gray:
- Superego: Basil Hallward
- Id: Lord Henry
- Ego: Dorian Gray
- The Princess Series:
- Id: Snow
- Ego: Danielle
- Superego: Talia
- Rascal Does Not Dream of Bunny Girl Senpai has Sakuta's main female friends:
- Id: Tomoe - emotionally open and outgoing Smitten Teenage Girl.
- Superego: Rio - The Stoic and rational girl who explains phenomena through science.
- Ego: Mai - well-balanced between logic and emotion, serious and professional, yet emotional and openly compassionate at the same time.
- The Raven:
- Id: The Mourning Narrator, the distraught lover who describes his feelings openly. He gradually gets impatient and frustrated with the Raven, that taunts him. Eventually he begins to fear the bird, as something evil and otherworldly.
- Ego: Lenore, the narrator's dead lover, whom they idolise and serves as a source of comfort throughout the poem.
- Superego: The Raven, cold and snide, the bird trivialises the narrator's pain, as if it was bullying him.
- Romance of the Three Kingdoms has the three sworn brothers of Shu:
- Superego: Liu Bei, in a rare case of the Superego leading the trio, is (with a notable exception or two) constantly calm and very concerned with high-minded ideals such as virtue and integrity.
- Ego: Guan Yu, the middle brother, is the practical ego; he usually sides with Liu Bei in calming the impulsive Zhang Fei, but occasionally, with Liu Bei's benevolent nature leads him to do things that are obviously going to screw them over, he takes Zhang Fei's side instead. Nevertheless, he always lets Liu Bei have the final word.
- Id: Zhang Fei, the youngest brother, is Boisterous Bruiser par excellence, who lives wine and fighting, particularly if he's fighting against anyone who dares look at either of his brothers the wrong way. Despite frequently disagreeing with superego Liu Bei, however, he's always unswervingly loyal.
A Series of Unfortunate Events:
- Id: Sunny — a baby, impulsive, likes to bite things
- Ego: Violet — the oldest, practical, an inventor
- Superego: Klaus — super intellectual, a reader
- Shannara:
- The Sword of Shannara: Shea and the two criminals who captured him form one after they agree to team up.
- Ego: Shea Ohmsford — Nice Guy and the only one to have all the information about what is going on; the only one who can complete the mission and defeat the Big Bad
- Id: Panamon Creel — Flamboyant highwayman and professional criminal who makes friends at the drop of a hat, believes in living life to the fullets, and has a Hair-Trigger Temper that can be set off without warning
- Superego: Keltset — Calm, rational, messianic figure who doesn't let his emotions get the best of him. Mute.
- The Sword of Shannara: Shea and the two criminals who captured him form one after they agree to team up.
- Elfstones Of Shannara: The Dagda Mor and his Co-Dragons form a villainous one.
- Id: The Reaper — A being forged of pure insticnt, created to be the ultimate predator. Killing is as insinctual to it as breathing; when it wants something it just keeps on coming until you or it is dead.
- Superego: The Changeling — Cautious and manipulative, using its Shapeshifting abilities to confuse and mislead; waits for the perfect opportunity to strike despite being more or less driven by spite.
- Ego: The Dagda Mor — Repressed
Chaotic Evil, he prefers to work through subordinates but isn't afraid to confront his opponents directly when the opportunity presents itself. A planner with the ability to be flexible.
- The Heritage of Shannara: The trio tracking Par in Talismans form one.
- Ego: Morgan Leah — The Smart Guy, strategist and leader of the group.
- Id: Damson Rhee — The Heart, along because she's in love with Par, very emotional.
- Superego: Matty Roh — Sugar-and-Ice Personality, Broken Bird, and cool-headed in the extreme.
- The Silmarillion:
- A rather loose one with the main villains:
- Id: Ungoliant — Psychotic, deranged and obsessed with food.
- Ego: Melkor/Morgoth — The satanic figure who manages to unite the two, most of the time.
- Superego: Sauron — Rational, scheming and relentless in his desire for order.
