Discussion MyersBriggs / ExamplesOfGuardianPersonalitiesInStories

Walking Dead

I'd like to argue Kenny from the Walking Dead as an ESTJ. Here's my arguments.

Guardian: Kenny is easily a Guardian type because he doesn't neatly fit into the other categories anywhere near as well as the Guardian. He doesn't care much for knowledge or control as much as Rationals do, nor is he driven by any higher ideals as per the Idealists. And despite his impulsive behaviour and tendencies towards improvisation, he isn't a thrill-seeking Artisan: quite the opposite, as virtually all of his short and long term goals involve getting himself and his family out of danger, not into it. But most importantly, he's a Guardian because at the end of the day, he's defined by one word: family. Kenny values his position in the group, as a family man and as a leader, and when he's too broken to be the latter, and loses the former, he's dropped in the pit of despair. He only gets out of it when he finds a new group and family he can be a part of (Walter and later, Clementine's group). Indeed, during his argument with Jane, he claims that since Jane cares for no one and no one cares for Jane, that she's nothing: here. He shows that his self-worth stems from being supported by and supportive of other people, a mindset very fitting with the Guardian mentality. Now as for being an ESTJ:

Dominant Te: Kenny is by nature a leader and a man of action. Prior to the apocalypse, he was a fishing boat captain, and during it, he acts as both a rival and co-leader to Lilly in attempting to run and protect the group. More pertinently, in any crisis, Kenny's first response is to act: whether its organising the group in the pharmacy in response to being trapped by walkers, getting the RV running to go to Atlanta, finding a boat, and in Season 2, getting to Wellington, its clear that Kenny's first response is to figure out the goal to work out, and taking the steps to make it happen. For better or for worse, Kenny acts as the dominant driver for the group's direction.

Auxiliary Si: Kenny hungers for stability and security, and throughout both seasons, its made clear that the past very much drives him. His goals largely relate to getting his friends and family out of harm's way and into somewhere safe, and he fondly reminicises over his time as a fishing captain and his relationship with his family. The dark side of this function however is twofold: his tendency to hold grudges, and his tendency to hold onto the past way beyond what's healthy. Season 1 he criticises Lee for putting Shawn above his son in an emergency situation, despite it happening several months prior, and well into Season 2, he still has it in for Ben a year after, despite him being dead and apologetic for the mess that happened. Even worse, it's clear he hasn't recovered from his family's demise from Season 1, to the point where he subconsciously uses Sarita and Clementine as a Replacement Goldfish for them.

Tertiary Ne: Kenny's tendencies towards improvisation and coming up with plans on the spot are easy to document in the series, but being one of his weaker functions, its easy to see his weakness in it: namely his general tendency to not think his plans through, either to what happens when he does succeed in them (doesn't consider how he and the group would survive fighting their way out of the truck to Carver's camp) or when they don't (when his boat plan gets shot on account of all the boats in the city being sunk). As such, while he has a capacity for improvisation and creativity, his Ne is clearly fairly weak.

Inferior Fi: Kenny has a strong moral centre, and a strong grasp of his own feelings, but its clear throughout the series that, being his weakest function, Kenny isn't that good at either expressing them properly, or dealing with them, and generally trusts his Te to do the work (he explains in an anecdote that while he couldn't stand watching his dog get put down, he implicitly understood it had to be done, and while he is moral, he is willing to do the tough but practical thing over the moral but risky thing, ie overiding his Fi with his Te). Generally speaking, as an inferior function, Kenny indulges his Fi usually when he's under stress, and as consistently shown throughout the story, this is pretty accurate. When under stress on the train, he lashes out at Lee and attacks his character; when Ben reveals his role in his family's death, he loses his shit and attempts to hold an impromptu trial in the middle of a walker attack; and when the group questions his decision to travel to Wellington, he lashes out at them and accuses them of being ungrateful. While he has good reasons for many of the above incidents, he has a nasty habit of indulging them at the worst possible time, and ends up unintentionally coming as someone throwing a tantrum, albeit for usually good reasons.

So there's my arguments. What do you guys think?

I don't want to just keep editing back and forth, so I'm going to make my case here. Cullen from Dragon Age is an ISTJ, and here's why:

He's dependable, reserved, hardworking, serious, logical, pragmatic, realistic, responsible, works best with schedule and order, and deals in facts. He's able to make decisions by considering facts and practicality rather than emotion. He sets a goal and works towards it steadily and dutifully.

He does have some deep feelings, but you can feel things and still be a thinker. They're not emotionless robots. When it comes down to it, he makes decisions with his head, not his heart.

Hello! I was wondering if it could be possible to move Spike (MLP:FIM) from ESFJ back to ISTP. I think that one does suit him more.

I was wondering if we could add Truly Stone from 'Bunheads' into the ISFJ folder on the page. I think she fits the bill, and think it's a very nice show. Worth a watch. Just watch her in episode 4, "Better Luck Next Year!"