Myers-Briggs, meta, Harry Potter, oh my!

[salinea]

Following onto the interesting post by shiv5468 on Extraversion/Introversion and Lupin hate and the following discussions, I'm wondering about the correlation between the Myers-Briggs typology and the character that we like, dislike, identify with and write easily.

So let's test it!

To take this poll, please, you must first know your Myers-Briggs type. If you don't know it, you can test it there (long one) or there (shorter one).
This test will tell you how you fit over four axis, each dichotomy being represented by a letter (thus giving types like ENFP for exemple) :
(I) Introvert / (E) Extravert
(N) Intuition / (S) Sensing
(T) Thinking / (F) Feeling
(P) Perceiving / (J) Judging
You can also check the wiki entry on Myers-Briggs for more information about it.


[Poll #830354]

Feel free to comment to nuance your answers, add clarifications or give a comment about this issue :)

Comments

[lordhellebore]

So...I like the people best with whom I identify, and I tend to be able to write them most fluently. Not a real surprise ;)

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

*nods* obviously there's some doubling ^^ but I know I have characters I like which I am nowhere like (like Percy or Narcissa) and character I can identify with but that I dislike (like Hermione) so I thought the nuances could be interesting ^_^

[the-senjou.livejournal.com]

This is a very interesting idea. I will be waiting for your conclusions with impatience. I found as I was filling it out that several things occurred to me.

1. When I was filling out the personality test so I could figure out my type I found myself dithering between that which I think I am, a soft touch, and that which I desire to be, a hard case. I thought that I was dithering between Severus and Remus, my OTP and the two POV that I write the most.

2. I was accepting of but disappointed in my type - INFP "Healer"

3. When filling out the poll I had to think very carefully about whether I was having canon or fanon reactions. Obviously, I chose based on canon as far as I could.

4. There were some interesting differences in my answers for each section. It seems that the three characters I like, identify with and can write are Remus, Neville and Percy. I identitify with Hermione and Luna, but have neither like nor dislike for them. I can write Harry, but beyond that have no strong feelings about him.

5. I put Ginny and Tonks in dislike. I have to point out that this is because of HBP. But it's canon and how I feel about the canon characters at the moment.

6. I realised when filling out the poll that I HATE Ron and Albus (and Peter). Weird that I enjoy Snapledore stories in that case, but then I like a lot of stories which involve Snape that I would touch if it wasn't Snape paired with that character.

Lastly I hope I haven't bored you to tears with that information, but I really was intrigued by this.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

1. I think you're supposed to fill in what you think you are.
I can understand the Severus / Remus, I often think in those concepts (even though I'm not a lot like Remus)

2. Why disapointed? The word description always strike me as weird. You only differ from me by the Thinking/Feeling dichotomy by the way ^^

3. fanon... blargh.

5. Ahh... HBP *winces*

6. I hate Dumebledore too, and I don't mind Snapledore. Hummm...

[the-senjou.livejournal.com]

1. I filled out what I was, but there were a couple of times when I wasn't completely sure which I was and so hesitated a bit.

2. I guess because I wish I wasn't like that.

I can understand the Severus / Remus, I often think in those concepts (even though I'm not a lot like Remus)
Hmm, I think maybe I am a lot like Remus? But then I can't be objective.
I am not so much like Severus even though i adore his character, and I didn't put down that I identify with him because he had canon extremes that I wouldn't ever be like.

this is so interesting!

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

*hugs*

Yes, I think you're similar to him. With some difference, but then again, I identify with Severus a lot but I still have a lot of differences with him as well XD

I hope the interpretation is going to be easy (I still haven't interpretated the other poll I made some time ago >_>;;)

[the-senjou.livejournal.com]

good luck :D

[kaleidoskope]

I am an extreme INFP, and I think using the word 'healer' to describe us is just bullshit. What did you dislike about the type?

[the-senjou.livejournal.com]

yes, I think healer is a bit of a strange word considering what I didn't like was recognising my day to day neurosis about thinking I'm bad etc. then again I know that I go out of my way to make my friends happy and in a way heal them, all the time thinking I am only helping them so I feel better about myself ;)

[starrysummer.livejournal.com]

So many introverts round these parts.

