MBTI: Mary Jane Watson- ISFP

mj

It must be difficult living in a world where not only does your friend/boyfriend/husband/misc. fight crime on a regular basis, but he inadvertently puts you in danger because of it.

Yet Mary Jane not only maintains through quiet perseverance, she’s not one of those non-super powered characters (usually) you wish would die or “just go somewhere” else so the Spider-Man can get it on with somebody else, but she’s actually not too shabby.

Does anyone dislike the ISFP you know? Prolly not.

As mentioned with so many other characters, their temperaments seem to change depending on who’s writing them. And as with most of those same characters, there’s usually a constant in their personality that keeps them from being…untypeable.

So even though specific functions aren’t as easy to label, such as Nightcrawler or Doom, there are still several key traits of their character that have always stuck out to readers.

Aside from red hair and huge boobs, of course.

Go Spidey!

Go Spidey!

When Mary Jane finally arrived in good ol’ Peter Parker’s life, she’s shown to be a bit on the shallow side; obsessed with being out with friends, having fun in a crowd. I’m not implying Mary Jane was an alcoholic or druggie anything, but this was the sixties and there was only so much you could show in comics.

Chances are, Peter wasn’t originally turned off by Mary Jane’s love of Pepsi and simply hanging out with friends.

Man...she parties like Andrew WK...

Nobody parties like MJ without the use of drugs. Or being Andrew WK.

Like all Artisans, ISFPs are in the moment, living for the day. And while that definitely doesn’t mean that ISFPs or other SPs don’t ever accomplish anything, they do enjoy the present moment like other types don’t understand the same way.

ISFPs are also often mistaken for Extraverts, quiet though they tend to be, generally because they’re so friendly. They hate conflict too so while ESFJ may be nice to people they don’t like, ISFPs are a bit more avoidant so they don’t have to be nice to that person should they come into contact with them. Difficult ones to type, ISFPs.

Man, this woman is like the energizer bunny! Except she's a human not a bunny. And she's probably on drugs.

Man, this woman is like the energizer bunny! Except she’s a human, not a bunny. And she’s probably on drugs.

Se or Extraverted Sensing is in the top two functions for all Artisans and Mary Jane is a good example. It’s funny that throughout Mary Jane’s history, she’s goes from being party girl, to model, to actress. Modeling and acting isn’t strictly an Artisan thang, you’ll find that this is what Hollywood is mostly crowded with.

While ISFPs often appear lazy, they’re still highly prone to immediate results similar to Guardians, though without necessarily procuring long-term benefits. Their Se has them doing what’s exciting or profitable at the moment rather than always striving for long term goals. It’s also why there are so many overdoses and breakdowns in Hollywood.

“Okay, I just made five million dollars and everybody loves me. Guess I’ll do coke until my nasal cavities explode with blood!”

Artisans man, they just can’t help themselves. It’s not to say they can’t or don’t accomplish long term goals, it’s just that many of them choose not to. But school or planning for something further down the line is better suited for them when they look at what they need to do that day in accordance with their goal rather than what they hope to eventually accomplish. Easier pill to swallow for them.

While any pill is easy for Harry to swallow!

While any pill is easy for Harry to swallow!

Originally, Mary Jane wasn’t all that interested in Peter either (hehe). She would proclaim over and over again that she didn’t want to be tied down.

ISFPs not only need their personal space more than most types do, they can also be highly indecisive, either in relationships or just every day matters. Go out to eat with one and chances are, they ain’t ordering first.

And nor would MJ be….until the death of the Stacy girl.

At that point, Mary Jane’s maternal instincts kicked in and she and that Parker guy get a little closer as he weeps over his novia muerta…only to eventually turn him down and leave the city. As mentioned, ISFPs can have a tough time with commitment.

In comparison, an ESFJ may stay with someone out of pity for a bit, hoping to see the good in them; an ISFP however can only do this for so long before feeling like they’re going against their values by leading someone on, not to be true to oneself, yada yada yada.

ISFPs are also known for keeping much to themselves even when what’s on their mind causes great duress. The ESFJ may not say anything but their feelings are bursting at the seams, while the ISFP holds much in that only ones closest to them know…if even them.

A few ISFP friends over the years decided to share certain information with me only after I’d known them for a long period of time. Information, it seemed, they could have gone the rest of their lives without talking about. Mary Jane even revealed that she’d known Parker was Spider-Man long after she’d actually been with him. Of all the people he didn’t think had a clue, she would’ve been pretty high on the list.

She KNOWS, that's all you need to know.

She KNOWS, that’s all you need to know.

Side note- I’m speaking of the comics. I have no interest in the terrible portrayal of Mary Jane in the Raimi movies by Kirsten “I’m just so bored with everything” Dunst.

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8 Responses to “MBTI: Mary Jane Watson- ISFP”

  1. Matthew Says:

    *nods* ok I always saw MJ as a troubled chick, I mean who in all of spiderman did not have some kinda of screwy hook-up, hang-up, or personal huck-up? NOT JUST MJ any main person!

  2. I’ve not read the comics, but your assessment is fairly spot-on in terms of ISFPs in general, so I would be inclined to agree. πŸ˜‰ πŸ˜€

    • Taylor Says:

      Awesome. I’ve got some real world experience with ISFPs. Pretty much always a cool, laid back type to be around.

      • That’s awesome! πŸ˜€ What’s weird to me is that we’re supposed to be a relatively common type, but I’ve yet to meet any other confirmed ISFPs in the real world, aside from our group on Facebook (which only sort of counts). I know plenty of every other type, except my own. (Even the more rare INxJs.) Weird, huh?

        • Taylor Says:

          It is and it isn’t. I’ve read that ISFPs can be the most difficult to type through observation and while I can’t cite it, I’ve found it to be true. ISFPs to many can seem like extroverts, they can be in touch with their spiritual side, act rationally, and just about everything else that seems to contradict their descriptions but really falls in line nicely.

          Point being, they’re difficult for many to type and on top of that, the ones I’ve known didn’t even like to be out that much aside from school/work/etc. They’re like house cats that wander away but always go back home. The public eye isn’t their favorite place so it’s no wonder you don’t know many, hehe.

          • Haha! All of that makes perfect sense to me. πŸ˜€ πŸ˜€ πŸ˜€

            (And what’s more interesting is that I think it applies to fictional ISFPs, too. I often see them mistyped as ISFJs, INFPs, ISTPs, INTJs, and everything in between, even sometimes extraverted types. Except perhaps ENTPs. We rarely mistype as those, for fairly obvious reasons, I think. πŸ˜‰ )

            But honestly, it’s quite refreshing to hear. I’ve also read hypotheses suggesting that ISFPs are possibly the most misunderstood type, or one of the most misunderstood types (don’t let the INFJs know…), and I would agree. πŸ˜€ And yeah – we’re pretty happy in our little world(s), just doing our thing, and staying out of the limelight. (I enjoy theatre/acting/singing, but it’s at a local community theatre that puts on quality work & often feels like an extended family.)

            • Taylor Says:

              I could see the ISFP as misunderstood. Fi doesn’t relate to its surroundings and being the dominant function, it can be tough to express oneself. INFJ is quiet but with Fe they have a better way of expressing themselves when the setting is appropriate. Yeah, we probably shouldn’t let the online INFJs know…

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