- The Three sons of Finwë:
- Id: Fëanor, Hot-Blooded and impulsive, for whom desire is first and foremost.
- Ego: Fingolfin, balances the trio being more controlled than Fëanor and more assertive than Finarfin. Due to these traits he is elected High King.
- Superego: Finarfin, the most patient, logical, and cool-headed; abandons the Noldor's rebellion after Fëanor initiates the first Kinslaying.
- A rather loose one with the main villains:
- A Song of Ice and Fire:
- Played with in the Baratheon Brothers:
- Id: Robert Baratheon is devoted only to the physical pleasures of life; food, drink, sex, and glorious battle!
- Superego: Stannis Baratheon is cold, rational, and entirely devoted to upholding justice and the laws of the realm as they are. He often feels dishonoured by his brother Robert's impulsive actions in court, or his impulsive actions in general, such as having a casual sexual encounter on Stannis' wedding night, in Stannis' marital bed.
- Ego: Renly Baratheon is more level-headed and down to earth, neither overly impulsive like Robert nor extremely strict like Stannis. However, he subverts part of the trope in that he offers no mediation between Robert and Stannis. In fact, he adds to it somewhat as Stannis perceives Robert as favouring Renly over him.
- Robert is technically the Ego (when he feels up to it) as his will is the only thing keeping his brothers' ambitions at bay. Renly is also the Id since he doesn't have the sense of responsibility Robert has (if not for ruling the kingdoms then keeping the Targaryens out at least).
- Played straight in the meeting in A Clash of Kings between Renly, Stannis, and Catelyn Stark:
- Superego: Stannis demands that Renly submit to Stannis and accept Stannis as king due to Stannis, by law, having the superior claim by being the elder brother.
- Id: Renly demands that Stannis accept him as king, due to him seeing himself as fulfilling a more romantic ideal of king, basically.
- Ego: Catelyn Stark desperately tries to mediate between them and get them to come to a compromise and join together against their extremely powerful common enemy, the Lannisters.
- Also, before the series even began, the triumvirate that overthrew the Targaryens:
- Id: Robert Baratheon — Again, loud, boisterous, lecherous, gluttonous, etc.
- Superego: Eddard Stark — Honorable and self-controlled, even to a fault.
- Ego: Jon Arryn — The real ringleader of the rebellion, and, as a foster father to both Robert and Eddard, the one who mediated between the two. Self-controlled, but also practical. (Not surprisingly, things fell apart pretty quickly once he died.)
- Then there's the Lannnister trio.
- Id: Cersei seems like the archetypal Lannister but as the books progress, we see that her scheme to put her son on the Iron Throne was her own power grab and that she resents her gender because it makes her powerless.
- Superego: Tyrion is loyal to the family no matter how much they hate him until book 3.
- Ego: Jaime loves his siblings.
- The Starks who made the journey to King's Landing.
- Superego: Sansa really wants to play her role as a potential queen.
- Id: Arya just wants to go home and always disregards her duty as a lady.
- Ego: Poor Ned is playing referee to his teenage girls.
- The surviving Greyjoy brothers from A Feast for Crows onward.
- Superego: Aeron is a dedicated priest to the Drowned God.
- Id: Euron is an Awesome Evil Overlord.
- Ego: Victarion just wants to be normal.
- Aegon and his sister wives.
- Superego: Aegon the leader of the Targaryens, just and fair to everyone.
- Ego: Visenya passionate, stern and sensual.
- Id: Rhaenys, younger then Visenya, is graceful and more lady like
- Visenya is also the superego as she is more level-headed compared to her siblings.
- At court:
- Superego: Petyr Baelish — cold, ruthless schemer
- Id: Tyrion Lannister — jovial empathic negotiator
- Ego: Varys — he balances the others and has has elements of both
- The three grown-up boys down in Winterfell:
- Superego: Jon Snow, the overtly quiet, smart and stoic boy who is heroic, always to be honorable like his father, and do the right thing.
- Id: Theon Greyjoy, the smug, self-centered, hedonistic skirt-chaser with more issues than he wants to admit.
