Oliver Queen: ESTP

Guest Post by Kerissa, INFJ

Arrow

Dominant Extroverted Sensing (Se): Oliver works through stress using physical activities, such as working out and sleeping around. He decides to take down those on his father’s list in a very straightforward, literal, and unconventional way. He sometimes takes too much on, such as trying to run a business and fight crime at the same time. He lives in the moment, not thinking about how he’ll continue his mission when he’s older.

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Ludo Bagman: ESTP

Guest Post by Andrew, ENTJ

Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling

Dominant Extroverted Sensing (Se): Bagman used to be a big Quidditch star, owing to his thrill-seeking nature. He played a position (Beater) that requires balance as well as arm strength. Even after leaving the world of professional Quidditch, Bagman still prefers to live life on the edge. He does this mainly by betting; he is a compulsive gambler, especially about Quidditch matches and other sporting events, and he borrows large sums of money in order to cover his gambling debts. Bagman is the announcer at both the Quidditch World Cup and the Triwizard Tournament, owing to two things: his eye for details and his liking for attention.

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Barry – Pokémon: ESTP

Guest Post by Andrew, ENTJ

Pokemon Anime Franchise

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Barry is notoriously hyperactive. He runs when anyone else would walk, and he does not look where he is going, often colliding with Ash when they meet. His battling style is flashy and very aggressive. He attacks with abandon, and he builds up his Pokemon’s speed so as to land hits fast. Barry has no concept of gradualism, asserting that he wants to be the best trainer there is in the least possible time. Similarly, in individual battles, he is often overconfident, stating that nothing can or will stop him from winning. Barry is extremely competitive and wants to prove himself through head-to-head battles. He maintains that data used to analyze trainers is useless if not constantly kept up-to-date, as trainers’ strengths and strategies change constantly.

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Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen: ESTP

Guest post by Andrew, ENTJ

Dune Series, Frank Herbert

Feyd-Rautha Harkonnen ISTP | Dune #MBTI #ISTP

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Feyd-Rautha is entirely given over to physical pleasures. He enjoys food and the company of women, but his first love is gladiatorial combat. He fights to the death for the thrill of battle and the adoration of fans, and he cheats every time to ensure that he will always wi Continue reading

Roy Lee: ESTP

Guest Post by Jessica Prescott, INFJ

October Sky

roy_lee_october_sky

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Roy Lee is pretty much the epitome of a Se-dom: self-confident, carefree, active, adventurous, down-to-earth. He lives in the moment, without worrying much about either the past or the future, and is concerned above all with simply having a good time: “Let ‘em have outer space. We got rock n’ roll.” At times, Roy Lee finds Homer’s Ne-dom insistence on the million exciting possibilities of the future to be bewildering and even frustrating, since it seems so disconnected from reality: “Got bad news for you, Homer. We ARE hillbillies.” Of the four Rocket Boys, Roy Lee is definitely the most apt to notice attractive girls and, in fact, considers himself something of a ladies’ man. In general, he’s highly aware of his environment—far more so than his friend Homer is—and occasionally exploits this advantage to play pranks on him.   Continue reading

Ginny Weasley: ESTP

Guest post by Andrew, ENTJ

Harry Potter, J. K. Rowling

Ginny Weasley ESTP | Harry Potter #MBTI #ESTP

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Ginny likes physical activities.  She practices Quidditch in secret even though her brothers never let her play with them, and she would go to the Yule Ball with any boy for the opportunity to dance.  Ginny is quick to act, lax about following rules, and adept at coming up with plausible lies on the spot when she has to cover her tracks.  She doesn’t back down from a fight even when she’s badly injured or sure to lose, and she will jinx people who annoy her without hesitation.  Ginny favors instant gratification; when she tries to win Harry’s affections, Hermione has to persuade her to choose a strategy that will take some time. Continue reading

Se-users: Do you talk with your Hands?

ComradeJocasta asked: Is it possible that upper-Se users might be more likely to gesture a lot when they speak?

I haven’t actually found much research on this topic. However, I’ve given it a bit of thought, and I’d like to hear everyone else’s thoughts as well.

My ESFP sibling definitely is NOT a hand talker. However, he does have a strong need for touch and physical contact with people he’s comfortable around. Same goes for my ISFP roommate.

Out of anyone in my family or friend group, I’m actually the one who talks most via my hands. However, I don’t necessarily attribute this to my Se function so much as to the fact that I’m relatively fluent in Sign Language. Before I learned Sign Language, I didn’t gesture at all when I spoke, but now talking and gesturing practically go hand in hand for me (wow, that was a terrible pun).

