The Dark Side of Aries

Arrogant, Aggressive, Hotheaded, Vain ... It's All About the Mouth

Aries of both sexes are quick to anger, and that's the heart of their dark side. Male Aries thrives on physical challenges, and when it's mixed with anger, the warrior nature is activated.

There are three negative Aries personality types: aggressive, passive-aggressive, and just plain passive.

Aggressive Aries gets hopping mad about things he cannot change or control, like the Civil War or the way other people drive, and downloads his fury upon whomever is nearest.

The passive-aggressive Aries needs reminders to flush the toilet or renew his driver's license.

Passive Aries, helpless by choice, is neck-deep in repair bills, fines, and late fees. By not lifting a finger, he or she controls the whole house.

No one disputes that this first sign of the zodiac is gifted with energy and leadership ability. A positive Aries acts to fill a need, while a negative one fulfills Aries' needs. Ariens are almost always good-looking or think they are. But even if not, people are attracted because of their energy and Fire Sign warmth. Romantics imagine that youthful athletic Aries is their knight or warrior queen in shining armor. Eventually, their true colors show.


A positive Aries will grin and admit to being vain and sometimes selfish. A negative one will disguise her inflated ego and arrogance by saying she has "high ideals" or "radical politics," or insisting that her attitude makes for "good business." Along with Scorpio, they are the motormouths of the zodiac, talking forever and insufferably, like Al Gore (born March 31). Positive Aries cause controversy, as did talented writer Christopher Hitchens (April 13), author of a book-length exposé of Mother Teresa that made him many enemies. He smoked and drank himself to death— not unusual for Aries who, consciously or not, likes to be the agent of his or her own demise. And an atheist lawyer named Madalyn Murray O'Hair (April 13), who stood up for the Constitution's separation of church and state, was for decades "the most hated woman in America."

TELLTALE SIGNS OF ARIES

Traditionally the sign Aries rules the head and face, and an Aries Sun or Aries Moon person can often be identified by scarring on the forehead or face or (these days) facial plastic surgery, like Steven Tyler (March 26).

But negative Aries is not about the head or what’s in it; it’s about the mouth. Complaining, begging, selling, and gossiping, their signature song is “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” composed by Marvin Gaye (April 2). The negative Aries or Aries Moon believes all truth is underground and he has a direct line to it. Original Star Trek actor George Takei (April 20) wrote a tell-all that bad-mouthed fellow Aries William Shatner (March 22). Takei later apologized and today scrapes along by issuing amusing or ironic tweets.

Negative Aries people relish delivering bad news, and— no surprise— love to talk about how much other people want them. Ariens score and string people along for sport and ego, like Warren Beatty (March 30), more famous for his sexual affairs than his acting. Aggressive Aries prefers loud abusive arguments to sex. Passive Aries will avoid sex or just lie there, joyously aware that this annoys and frustrates their partner. They won't say, "Let's split up." That dirty work is left up to you.

I have noticed that negative Aries people leave their valuables or purses out and open and lose them frequently. Often saying they hate money, capitalism, or the Federal Reserve, they feel that they are above money, but won’t consider marriage unless their financial stability is guaranteed. Love might be a factor, but the deciding factor for negative Aries will be a rich spouse or rich parents. Divorcing an aggressive Aries can be like taking candy from a baby because they are egoistic enough to think they don't need a lawyer. Aries' motormouth makes him or her a natural for sales work, and business-minded Ariens can build retail empires, like Sam Walton (March 29), Hugh Hefner (April 9), and F.W. Woolworth (April 13).

The sign Aries has masculine polarity, but while the men aren't hyper-masculine, Aries women often have masculine looks or mannerisms or wear the pants in the family. Don't tell them that, or they will rip your face off. Hollywood superstar Joan Crawford (March 23) had heavy eyebrows and wore square-shouldered suits that gave her a threatening look. She and rival actress Bette Davis (April 5), both Oscar winners, have throaty man-type voices typical of their sign. Like many Aries women, they look ugly from some angles and gorgeous from others. Even the cute former cheerleader named "Sam" (April 18) who is my aerobics instructor yells like a drill sergeant. Rosie O’Donnell (March 21) has a bellow to match her body.

Aries women are tough enough to handle traditionally male jobs, including U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (March 26), the first female U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor (March 26), and St. Catherine of Siena (March 25) who persuaded an exiled Pope to return to Rome. Like the ram that is their symbol, they can scramble to unprecedented heights: for example, racecar driver Danica Patrick (March 25) or pop star Lady Gaga (March 28), another ugly/gorgeous woman (who has been rumored to be a man).

Like any other sign, Ariens can go nuts, but doing it their way makes headlines. Assassin Valerie Solanas (April 9), a wanna-be actress, started her own personal Society for Cutting Up Men (SCUM) and eventually shot artist Andy Warhol because he wouldn't cast her in his movies.