I'm really not big on character hate. They're fictional. It takes a lot to get me to dislike them. I do sometimes have a sort of backlash annoyance, when I see fandom as a whole interpreting a character a certain way, that I find not only not quite in line with my interpretation but also a rather annoying character. Which means that the character I have the most "hate" for is Draco, the same one I relate to the most and one of the ones I most prefer to write.

Interesting stuff, though. I'd love to see it parsed out more specifically.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

And Intuitives.. well, given what fandom is, hardly surprising.

I hear you on character hate, I'm the same. I can summon some kind of dislike for some characters, but the way people will go on and on about their hatred really makes me go "heh?" (Actually GRRM's the only writer who ever managed to make me hate a well-built, well-rounded characte ^^)

Fanon!character are a pain in the ass, I can see where you're coming from.

[starrysummer.livejournal.com]

Ah, also true.

I find that I get somewhat offended or irritated when people start railing off about their hatred for characters, even if they're characters that I personally don't like. I don't know what that is... maybe I'm bothered by the idea of having that much vitriol for someone who doesn't really exist and being exposed to it makes me as a real person feel weird... I don't know. It doesn't seem to make sense, but I tend to be more comfortable listening to people rant and rave about real people they dislike than about fictional ones.

Except sometimes Draco, or glamorized!fanon!Draco, at least. Probably because I see Draco in canon as all my negative characteristics rolled into one, without my positive ones, and yet people don't see that and see him as this clever hottie waiting to be redeemed.

I don't think I really hate any of the well-rounded characters in ASOIAF. I mean, I have some serious hatred for Joffrey, but he never really gets that well-rounded. I know a lot of people really hate Cersei, but while I find her a pretty contemptible human being, I absolutely love reading about her. The "hate" list is pretty much Joffrey, Gregor, Viserys... no one we really get a detailed portrait of.

[stoicstella.livejournal.com]

The personality test killed me. I couldn't decide which answers were more true and I think sometimes I don't really know what my natural reaction is and what is ingrained in habbit and behaviour.

Either way my result, which was INFJ (Counsler) was somewhat acurate but didn't leave me saying "Yes that's me"

I think the characters I hate and the characters I love share a lot of my own characteristics... it's about what I value and empathise with and what I can forgive right away and what I have to justify. I think. If that makes sense.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

I'm not sure you're supposed to dissassiate natural reaction and ingrained behaviour ^^

Mmm,I've never feel these desriptions totally acurate for me either (though that may be because I'm neither Introvert nor Extravert).. but I do find the four dichotomies to be useful as a thinking tool :)

It does! they're characters we are entitled to 'judge' in a way, because they're so similar to us.

[laurus-nobilis.livejournal.com]

Just to clarify: I chose "it varies" for the P/J question because I've taken these tests loads of times, and I turn out as INFP or INFJ more or less at random...

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

I get the same between INTP and ENTP... that's why the option is there :)

[littlelizzyann.livejournal.com]

I'll have you know I went and did *both* tests, just because...I am obsessive (they don't test for obsessive. Why is that? Why why why...*ahem*)

So they both said I'm INFP. I have no doubt about I and N. F is *probably* true in the way I behave, although I do think about things. A lot. And P...I do plan...I just have trouble following plans. So I suppose that's right. But I did get very different percentages in the two tests on the last two qualities. I hate these tests...I spend too much time trying to figure out what each question means.

Comments on the poll: favorite characters and who one identifies with was pretty easy. I took it as "identifies with" rather than "relates to" because I think there's a slight nuance between the two (I can relate to people I don't identify with), but I *thought* you were going more for the former (and I'm a feeler, not a thinker. Mmmmm).

For "write most easily" I put in Snape (and probably should have added Moody) because I find his voice very easy for me--but I would have more trouble writing from his POV. Also, I do have very limited HP writing experience, so a fair bit of this is projection.

I was really fascinated by the "most dislike" question, because it made me realize a trend about my dislikes that I hadn't noticed before: I most dislike those characters who are "liked" by the "good" side or the author's POV (not sure which it is), but who seem to me to possess a major weakness or unkindness that is not really recognized: Harry, Ron, Dumbledore, Sirius, Peter, Voldemort. The last two are a bit tricky, but I think Peter is a nasty, sniveling piece of work, and Voldemort--well, he has always been held in great esteem, regardless of the side he's on, hasn't he? I'm pretty sure it is the flashback to his youth that makes me hate him...more than killing Cedric.

*looks up*. Yeah, I'm more of a feeler. Uh huh.

Terrific poll!

