White Album 2: Haruki Kitahara (ISTJ)

We noticed that people tended to type this guy as an ESTJ. For the first two episodes, he certainly gives that impression, but after that…

Si:

“Precautions. Risk avoidance. Safety first. That’s what makes you who you are. You don’t like to compete, and you never get in arguments. You just sit there and smile.” – Kazusa about Haruki

“I’ve been saying that a long time. Those exact words you just said.”

Early on in White Album 2, we see that Haruki has a penchant for organizing and planning things. At one time, Haruki was the class rep, however, after no longer possessing the role, he still acts like it and introduces himself as “used to be class rep,” being very careful to clarify when people addressed him incorrectly. (Proper wording and vernacular tends to important to high Si.) Haruki has high expectations like any high Si user, and feels the need to do the work of the class rep because the real class rep isn’t fulfilling his duties up to Haruki’s expectation. He plans out the entire school festival schedule in a detailed fashion because class rep was unprepared and asked for his help. This leads to the committee relying on him in spite of him not actually being a part of it. He also likes to say ‘I told you so’ when things go wrong and likes to reference the past as proof.

In other instances, we see him being concerned with Kazusa’s grades and how she was going to be able to pass, go on to college, etc. All these things point to his Si, since he is concerned about her lack of planning for the future. He is very patient with Kazusa and never loses his temper or snaps in spite of all the hostility that he’s met with. Haruki just keeps handing her the paperwork to fill out even after she crumples it up and throws it at him. He even takes it upon himself to take care of things related to her schooling to the point that teachers begin to notice.

When it comes to the relationships between him and the two girls, Haruki gets indecisive and ends up taking a passive stance with the love interests. This is the main thing that led us to view him as more of an Si dom rather than a Te. He never makes a move on either of them. When Setsuna confesses her feelings to him, he just yields to the situation, even knowing that he has strong feelings for Kazusa. This is one of the key components that results in the entire mess to begin with. Frequently, we see Haruki yielding decision making to Kazusa. He throws out what he thinks they should do as a group and is more often than not overwritten sharply. Instead of standing his ground and arguing his point, Haruki in most cases just goes along with whatever Kazusa says.

Te:

“Make some decisions yourself for a change.”

“I just have this habit of just compressing things down to their vital points.”

Haruki’s Te can be seen clearly throughout the show, so much so that many people type him as an ESTJ. Haruki is bossy, commanding, and prefers to remain in control. The clearest example of this is in his role as the class rep. He fills the role readily, ensures everyone follows the rules, and organizes events in a structured and disciplined manner. He even takes back over the duties of the class rep in spite of no longer being one, because he doesn’t think that the current class rep is doing a good enough job. He does not hesitate to give blunt opinions about others, and has a propensity for being abrasive, harsh, and occasionally rude. Setsuna notes this frequently. He is very disciplined, especially in school, and has a tendency to lecture other students (like Kazusa) who are not. Haruki is also very determined once he sets his sights on a goal, like getting an elite pianist to join the Light Music Club. He chased down the “mysterious” pianist until he learned of her identity. Haruki is also very concise, not at all struggling to get to the crux or root of something that has been said.

However, as mentioned in a previous section, while his Te is very pronounced, Haruki frequently yields decision making to others, unless he feels that they are doing an inadequate job, and we even see him getting physically drug around campus by his friends and the class rep. His over eagerness to be bossy at school in certain situations can easily be attributed to him being comfortable in his environment and in the class rep role.

Fi:

“Saying you regret that is rude to your friends who entered you because they wanted more people to know about you.”

Haruki is relatively in touch with his feelings. He has heartfelt conversations with Setsuna right from the beginning, when he barely knows her. In spite of sharing his blunt opinions, he’s good at endearing himself to others. In addition, his very high standards are due to the Si-Fi combination. Haruki is also very much about being true to self, preferring to be blunt with others rather than hide his true self. Once when rebuked for giving a harsh opinion, he states that “I don’t like talking about people behind their backs.” Haruki is also quick to pick up on the fact that Setsuna was hiding her true self and putting up walls, which is proof of his Fi perspective. In addition, he rebukes Setsuna for regretting having entered the Miss Houjou competition, saying that is was rude to her friends.

Ne:

“Fifteen minutes to setup might be too long, but is ten long enough?”

Being inferior, Haruki’s Ne doesn’t show up very often in the show. However, there are a few moments where it does come out, like when he initially finds out Setsuna is disguising herself at her part time job and they begin to talk. He doesn’t directly ask Setsuna what is wrong, but asks a bunch of other questions instead. When she finally explains the whole story to him, his reaction is to ask if she had left out any other secret reason for the part-time job, like her dad in hospital, mom working all the time so she had to do all the chores, or “some sad story” that she couldn’t tell anyone about. The fact that he comes up with these somewhat random possibilities points to a low use of Ne. In addition, his inferior Ne contributes to his cautious nature, which can be easily seen when he’s worrying about the trip to the hot springs and when they get stuck in the snow on the way there.