It’s the same with any language. As soon as you’re fluent in more than one language, and especially if you know more than two, it’s hard to force yourself not to blend the elements of each. At the same time, you also keep many elements very separate as well (for instance, I swear a lot more in German than I do in English).

Upper Se-users. Now is your time to talk! I’m interested to hear whether you talk with your hands.

Bucky Barnes: ESTP

Guest Post by Kerissa, INFJ

Marvel Cinematic Universe

Bucky Barns - The Winter Soldier ESTP | Marvel #MBTI #ESTP

Se: On his last night before leaving for the war, Bucky chooses to go to a science exposition, a busy place full of lights and noises and people, and plans on going dancing afterwards. He has no visible emotional attachment to his date in this scene, he does this for the delight of doing something. When Steve rescues him from the POW camp, Bucky immediately notices he’s changed, saying, “I thought you were smaller.” Bucky is very physical in his friendships: he initiates hugs with Steve, puts his arm around his shoulder, and pushes him to get his attention. As he breaks through his brainwashing in the vault scene in Winter Soldier, his memories come back as various sensory experiences and images. Continue reading

Rollo – Vikings: ESTP

Guest post by Fanta, INTJ

Vikings (2013)

Rollo ESTP | Vikings 2013 #MBTI #ESTP

Dominant SeRollo is an impulsive and spontaneous man who craves instant pleasure and action. He is keenly aware of his surroundings, and readily notices small details and changes in behaviour (e.g. he is the first to spot the spy in their group, one look from Siggy and he knows she is flirting with him). Rollo often desires to plunge head first into battle, and is clearly annoyed every time his brother Ragnar commands to wait before an attack. He reacts quickly to opportunities and threats, speaks bluntly when he wants something, and is often insensitive of others around him.  His desire to be the centre of attention and to be recognized by his peers, especially his brother, is often what motivates his bold or unusual actions (e.g. when he volunteers to be baptised by the English). Continue reading

Are xSTPs the best types?

Uhw asked: If you are a Intj, you should know the meaning of life, which is enjoy the life (considering that the life of a human being is 80 years and he takes nothing beyond).

So, you agree that istp and estp are the best types of the world?

You do recall that I am studying philosophy at university level, right?

Your syllogism is sound, but invalid. Let me explain by taking it apart for you.

  1. If I am an INTJ, I will know that the meaning of life is to enjoy life
  2. I am an INTJ

Therefore I can conclude that xSTPs are the best MBTI types

First of all, we have not established between us that the meaning of life is to enjoy life, so your first premise is called into question. Secondly, you have none of your premises suggest that xSTPs enjoy life more than say xSFPs, so you cannot conclude based on either premise that xSTPs are the “best” (you have also not defined “best”).

That considered, I believe the meaning of life is much more complicated than you might suggest and has more to do with morality than to do with enjoyment.

Jack Merridew: ESTP

Guest post by Andrew, ENTJ

Lord of the Flies, William Golding

Jack Merridew ESTP | Lord of the Flies #MBTI #ESTP

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Jack lives for thrills, especially ones involving violence.  Upon his arrival on the island, he immediately becomes the leader of a group of hunters, whose purpose is to provide meat for all the boys.  Eventually, he goes further than hunting pigs, picking fights with other boys, especially Ralph, to satisfy his craving for more and more exciting hunts.  He loves ceremonial expressions of his leadership; when he forms his own breakaway “tribe,” he insists that the boys under his rule call him “chief.”  Jack has no desire to leave the island; he prefers to stay in his little microcosm, where he is free to live as he pleases and have fun without regard to the future.  Jack always wants instant gratification; his initial attempt attempt to be elected chief is a crude, blunt, and transparent attempt to seize power.

lord_of_the_fliesIntroverted Thinking (Ti): Jack is not already a skilled hunter when he arrives on the island; he has to learn how to hunt from scratch, using trial and error, analyzing why his early hunts failed, and correcting his tactics and techniques accordingly.  In his hunting expeditions, Jack also goes exploring; he eventually becomes more familiar with the island than anyone else does.  At one point, he uses a logical corollary to his knowledge to argue against the presence of a “beast;” he hadn’t seen any beast while he was out hunting, so therefore, the beast must not exist.  Jack is the first and foremost boy to argue against the continued use of the conch to regulate discussions; his justification is that the boys don’t need any external device to regulate discourse, since it is now clear who should do the talking – though he does not share how he arrived at this conclusion.