- Ego: Robb Stark is well-adjusted, fair guy and, like his brother Jon, is heroic, tries hard to be valiant and honorable like his father, but is more Hot-Blooded than Jon or Ned, which at times stands out.
- The three Tully siblings:
- Superego: Catelyn, the most responsible and dutiful.
- Id: Lysa, a Psychopathic Woman Child who takes her resentment of her marital situation to murderous levels.
- Ego: Edmure, brash and hot-headed but not psychopathic.
- Played with in the Baratheon Brothers:
- The Spiderwick Chronicles:
- Id: Mallory — Ready to fight, somewhat grumpy
- Ego: Jared — Both mischievous and level headed
- Superego: Simon — Calm and pacifistic
- The Stainless Steel Rat:
- Superego: Definitely "Slippery" Jim DiGriz. Kind of a subversion, as he's a criminal genius.
- Id: Angelina (no, not that Angelina).
- Ego: James and Bolivar, their twin sons.
- Star Trek: Myriad Universes: "The Chimes At Midnight"
- Ego: Captain James T. Kirk
- Id: Commander Thelin (an Andorian who is first officer because Spock died in childhood in this universe)
- Superego: Dr Leonard McCoy!
- Star Wars Expanded Universe: X-wing: Starfighters over Adumar
- On a mission to a world that at first seems to have the hat of pilot-worship, four of the New Republic's best pilots try to sort things out. This is possibly the funniest book in all of Star Wars.
- Id: Wes Janson, dubbed "the Darling One" by Adumarians. Loves making jokes, snarky observations, believed to have very little maturity. (Really he is mature when it counts, but he mouths off a lot.)
- Superego: Derek 'Hobbie' Klivian, "the Dour One". He's the group's cynic, though far from The Eeyore.
- Ego: Both Tycho Celchu, "the Doleful One" and Wedge Antilles, "the Dilligent One". They're both more inclined to leadership and somewhat more serious. Somewhat. Tych is given to occasional, devastating one-liners, and while Wedge is usually there to be appalled at jokes, after he gets laid and later gets back into his starfighter he briefly surpasses Wes.
Wedge: "We have the right tools to subvert our Imperial admiral."Hobbie: "What tools?"Wedge: "Oh, Wes's maturity, your optimism, and my diplomatic skills."Hobbie: "We're doomed."
- On a mission to a world that at first seems to have the hat of pilot-worship, four of the New Republic's best pilots try to sort things out. This is possibly the funniest book in all of Star Wars.
- ''Star Wars Expanded Universe:
- The Thrawn Trilogy
- Id: Rukh, the normally-cool but very expressive when aroused Noghri.
- Ego: Pellaeon, not quite as cool and logical as his commanding officer, but certainly competent and level-headed.
- Superego: Thrawn, calm and logical and precise to a literal fault.
- Hand of Thrawn Duology''
- Id: Flim, the con artist physically impersonating Thrawn; his ambition is mostly to survive and get paid. His grasp of strategy and tactics is negligible, and to keep up the deception he needs...
- Superego: Major Tierce, strategist, feeding Flim tactics. A clone with a bit of Thrawn burning in his head.
- Ego: Moff Disra, who set the triumvirate up in the first place, provider of supplies, handler of political fallout. Doesn't really get along with Tierce, but they need each other and are undeniably effective.
- The Thrawn Trilogy
- The Stormlight Archive: There are a few of them at different times.
- The main trio
- Ego: Shallan
- Superego: Dalinar
- Id: Kaladin
- Dalinar's flashbacks
- Ego: Gavilar. His wife Navani fills this role among their wives.
- Superego: Sadeas, and his wife Ialai
- Id: Dalinar, and his wife Evi
- The main Love Triangle, also a Fighter, Mage, Thief triangle.
