Arrow: Oliver Queen (ESFP)

Se:

Oliver Queen is a stereotypical, imbalanced Se dominant prior to becoming the Green Arrow. He is known for being a partier, a playboy, and a womanizer. He is reckless, impulsive, carefree and laid back. Of course, being rich affords him the luxury of indulging his every whim. He essentially lives completely in the moment with no specific plans for his future. He tends to repeat the same mistakes over and over again. He cheats on Laurel twice, the second time with her sister. He also drops out of four different schools. It isn’t until he gets stranded on an island for years, due to his spur of the moment, ill thought out trip with Laurel’s sister that Oliver learns that there are consequences for his actions.

The Oliver Queen that returns from the island has much more developed lower functions, but he still demonstrates the action-oriented nature of Se dominants. He tends to be on the go constantly, even during times when his family is in emotional crisis. John Diggle frequently admonishes him to slow down, take a break, and spend time with his family. He also copes with stress and intense situations by physically training.

Fi:

“…this one’s got some strange hangup about principles and integrity.” – Slade about Oliver

“I’m not the same person I used to be.”

“And just to be clear, not being able to tell my family the truth… it doesn’t hurt anyone worse than it hurts me.”

Oliver’s Fi is evident throughout the show, the introduction being the first obvious sign where he talks about how he must become someone else. He has a tendency to focus on who he is, disassociate from his past self, and claim that he is a new person. This is an Fi tendency: adapting and redefining self. While he may not seem like the most moral person at the beginning of the series, he is value driven. He tends to have strong opinions about what he thinks should or should not be done, opinions which he’s quick to share with others.

Oliver is also very hard on himself, and prone to self-judgement. He feels a personal sense of failure and responsibility in regards to people that he mentors who don’t turn out right. He takes most of the blame on himself, and as a result, struggles to take them down when the situation calls for it. Helena in season one is a good example. His relationship with Helena also demonstrates another aspect of his Fi. Oliver and Helena connect based on having similar feelings about their situations in life. He ends up blinded by her as a result. He defends her and empathizes with her long past the point that he should have.

While Oliver does devalue feelings at times, as a result of Se-Te looping, he leans hard into his Fi when he is utilizing it. He can be very empathetic, and in touch with himself. At one point, he states that anger is energy, which is a classic SFP mindset and strength. The intimate connection with one’s emotions allows it to link up with Se, creating someone who typically gets stronger with anger.

Te:

“I asked somebody to do something. They didn’t do it.”

“I can be wrong. The list isn’t.”

Oliver is leaning heavily on his Te from the start of the series, as a result of his past. As mentioned up in the Fi section, he’s quick to share his judgements with others, subsequently coming off as very critical. He tends to try to control the behavior of others, such as his sister when she’s doing things he doesn’t think she ought to. He’s frequently accused of being judgemental as a result. Of course, his entire mission is based on enacting judgement on others for their wrong doings.

Oliver’s mission is structured. He operates off of a list which he views as absolute. He naturally takes on a commanding nature when dealing with others, especially those on his team. He tends to fall into an Se-Te loop, devaluing his Fi due to his experiences and the role he currently feels he needs to play. When this happens, he comes across as apathetic to others and their needs, focusing only his singular mission and what they should be doing to aid it.

Ni:

“Maybe I thought the universe owed me one.”

Oliver’s inferior Ni shows up primary during his earlier years, in his failure to think beyond the present. He fails to consider the implications of his actions, and eventually a severe consequence forces him to develop that Ni. When he returns as Arrow, he’s much more strategic and vision focused. Later though, when meeting Helena, Oliver sees himself in her and potential for a partner, so he attempts to mentor her. He’s unable to recognize the path that she’s going down, or essentially, the implications of her actions. After things falls apart with her, he later tells Diggle that he had thought the universe owed him one, which demonstrates a failed attempt to read deeper meaning into her showing up in his life. It also shows a devaluing of his Ni as he states that he knew deep down that he couldn’t change her but chose to ignore it.

Oliver is also prone to tunnel vision. When there are series of bank robberies, he has no desire to stop them, claiming that his only concern is the names on the list. Diggle than accuses him of having a very narrow definition of what it means to be a hero.