Typing Fictional Characters
How many times do you hear discussions about “What type is Harry Potter? James Bond? Mickey Mouse?”…
Given how difficult it is to type real people, I contend that it’s impossible to type fictional characters, since they are, after all, figments of the writer’s imagination. Even when the writer has a good sense of character development, it’s unlikely they would be able to convey all the nuances of character necessary to convey a complete type.
I prefer the methodology proposed by Dr. John Beebe, who postulates that fictional characters are not “whole” types, but merely represent a single cognitive process, with the entire work (book, movie, TV series, etc.) taking on the “whole” type. For example, “The Wizard of Oz” in its entirety is an ENFJ movie, in which Dorothy = Fe, Glinda the Good = Ni; the Cowardly Lion = Se, etc.
In my opinion, adopting Beebe’s technique yields a much more satisfying and defensible analysis of fictional characters.
August 21st, 2009 at 4:46 pm
What IS possible is ‘typing’ your own characters. It has been a huge aid in character development!
August 21st, 2009 at 5:04 pm
Yes, that can certainly add depth and credibility to characters you create in your own works of fiction. I’d be interested to know what medium you’re using, and whether you’re developing “whole type” characters, or single cognitive processes representing a particular archetypal role, as described by Beebe.
September 19th, 2009 at 6:02 am
Typing is fun and interesting, and can be done for fictional characters to explain them to other people. Use Star Trek for example, Kirk, SP, Spock, INTJ, etc. People can understand that instantly. Just have fun with it, this is entertaining and educational, as an INTJ>.
September 19th, 2009 at 8:30 am
I agree that using fictional characters can help in explaining how the cognitive processes manifest — in fact I sometimes use movie clips to illustrate them when I’m running type workshops. However, there’s a danger of the character becoming a caricature or cliche of the processe being represented. This can lead to “type bias” for or against certain processes. And I still contend that it’s rare to detect whole types in fictional characters.