Jack Merridew ESTP | Lord of the Flies #MBTI #ESTP

Extroverted Feeling (Fe): Jack is a charismatic leader, mainly due to his ability to tap into the boys’ basest emotions: anger, bloodlust, excitement, and fear.  This last one is the most important: Jack plays on the fear of the beast to draw more and more boys out from under Ralph’s leadership and into his own court.  Eventually, he expands the fears of his minions beyond the fear of the beast; he starts having his subjects arbitrarily tied up and beaten, sending a clear message: the same thing can happen to anyone.

Jack Merridew ESTP | Lord of the Flies #MBTI #ESTP

Introverted Intuition (Ni): Jack has an overriding interest in hunting; he doesn’t really care much for anything else.  He hunts all day, every day, even when he is supposed to be tending the signal fire.  In time, Jack learns to strategize during hunts, to lure prey out of hiding, and to wait for the right moment to strike.  However, even though Jack can plan a hunt, he never considers what will happen afterward.  During his final hunt for Ralph, he and his followers set fire to a group a fruit trees which constitute a vital food source, which would have all but guaranteed everyone’s demise had the boys not been immediately rescued.

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Sodapop Curtis: ESTP

Guest Post by Andrew, ENTJ

The Outsiders, S. E. Hinton

Extroverted Sensing (Se): Sodapop is a pleasure-seeker who just loves a good adrenaline rush.  He fights, not because he hates the people he’s fighting or because everybody else is doing it, but for fun.  His penchant for physical activity led him to horseback riding in his younger years.  He did not have the discipline to finish high school, preparing to entertain himself in the present rather than prepare for his future.  He never let his life in poverty bother him; he was having too much fun to care.  Sodapop is also a huge flirt who is a big hit with the girls.  He doesn’t often consider the consequences of his actions; He gets his girlfriend pregnant, causing her to be sent to stay with her relatives in Texas and ending their relationship.

Introverted Thinking (Ti): Though Soda lacked the motivation to finish high school, he’s not stupid. In fact, he’s quite smart. Of the three Curtis brothers, it is Sodapop who best understands the situation they are in.  As the middle child, he is caught between Darry’s often harsh protectiveness and Ponyboy’s feelings of being unloved.  He can see where each of his brothers is coming from, and he has served to bridge the chasm between the two of them.  Through his whole experience, he can see that Darry and Ponyboy are drifting apart when they should be staying close to each other.

Extroverted Feeling (Fe): His role as the middleman between Darry and Ponyboy is extremely painful for Sodapop.  He often has to take sides between his brothers, something which he never likes to do.  He does so anyway for a while, just for the sake of placating the two of them and keeping the peace in their house.  Similarly, Sodapop has a need to be accepted by others as well.  He will smoke cigarettes (something which he does not otherwise do unless upset or stressed out) to put up a macho front for people he doesn’t know.

Introverted Intuition (Ni): Sodapop displays a patience in dealing with his brothers that he does not show in any other area of his life.  In the stress of being caught between his two brothers, he starts to think of the larger implications of their constant friction.  He sees that it could lead to the breakdown of the family bonds between them, and that that could only lead to disaster; united they stand, divided they fall.

Viola – Twelfth Night: ESTP

Twelfth Night, William Shakespeare

Viola ESTP | Twelfth Night #MBTI #ESTP

Se: Viola uses disguise as a way to avoid dealing with her problems emotionally (the fact that her brother is supposedly dead). Rather, her approach is proactive, an attempt to keep busy rather than introspecting. She’s not afraid of being thrown into a crazy situation, be it pretending to woo another woman or jumping into a sword fight and totally beating the crap out of the guy she’s fighting. She’s really good at acting and judges other people’s thoughts based on what she sees in their expressions. Continue reading

Captain Jack Harkness: ESTP

Doctor Who/Torchwood

Doctor Who ESTP Captain Jack

Extraverted Sensing (Se): Captain Jack lives spontaneously in the moment. His default strategy is improvisation, and relies on awareness of the physical environment and manipulating other people’s emotions (tertiary Fe) to get what he wants. He’s always paying attention to immediate opportunities and takes advantage of the most obvious solutions rather Continue reading

Thomas Berger – Swing Kids: ESTP

Swing Kids

Swing Kids MBTI - Thomas Berger

Se: Of the hep cats, Thomas is definitely the most physically active, and the quickest to act. He’s always the first to jump into a fight and the last to stop dance. He loves to improvise and the thrill of the moment is of utmost pleasure to him (thus, we shall steal a radio). He gets particularly excited when the gestapo award him with a motor bike, and loves to pop out and frighten people to get a reaction out of them. He punishes immediately, Continue reading