Swing Kids

Ni: Arvid has a natural affinity for predicting how the future will play out as a result of current events. He has a huge picture view of the world that allows him to recognise subtle patterns in what is happening around him (such as Nazi control). When other people fail to recognise the same patterns that he does, he grows increasingly disillusioned, and eventually lashes out in anger. He can be a bit arrogant at times, which gets on Thomas’s nerves, causing conflict between them. When he realises that other people lack the visions that he has, he gradually retreats to solitude, until he stops attending swing meets entirely. He’s a bit of an old soul, and doesn’t always understand other kids’ teen-angst behaviour. Arvid is musically talented and creative (when he kills himself, it’s not with a knife, it’s with a broken record).

Te: Arvid values knowledge, being able to identify musicians and songs where other swing kids merely dance to the music. Often he can be a bit too serious for his friend’s tastes, and does not like to be surprised. At times, he can lack a sense of humour, and tends to speak rather bluntly (“It means what it means”). People often find his behaviour cold, and he doesn’t feel the need to join Hitler’s Youth just to prove his friendship to people (TeFi). He’s quick to point out logical flaws in other people’s reasoning and is not easily swayed by emotional appeals or propaganda.

Fi: Arvid has a firm, deep-rooted moral conviction that he refuses to differ from whether it costs him friends or even his life. He kills himself over a moral issue, not merely because he feels the weight of the world on his shoulders and wants to be rid of it. He doesn’t openly express his personal feelings to others, but isn’t ever shy of expressing his moral views. He doesn’t believe in being fake, or pretending to be something he’s not just so that others will consider him a better friend. It’s clear that deep down, Arvid is incredibly disillusioned with the state of the world, but his friends don’t really notice because he’s so emotionally distant.

Se: Arvid can’t dance because he’s crippled, but he definitely feels the music, and at times attempts to dance. He’s hardly concerned with the past, and is more focused on the future and how present events will impact it. His deepest frustration stems from the fact that while he can see the immense problems that are arising in the world, he can’t do anything now that will prevent them.

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Originally, I thought he might be an INFP, but after a closer screening of the way he interacts with Thomas, I’m pretty sure he’s an INTJ (albeit an angsty one). There’s a lot of Ni and Te, but the Te definitely isn’t inferior and there’s no Ne or Si.