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The Social Network masterpost
because i'm not going to put them into multiple posts :| ahaha
Don't ask me about real life Markeven though I'm pretty sure he's an INTJ
Another one I wrote
→ Dominant Function: Ti (Introverted Thinking)
I feel like it shouldn't be much of a question that Mark leads his life with logic and patterns… but since this is an Actual Analysis(TM) I'll go in-depth.
He is an analytical person. And instead of it coming from a place of introverted intuition (Ni) where he is actively aware of results; or extraverted thinking (Te) where it pushes him to take action - it's just analysis. It's just him finding patterns and rationalities in the world: we see where he tries to apply this to people in the first scene, with final clubs; we see how natural he is with computers and hacking in just the next scene over.
And I think what makes this the most obvious is that he blogs about it. He talks about the reason and the method and the technical logic behind everything he's doing to hack into the Harvard dorms (paired with the movie scenes - this isn't indicative of real life Mark, whose blog this was actually used for), and it's less out of a sense of Action (Te) or Final Result (Ni) but more with a need and fascination to explain the logic behind his hacking.
Moreover, he basically relies on logic when he talks to people. His sarcastic quips are about pointing out fallacies or picking out logic in other people's words - "Except if you had known what you were looking for, you would've found it on my dorm room window" / "Let me just check your math on that" / "No, it was addressed to me" - and although we know that he is very focused and capable of reaching future goals (Ni) and is very ambitious about them (which is just a personality trait unrelated to MBTI), he most naturally calls upon logic and reasoning in the world more than anything else. He does not constantly look for the results - he constantly looks for the methods, logic, and reasons.
(For the record, I used a lot of comparisons in the above with Ni because I once saw someone call Mark an INTJ and INTJs lead with Ni. Mark does not.)
→ Auxiliary Function: Ne (Extraverted Intuition)
What Facebook is about!!!
The whole narrative of TSN implies that Mark stole the idea, yeah. But what did he do when he "stole" the idea? He came up with a better one. He even states pretty explicitly that he could see/knew all the possibilities that HarvardConnection/Facebook could be, more than the Winklevosses and Divya.
And in the deposition scenes with them, there's a part where Mark says, "… where my colleagues and I are doing things that no one in this room, including and especially your clients, are intellectually or creatively capable of doing." Mark is open to so many possibilities even if it's taking major risks or doing things that have never been done before. When Eduardo wants to have ads on the site, even though it would make logical business sense for them to, Mark says no, because, "we don't know what it can be… we don't know what it will be," and he is all too eager to take that chance. This is how he cognitively interacts with his ideas, and his Ti allows him to rationalize them out to (sometimes/frequently/as we can see in TSN) concrete things. He not only tries to understand the reason and logic behind things, but he also is always ready to anticipate the world of possibilities in the future.
→ Tertiary Function: Si (Introverted Sensing)
There's not much we can say here, but I want to point out that his whole response to the Winklevosses talking about rowing crew after Erica dumped him after mentioning that she liked guys who row crew is a pretty tert Si thing to do.
Also his whole "you would really do that for me?"
Since Si is about one seeing what reality "should" be - not in terms of the future, but the present reality - I feel like Mark is not socially incapable, but rather that his Ti/Ne and also his confidence in his skills (getting a 1600 on the SATs, etc) makes him feel smarter and better than everyone else - and he uses this as an excuse to actually treat people that way. (This also has to do with his inferior Fe, but we'll get to that later.) He knows that he's smarter than other people, and he knows that people are largely academically stupider than him - that is his expectation of the present. When he says the thing to Erica about taking her to parties so she can "meet people [she] otherwise wouldn't have the chance to meet," he may know it's an insult - but he also sees that as a fact, and that fact should trump any sort of emotional impression his words have on her. She should be impressed, she should be flattered - not just because he belittles her feelings, but because it's true.
Si also draws a lot on memory and whatnot, which I suppose we can say feeds into the Mark in the depositions. Actually, on that thought - in an interview Andrew had said that he thought that if Mark had shown any emotion or regret or sorriness in the depositions, Eduardo might've brought it on himself to forgive him.
But Mark didn't. And since a lot of this is acting and implicit and we only hear so much from Mark, there's a lot to assume. But I personally interpret Mark's character during his depositions with Eduardo, not just because he was never sorry or regretful at all, but because that's the type of person Mark felt like he should've been. He knows that Eduardo is pissed at him - he broke is laptop and is suing him for 600 million, so - so he sees no reason to try to debate or make himself a sympathetic character when Eduardo is presenting the facts. He does not actively defend his actions or his character; Eduardo did most of the talking (from what we can see.) But Mark never apologizes nor does he vocally justify any of his actions - even about the chicken thing, he was mostly apathetic about it, and his lawyer had been the one to explain that Mark had defended him.
