MCU: Thanos (ENTJ)

At the beginning of this year, we published this article with Thanos as an INTJ. However, upon further study, we realized that we made an error. At Practical Typing, we strive to keep our content as accurate as possible, so we try to fix any mistakes when we realize them. (We were working on an ENTJ vs INTJ article when it occurred to us that Thanos fit ENTJ better.) Thus, we’re re-releasing this article with the corrected personality type for Thanos: ENTJ.

Te:

“The universe required correction.”

“Titan was like most planets; too many mouths, not enough to go around. And when we faced extinction, I offered a solution.”

“In all my years of conquest, violence, slaughter, it was never personal.”

Thanos implements objective solutions that are detached from feeling. Essentially, his solutions are systematic. He focuses solely on bringing about the desired outcome, regardless of how it impacts humanity (or those around him) in the process. For instance, when he predicts the tragic end to his people, he proposes a radical solution that involves wiping out half of his kind. His approach is dispassionate and fair, from his perspective. He doesn’t intend to place value on certain lives, and decide who deserves to live or die. He proposes a random slaughter. Likewise, he implements this same strategy on a universal scale once he obtains all the infinity stones, snapping half of all life in the universe out of existence.

Ultimately, he values results, which is why he mocks Loki’s offer to guide him on earth. He views Loki as a failure, and says so. Similarly, when talking to Gamora, he shrugs off all of his past actions, by pointing out the results of his cold-hearted acts. He reminds Gamora that her home planet is now thriving, and she has become the fiercest woman in the galaxy. In addition, the way he treats his daughters depends primarily upon their capabilities. He pits the two against each other, and ultimately Nebula suffers because she consistently fails. Gamora ends up being treated like a daughter, while Nebula gets treated like a broken machine.

Thanos wants to restore balance to the universe. He wants to fix it, so he spends his life working towards that end. While searching for the infinity stones, he attacks one planet at a time, essentially fulfilling his goal manually until he can obtain the means to do it in the most efficient way.

Ni:

“The entire time I knew Thanos, he only ever had one goal: to bring balance to the universe by wiping out half of all life.”

“They called me a madman. And what I predicted came to pass.”

“Dread it, run from it… Destiny arrives all the same. And now it’s here. Or should I say… I am.”

“Reality is often disappointing. That is, it was. Now, reality can be whatever I want.”

Thanos fixates on a singular outcome, which gets him branded a madman. On his home planet, he predicts a tragic end to his kind. When no one believes him, he’s unable to let it go, ultimately resulting in his exile. Later, he broadens his original prediction to the entire universe. Thanos decides that half of all life has to be wiped out, so that the rest can be saved from extinction and prosper. For the rest of his life, he fixates on this goal, continually working to achieve it. He never appears to consider other options or less extreme ways to solve the problem, even with the infinity stones.

Thanos’ fixation on the future causes him to view things in terms of destiny or inevitable outcomes. He uses these terms frequently throughout the movies. What Thanos perceives to be true is what he believes will always come to pass. The future is unavoidable, and inescapable.

Thanos excels at advanced planning, which is ultimately what allows him to initially succeed. He can often perceive what will happen, and plan accordingly. For instance, after getting ambushed on Knowhere by Gamora, Thanos informs her that he counted on her coming there to stop him. His main failure when it comes to foreseeing how events will play out is demonstrated after the time heist. Thanos realizes that eliminating half of all life wouldn’t be enough, because people often fail to let go of the past. His inability to consider this possibility could be due to lack of Si in his stack or due to having an inferior feeling function (which will be discussed further down).

Se:

Thanos is constantly in action. He doesn’t just plan out the perfect outcome from behind the scenes, and execute only that plan. In other words, he doesn’t focus solely on obtaining the infinity stones. Instead, he conquers planets one at a time, while simultaneous seeking them out. He’s always directly involved somehow in his operations, rather than remaining on the sidelines and pulling the strings. Obviously, he can’t be in two places at once. (Initially, Thanos tries to send other people to gather the stones for him, such as Loki and Ronan.) But whether he’s hunting down an infinity stone owner or conquering a planet, Thanos is always doing something.

Thanos lives for the future, struggling to enjoy the present until his goal is completed. For instance, he gets himself exiled from his home planet because he can’t let go of the future devastation that he has predicted. In addition, he mentions to some of the Avengers that all of his conquests gave him no joy. (Earth became the exception.) This is an example of low Se.

Fi:

“I know what it’s like to lose. To feel so desperately that you’re right yet to fail, nonetheless. It’s frightening. Turns the legs to jelly.”

“I am inevitable.”

Thanos lives a life detached from feeling. During one of his conquests, Thanos decides to save a girl, and take her in as his daughter. At another point in time, he adopts another girl, and then uses the two as tools to achieve his goal. The most effective daughter wins his affection and his love. However, he prioritizes his goal far above any familial love or loyalty. When faced with the decision to sacrifice Gamora for the soul stone, Thanos doesn’t appear to even hesitate. He feels genuine sorrow, because he genuinely loves her, but that doesn’t matter. He kills her to obtain the stone, so he can fulfill his goal.

While Thanos can understand emotion that he has felt before, sentiment is a blind spot for him. For instance, he is occasionally shown personally relating to something his enemies are going through, like Wanda having to kill Vision. (Of course, in spite of this empathy, he never has any intention of offering mercy.) However, it never occurs to Thanos that his victims might refuse to let go of those in the past that they have lost. When the Avengers find a way to undo what he has done, Thanos realizes that he needs to account for this going forward.

Thanos’ sense of self is intertwined with his goal. He views himself as the embodiment of his single purpose. As far as he’s concerned, he and destiny are the same entity. Once he has fulfilled his goal, he loses his sense of purpose, and retires to a rural planet. Once found, he lets the Avengers kill him, because he no longer has a reason to live.