- Ego: Adolin, the Fighter
- Superego: Shallan, the Mage
- Id: Kaladin, the Thief (could be a fighter, but is far more pragmatic in battle than Adolin)
- Shallan's different personae (also a Fighter, Mage, Thief triangle)
- Ego: Shallan, the Mage
- Superego: Brightness Radiant, the Fighter
- Id: Veil, the Thief
- The three major Shards
- Ego: Cultivation
- Superego: Honor
- Id: Odium
- The main trio
- Tales of MU:
- Id: Steff — Impulsive, death-obsessed necromancer and self-proclaimed future villainess.
- Superego: Amaranth — The most moral; believes in love and peace and being closer to nature.
- Superego: Mack — The protagonist; between the two above extremes.
- Tends to vary somewhat: Mack occasionally drifts into Id territory with Ian often taking her place as Ego.
- The Three Musketeers:
- Ego: Athos
- Superego: Aramis
- Id: Porthos
- 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea:
- Id: Ned Land — impulsive, violent, mostly concerned with food, hunting and escape
- Superego: Conseil — imperturbably calm and reasonable, cares about nothing except his master's welfare and cataloguing wildlife
- Ego: Professor Aronnax — mostly calm and scientific but also gets upset about being held prisoner; mediates between his comrades
- The book is, anyway, one massive psychoanalysis: being captured and dragged down to the depths in a mysterious vessel, to encounter frightening alien-looking creatures and to descend into a maelstrom., etc. etc. etc. ...
- Twilight:
- Undead on Arrival:
- Ego: Novak
- Id: Pulaski
- Superego: Stew
- Vampire of the Mists features a set in the residents of Castle Ravenloft:
- Superego: Jander Sunstar — the voice of reason, restraint, responsibility, and conscience.
- Id: Trina — impulsive, selfish, animalistic, and without conscience.
- Ego: Strahd von Zarovich — in charge, mediates between the two, listens to Jander's advice, while at the same time shares many of Trina's urges.
- The Wardstone Chronicles:
- Id: Alice — Witch-to-be teetering on the edge between good and evil. Is always willing to use the dark to accomplish her aims but does not wish to belong to it.
- Ego: Tom — The Spook's apprentice, always torn between his duty to his master and his friendship with Alice. He always wants to do what is right, but often isn't sure what that is.
- Superego: The Spook — Former priest who has decades protecting the County from ghosts, witches and other monsters. He is always sure of what the right thing to do is, and tries not to let mercy or human emotion get in the way.
- Warrior Cats:
- Original Series
- Id: Firestar
- Ego: Graystripe
- Superego: Sandstorm
- The New Prophecy
- Ego: Brambleclaw and Stormfur
- Id: Squirrelflight and Crowfeather
- Superego: Leafpool, Feathertail, and Twanypelt
- The Power of Three
- Id: Lionblaze
- Ego: Jayfeather
- Superego: Hollyleaf
- Omen of the Stars
- Id: Lionblaze
- Ego: Dovepaw
- Superego: Jayfeather
- Original Series
- The Wheel of Time:
- Interestingly enough due to Character Development these change to
- The Wonderful Wizard of Oz presents a neat inversion: the trio accompanying Dorothy are defined by what they lack. Double-subversion in that their perceived lack is actually their defining trait.
- Scarecrow (No brain — the anti-Spock), and really The Smart Guy
- Tin Man (No heart — the anti-McCoy) and really The Heart
- Cowardly Lion (No courage — the anti-Kirk) and proof of The So-Called Coward
- How perceptive! The idea of "lack" is central to the writings of Jacques Lacan, who developed Freud's ideas. So this must be the classic "Lacanian Power Trio".
- World War: the three most senior members of the alien Race's conquest fleet:
- Id: Straha, third in the hierarchy, is so aggressive, radical, adaptable and short-term oriented his superior compares him to humans (not a compliment). After the conquest suffers setbacks, he tries to overthrow his commander and take over the fleet. When that fails, he takes refuge with humanity, only to later regret his choice.
- Ego: Atvar, the fleetlord, tries to balance tradition and change, caution and initiative, and play off the other two against each other.
- Superego: Kirel, the second-in-command, is focused on not making any mistakes, and never deviating from the path laid down, almost regardless of price or consequence.