[kamitra.livejournal.com]

Unfortunately, I can't answer this poll because I have too little knowledge of the HP world. If this was Naruto this'd be a different story.... but then again, I don't think Naruto has many type differences in play for character love and hate... although that's my first thought.

[innerslytherin]

I came over here because of Senjy. *G* I have a problem with the whole Introvert/Extrovert division - because I do enjoy interaction with people, but I am perfectly happy spending vast amounts of time by myself. Then again, I do often get lonely if I'm alone and don't want to be - but by contrast, If I want to be alone and people won't let me, I get cranky. I can never decide whether I'm truly Extroverted or if Myers-Briggs is wrong on that one. *grin*

Anyway, I'm looking forward to seeing the results here!

[sktypied.livejournal.com]

I'm just like you, and I get Extroverted every time. Even when I took the real test. :P

[innerslytherin]

Really? *grin* Well, colour me confused, but I guess if even the real test says so... LOL

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

I'm like you, except I think I'm slightly more Introvert. Anyway, that's why I gave the option of saying either / neither / it varies. Sometimes the opposition is a bit meaningless.

Thanks for participating! :)

Here via Daily Snitch

[seraphtrevs.livejournal.com]

Have you seen this HP Myers-Briggs quiz (http://piratemonkeysinc.com/quiz.htm)? It gives a character for each of the M-B personality types - I think most of them are pretty spot-on.

Re: Here via Daily Snitch

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Yes, but it's the quizz that tells me I'm Voldemort so it sorta makes me go O_o

Re: Here via Daily Snitch

[darksumomo.livejournal.com]

On the one hand, you do have a proclivity for darkness based on OKCupid memes. The religious leader you were most like was Aleister Crowley and your fantasy pet was a Gorgon/Medusa. I shouldn't be surprised that you get a dark character in a HP MBTI test. On the other hand, some works have only villainous characters for a particular personality type, which doesn't mean that the personality type is inherently evil, just that selection is unbalanced. *shrugs*

Speaking of darkness, is that why you changed the name of your LJ to "Left Hand of Darkness" (nice LeGuin reference) from "Stranger things have happened"? Even though I'll miss the old name, I like the new one.

Re: Here via Daily Snitch

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Oh, I don't have an issue with it being a villain, I have an issue with the fact Voldemort is a moron ^_^ (also I fail to see how he's INTP, I would have pegged him as an INTJ, too methodical to be anything else)

I've changed my journal name because I changed my journal layout. I do that occasionnaly, along with seasonnal changes :) It's pretty much all about the LeGuin reference XD and I love the non dualist philosophy of that quote :D

[fazkleto.livejournal.com]

I'm an INFP, and I didn't realise until now that the characters I tend to write are the characters most like me. I also really dislike Ginny and have done since OotP and I'm not sure why (when I was a little fanfic author, (as in about 8 years ago), I used to write everything from Ginny's POV and fangirl Ginny/Draco), I suppose it's because I've grown up and I can no longer identify with her - instead I see her as a bit silly and bitchy.

On a side note, I'm glad to note that I'm not the only one who likes Peter. And by saying 'likes' I mean, likes to write - likes to pick apart what he's done and why. I don't like him as a person.
Snape and Lupin are my two other favourites, I just find them the most interesting - there is a lot of background information missing from their stories and it's fun to ponder how they became what they are.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Oh, yes I find Peter fascinating to write ^^

There's a lot of difference between characters we identify as, characters we think are sweet or nice, and those who find interesting, isn't there :)

[fazkleto.livejournal.com]

Yes there is. Though I don't think I find any of the characters sweet and nice at the moment, HBP really distorted my view of them. Except Neville and maybe Luna - they didn't get much screentime, they're still sweet and nice :).

It's interesting how many INFPs are on this poll. That must say something.

[sktypied.livejournal.com]

Here from the DS. :)

So, I chose to take the shorter test. It came up with an ENFP: The Champion (which is what I'd got on the real Myers-Briggs test) and then double-checked it with the longer one because I am a loser like taking tests, and got the same thing. :D

Anyways, the thing I found the most interesting (and I couldn't believe I didn't see this before) is that the characters I like the most, I can either identify with completely or have some aspect of my ENFP self. The scariest thing though was what I realised about my favourite character: Harry.