But he still says "Eduardo was my best friend" during the Winklevoss depositions, and I do think he meant it. He is conscious of the present, and we can assume his memory is excellent (getting a 1600 on the SATs), but his drawing his past on his present appears to be subconscious or moments of helplessness more than anything else.
→ Inferior Function: Fe (Extraverted Feeling)
This may be obvious, but…
His wanting to be in a final club to impress people. The lowkey insecurity he has with wanting people's approval, while at the same time trying to reject that desire - which is a very token trait of inferior Fe - basically comes from the whole final club spiel in the beginning. Mark is aware that you can't use logic to explain people, and it's so much easier for him to fall into the logic of hacking and computers than to consider the concept of sympathy.
Again, I disagree with the frequent interpretation that Mark is socially incapable, but that doesn't mean I think he tries to be socially liked. I think he's aware of what he should do and that people's feelings and impressions of him are important, but it's not as important as logic and reason and justice ("[the Winklevosses] are upset because for the first time in their lives, things aren't going the way they want them to go.") His Fe being in the inferior place makes it very prominent that he's aware of the expectations and feelings of others, that he wants them to hate him if they can't handle him, but still be jealous of his skills and talents. I mean, it works, but I also think it's something he consciously cultivates.
But he still values his friendships a lot - he asks Chris and Dustin (who were closer to him irl, but still) to assist with him on Facebook, is shown to be frequently friendly with Dustin and to value both his intelligence and friendship ("The Wall"; the scene where Eduardo signs the papers and sees Mark and Dustin amicably talking outside), and I think very obviously placed value in his friendship with Eduardo. There are so many ways to interpret the movie, I know - but there are little things like "he was my best friend" (which could have been for emotional appeal); or when he and Eduardo were at the Bill Gates lecture even though Eduardo showed clear disinterest but Mark seemed to be happy to have him there (honestly I'm probably just imposing but, like, when he and Eduardo were walking out and those kids stopped them, I feel like Mark drew away from these strangers and closer to Eduardo, who was his friend/whom he was more familiar with); or honestly just my favorite E/M parts: "this is our thing" and Mark's ease to get as physically close to Eduardo as Eduardo was to him; E/M after the blowjobs standing close together and smiling; and like. A week of spring break. Like, Mark willingly spent a week with his supposed best friend whom he's known for two years. So I think we can conclude that he did place a lot of value in Eduardo.
Oh yeah, and "I want - I need you out here (please don't tell him that I said that.)" (This also insinuates his wanting approval from Sean, too.)
… and also his bad apology to Erica. I think to some degree he always wanted her approval. See: the beginning with trying to impress her, the bad apology, and the friend request at the end. He's so bad at it which is why this is in the inferior place - but his inferiority of it also leads to this wanting of it that he doesn't know what to do with, or how to do it. It's so much easier for him to work in a world where people already feel about him the way he wants them to feel about him, which is why his arrogance/logic and intentional insults work out.
My characterization and impression of Eduardo actually largely comes from fanon, because I feel like it explores his character more than the actual movie does. The movie is told from his point of view (largely) and he is the protagonist - but at the same time the movie is about Mark and Facebook, and though all the parts of him do characterize him consistently, I feel like a lot of his cognitive functions and personality are significantly more implied in the movie and then become expanded in fanwork. I've also analyzed his character/personality, if that helps to get a better idea of a) how I interpret him, and b) how I think the movie subtly characterizes him.
The impression his character leaves on us at the end of the movie may seem more that of a Feeler, but after having watched the movie 30+ times and also reading a lot of fic which has molded with my interpretation of his character (which I also think is consistent with his movie personality), I think he is a Thinker who is good at socializing.
Thus, an ESTP.
→ Dominant Function: Se (Extraverted Sensing)
What we draw from the movie perhaps the most significantly with regards to Mark's betrayal and Eduardo's hand in Facebook, is advertisements. Eduardo wants Facebook to have advertisements so they can gain revenue. Mark doesn't.
This event can be argued for quite a few functions (aux Si, aux Te…) but I think largely the conflict of interest is here is Mark and Eduardo's visions for Facebook. Mark had proposed a business to Eduardo; Eduardo wants what he thinks would be best for the business. They have a company. Mark wants the company to be successful. To be successful, the company needs ads.