I've always been a devoted Harry fan, even when he was being his CAPSLOCK!ANGSTY!emo self in OotP. During the course of ticking other characters I liked off, I realised that he is almost exactly like I am, which was very, very spooky to me. Idealistic, usually optimistic, private in his thoughts/feelings, but very much willing to be around others and to help them; a strong sense of justice and a high moral code (despite his Invisibility Cloak wanderings and the breaking of rules [which always seems to happen when he is trying to achieve that sense of justice or right vs. wrong]).

/rambling. :)

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Heh ^^ yeah I think several of my favourite characters are the most similar to me. (I like Harry in OoP but then again I like brats...)

thanks for filling this :)

[onlysayitonce.livejournal.com]

Alright, so this was really difficult for me because I have really conflicting feelings about the characters. Sometimes I get really annoyed and angry with the trio, and I just can't stand them - but other times I just love them to death. Mostly in fandom, with the love, but sometimes JKR captures them so perfectly. So I picked them as characters I like and as characters I dislike.

As far as being able to write characters... for me I think it's a lot more about experience and what I'm familiar with. I only really write Harry/Draco, so I have to really think about other characters if I write them, while I can jump into Harry or Draco's heads at the drop of the hat. Erm, comparatively - I'm really a crap writer.

[onlysayitonce.livejournal.com]

Also, ahh, I chose Judging and meant Perceiving. Sorry. :/

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

LOL I understand.

(I think you can change the things you filled in the poll if you want to correc it)

[onlysayitonce.livejournal.com]

Changed! I can't believe I didn't know you could do that. My life is forever changed. :)

[chthonya]

Nice poll. :) I'd be interested to see some analysis of whether certain personality traits (S, T etc) tend to prefer certain characters.

I think the problem with asking people's opinions of characters (I ran into the same problem with my recent poll) is the difference between liking a character as a 'person' and liking them as an interesting/entertaining fictional character. In my case, my 'favourite' character is Lucius, but as a person he's everything I most despise.

Though one might expect that one writes the characters one identifies with most fluently, in my experience the characters I write most fluently are those I've spent most time thinking about. In the case of Lucius, it was precisely his opposite nature, almost incomprehensible to me, that started me thinking about him. It took a lot less effort to get into the heads of characters I identify with, such as Minerva or Hermione, but because I write them less often I don't feel as fluent with them as with Lucius.

The other side of that is that getting into a 'new' character's head, and the consequent deeper understanding of them, makes me identify with characters - such as Cornelius Fudge - to whom I wouldn't have given a second thought based on canon.

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Liking a character as a person really doesn't enter my mind when I talk about favourite characters XD (I've ranted about that before, and you're right I should have put something to that effect in the poll...

(I loved your poll by the one, that was very a very fun idea :)

I'm not sure people mostly write who they identify as, so far the poll have shown more indication of people writing the characters they like regardless of whether or not they identified as them.
I know for myself that I love writing Narcissa, and I'm nothing like her.

Your point about trying to get into a minor/new character's head is very interesting! I think when you feel like you discover a piece of knowledge by yourself, you "learn" it better, so it's easier to associate yourself with it, whereas a character who's already popular has a whole baggage of fanon that ... err make them farther in a way, less accessible. Would that correspond to your feeling?

[nemesister.livejournal.com]

This might interest you: http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=45812 and the results: http://www.cosforums.com/showthread.php?t=76751
I love the topic!

Personally I don't feel that I like characters because they are like me, but because they are interesting or sweet or whatever. I can identify much better with female characters (also female people) but that doesn't mean I like them better. :/

[etrangere.livejournal.com]

Wow, I had no idea someone else had done the same kind of test, fascinating!

I'll be sure to compare my result with this. Than you so much for the test.

[lea-hazel.livejournal.com]

I usually come up as an INFJ, even though I consider myself equal parts thinking and feeling, and several other of my characteristics vary, too.

I have only written less than ten HP fics, so I think I only marked Hermione as easy to write, because hers is sort of the "default" perspective I use, even though she's not the Hermione I empathized with so strongly in PoA (I would totally take Muggle Studies, because it would be fascinating, and a little hilarious).

Sometimes Ginny is very easy to write, but it's my own variety of fanon!Ginny, and a much less forgiving perspective than canon, circa HBP.

These days I sympathize more with Luna and Neville, in lieu of Hermione, who is no longer someone I can really identify with. Among the adults, Lupin is still the one I most identify with.