Eduardo focuses on the moment, on the now - when he finds the letter from the Winklevosses, he needs to know what is absolutely happening with the letter - what it means, why Mark got it, an explanation for what he didn't realize what was happening (thanks Mark.) Obviously it's natural for anyone to go ahead and find out what to do about it, but we see clearly that he reacts immediately to it, needs to immerse himself in the situation and understand it fully. This is extraverted sensing.
Additionally, he doesn't seem to be a stressed or paranoid person, but he also doesn't seem to be the type who is lost in his thoughts. Eduardo interacts with his environment as it is - in the depositions, he's not an emotional wreck, and mostly delivers the facts in a platonic manner. (During the chicken and 0.03% he was emotional, but c'mon, anyone would be.) We see him in three piece suits most of the time, but during Caribbean Night he seemed to be just as happy and comfortable in his ridiculous "Hawaiian" getup. He takes the world as it is and knows how to live with it.
With fanon examples, I think his interest in the weather (which is mentioned once in the movie) also ties into this quite nicely. Canon Eduardo loves the weather (and honestly I wouldn't be surprised if he's an ESTP too) and is excellent at chess, both things which I think that the dominant Se assists with. A lot of fanon Eduardo has him being fascinated with rain and storms and being in them and just studying and experiencing them, which is honestly probably the most dominant Se thing I've ever heard.
→ Auxiliary Function: Ti (Introverted Thinking)
This is a bit of a leap, admittedly, but my giving him the auxiliary function both works with a consequent tertiary Fe (more on that later), and also because he's just a huge nerd.
Mark tells us that Eduardo made $300,000 on betting oil futures. Because he likes the weather. And I think that if you go ahead and use your love for the weather to make 300 grand by gambling, there is some large skill of logic here.
Plus, I think he operates very much based on what is reasonable rather than anything related to his identity, emotions, or self. Obviously we know that any Thinker is can still be an emotional person, but, again with the letter from the Winklevosses, Eduardo goes, "Okay, so what are we going to do about this?" He stresses out for a minute before calming down and trying to find the path that he and Mark could take. Though he is worried, he clearly prioritizes a practical approach than a gut feeling one (and it says a lot that Mark had already taken a pretty reasonable course of action before even consulting with Eduardo - and Mark leads with Ti.)
Anyway, we know that Eduardo is smart - though I don't think his punching by the Phoenix is indicative of his intelligence, we know about the oil futures, the chess is a canon fact that we can apply to TSN Eduardo if we want to, and I also think his being a business major and even exploiting some of that in the movie also feeds into his Ti. Eduardo is good at logic. He is learnt: he has the algorithm for the beginning; he knows why his shares initially increase. He debunks Sean's argument with, "Wait, they won in court," even though Sean throws another clapback at him right away. When Mark explains things to Eduardo about the site, he might not understand it fully with regards to coding: but he understands the motivations and reasons right away, is able to follow Mark's line of thinking. ("… they'll have a chance to - " "Get laid." "Meet a girl. Yes.") It is innate but even if he is good with his emotions and people, he reasons them out first.
Moreover, much like Mark but less driven-wise, when he speaks/thinks he still operates by logic, especially somewhat humorously. In the scene when they're walking back from the Bill Gates lecture, Eduardo talks about what Christy said to him - and how it been so great. "She said 'Facebook me', and -" "They want to get drinks later, yeah." He clearly enjoys reasoning out this very small thing that he could've just expressed his feelings about instead of rationalizing why it's great. Additionally, again with Christy's words, when they're at dinner with Sean, she brings up the 3000lb marlin and he almost immediately goes, "Well we know that marlins don't really weigh 3000 pounds, right?" and then, "That would have to be an incredibly large fish and a really strong guy." EDUARDO NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR LOGIC! But though this is a more small and "funny" part, I think it still fundamentally shows that Eduardo focuses more on reason than feeling.
→ Tertiary Function: Fe (Extraverted Feeling)
People with the tertiary Fe are good at people or at least know how to make an impression on them, but it's not something that they innately try.
I think with all of Eduardo's capabilities with people, it's something more that feels naturalized to him more than something that drives him and that he values. When Christy talks to him he knows how to respond; generally he knows how to be likable. The suits thing may feel over the top but being in the Harvard Investor's Club, AEPi, and getting into the Phoenix - and paired with his pretty face - we can easily assume that people like him and easily accept him.
It's not that Eduardo either doesn't actively try or doesn't care - with all his Se/Ti leading, the tertiary Fe allows him to be aware of people and understand both their value and how he can interact with them. Since the tertiary spot is where the "immature" function tends to be, it means that the user doesn't necessarily know how to control it but it can also balance the aux Ti out. Where Eduardo has reason (Ti), his Fe allows him to be a charming likable person and to hold his tongue when he needs to be. It's when he's with Sean Parker - someone he actively does not care about, both generally and also sympathetically - where we see his snarky "reasonable" self (i.e. Mark's brand of logic-based asshole) come out. Otherwise, with people he cares about, he knows how to care.
Additionally, his tert Fe comes out a lot whenever he's with Mark. When he speaks to Mark about the letter, he consciously uses logic - but he also uses emotional appeal to Mark. "What are we going to do about this?" "If there's something wrong, if there's ever anything wrong, you can tell me. I'm the guy who wants to help." Immediately after telling Mark about the Phoenix punch, Eduardo backpedals - "It was probably just a diversity thing" - because he realizes/remembers what it means to Mark. He wants Mark to apologize to Erica even though he's presumably never met her; he is good at emotional appeal during the depositions; he knows the impression that Facesmash will make but overall still gives Mark the algorithm because he wants to help his friend.
Contrary to some interpretations of his character, if Eduardo behaves in a caring/motherly way at all, it's not fueled by his care for other people. It starts with what he knows what a human needs to function, what logically makes sense, in order to care for other people. This is either Fe/Ti or Ti/Fe in the middle two spots, but I believe that Eduardo prioritizes the practicality in caring rather than caring with practicality.
→ Inferior Function: Ni (Introverted Intuition)
And we come back to the advertisements.
And the freezing the bank account.
And… the dilution.
Introverted intuition in the inferior spot means that someone largely thinks about the future, but sometimes focuses a lot on this one spot in the far future without really going for it because they don't think it's important to prioritize because they're so stuck in the present. Other immature traits of the introverted intuition include: missing signs of a probable result, and also some sort of fear about the future.
Eduardo actually does not fit this perfectly because he did gamble with the oil futures, but I think that's because he could've been working on it; and because he's studying to be a businessman, which while does require the trust for one to take risks (which is actually a Dom Se trait anyway), still requires a reasonable head for the future.
And of course we all work with our inferior functions at different points in our life with different ways.
I think considering his profession and interests, Eduardo has likely worked on maturing his inferior Ni (though this actually draws mostly from the fanon-canon fact of his liking chess and the weather) through the economics-business, which he's good at anyway. But we can still see where it immaturely comes out in the most conflict-ridden parts of the movie's narrative.
With the advertisements and the site, Mark says he doesn't want ads because he is open to the site being exactly what he wants it to be, even though at the time and as a business it's fundamentally unrealistic. Eduardo, however, wants ads - not just because he's very much based in the present, but also because he doesn't think it could be a successful business model otherwise. It's clear that he thinks the company would fail and not be able to work if they don't try to look for a more secure future - he's so focused on this idea and this future that it's hard for him to be open to Mark's large world of possibilities.
In freezing the bank account, Eduardo clearly doesn't see the results it could lead to. He wanted to get Mark's attention, but it was a ridiculously personal thing to do when doing business. He is so focused on getting Mark's attention now that he completely misses that it could yield personal results from Mark. He has absolutely no clue or suspicion that the dilutions will happen until the moment he's presented with the papers - he's off at Harvard living his life that the time skips right over it to the dilution because it narratively is so fast that it's a shock. "In all honesty, I should've known," he says in the depositions - he can realize the logic in the result, but he had been unable to see its path at the time.
→ Overall:
I also want to note that a very typical personality trait of ESTPs is that they're smart risk takers, but Eduardo doesn't necessarily exhibit the risky trait. I think the biggest risk he took in The Social Network was investing $19,000 in Facebook which is… okay, that's also a big risk. And suing Mark was actually admittedly another big risk, because he wanted to show Mark the repercussions of his actions now.
But on the point of risk taking - I think that Eduardo could cognitively easily fall to the idea of it. But a lot of fanon (and this is probably canon too?) Eduardo has his father pressure him to go into business from a young age, and that kind of environmental pressure forced him to think more practically and economically. ESTPs actually do also tend to go into stock, marketing, and entrepreneurship, which - well, real life Eduardo is something of an entrepreneur now. (Fic also has him either starting his own companies or helping young creatives by giving them money/investing in them, which is also what canon Eduardo is doing…) I think Eduardo is not exactly the most exuberant type of ESTP, but fundamentally he likes to give things a chance while also analyzing them to make sure that they are practical chances, which is a core ESTP trait.
I have told people before that I read Sean as an INTJ, to which they often reply to me saying, "Isn't Sean too extroverted to be an INTJ?" But also I've watched the movie like five million times and each time I pick up more and more traits, characteristics, and methods/reasons of behavior indicating what I believe to be his fictional character's cognitive functions constantly pointing more towards INTJ, with further support and evidence. Remember: MBTI introversion does not necessarily indicate introverted behavior, and how people act alone means nothing about MBTI - it's why and how (at the same time!) that matters.
→ Dominant Function: Ni (Introverted Intuition)
This is tricky, because my familiarity with dominant Ni users (who have made up a large portion of my closest friends) is largely based on vibe. This also directly contrasts Eduardo's inferior Ni usage leading to an under-the-skin anxiety with him, while Sean is much more self-contained and gathers information to easily adjust into his behavior and plans.
I suppose the best way is to lead with example. Sean discusses business and the music industry in a way where he knows how it works in and out - especially the falsities and inconveniences - and needs to share it. And the way he does it is with the confidence and advice-giving position he comes from - yes, it does come from his experiences, but Sean says things like, "And even if you've managed to live your life like the Dalai Lama, they'll make shit up," and talks about how Case Equity people had tapped his phones and targeted him by high-priced escorts and such, discussed the Victoria's Secret story with the demeanor of someone who knows what they're talking about because he does. While the paranoia means nothing either way, Sean still discusses these things with the air of someone who knows, whether you listen to him or not. He doesn't give concrete advice like an Si-dom would, or discuss things in the air of "this is what you should do and if you don't then it's your fault for not listening to me" like a Te-dom would, or really even get wrapped up in these past experiences when talking about them more than anything like an Ne-dom/Si-inferior. Sean himself has the knowledge and he chooses to share it because the situation may benefit from it, though he keeps his distance in case it doesn't/backfires for the sake of self-preservation.
We also see Sean talking on the phone a lot, always discussing and finding ways to work his way back to Case Equity before actually doing anything about it. And when he and Mark are in the club, Sean says things like, "When you get to 100 schools I'll put you on two continents." Sean has that internal path and tries to find it with the least and most individualistic resistance. He understands the point and goal of Facebook right away even when Eduardo doesn't; Sean doesn't need Mark to tell him with his own words, because he already knows and is immediately on his side because he gets that big, long-term picture, even if for Mark it's more of the static intention of the thing. He says things like "this is our time" and works strongly with that internal confidence and understanding, anticipatory and working with what he has in his mind.
I think it comes out the most explicitly during the drug bust scene. In all honesty, I'm convinced that a lot of what we see of Sean's character is his deliberate persona - not a falsity or a mask, just a more intentional way of holding and exerting himself - until that scene, where his "true" self comes out. Sean is frankly worried and anxious both about the situation he's in and the consequences it'll have, but he starts saying assuring words to Mark saying that he'll figure it out (rather than actually figuring it out, like a Te-dom would.) Sean keeps talking about what could happen or that it'll be all right and starts pointing fingers to how the drug bust got happened anyway, trying to figure out and understand the situation out loud to figure out what to do from here. This is when we see a lot of his self-confidence - which was not false, just more obvious - crumble, and see the full extent of his Ni-dom, not just from his anecdotes about people stalking him, but also this internal need to unravel situations fully in his head to himself before anything else.
→ Auxiliary Function: Te (Extraverted Thinking)
I doubt that Sean having Te is really up for debate, since I find it to be rather obvious - again, the declaration with putting Facebook on two continents (and doing so), the way he discussed his past ventures with Napster/the online rolodex; not only does he have clear goals, but he executes them pretty methodically too.
Actually, compare the way that he was talking about Instagram (at the end) to the way Mark initially discussed Facebook - obvious shows of their auxiliary function. While Mark was rambling about Facebook's initial intention to Eduardo, he was mostly monologuing and brainstorming and putting things together out loud. He talked about why people would be on the site in the first place (dom Ti/inf Fe) and just had a singular selling point that he would branch off of: the exclusivity aspect. Meanwhile Sean's monologue is the following:
First of all, Sean is mostly talking to himself to have these things splayed out verbally for him (which is pretty inferior Se anyway) and beginning with this concrete idea, goal, and plan, before leading to a big picture endoff. The way he talks about these things above is discussing the practicalities of something working - the way people would do it, concrete analysis of why they would do it - and supported with also the external evidence he's gathered. While Mark had talked more in theory about why people would come onto Facebook in the first place, Sean clearly thinks more about people carrying another app/website outside of the internet and into their own lives.
Sean is constantly finding ways to do things. With the Case Equity prank, with the Palo Alto business meetings - he has the clear goal of intent and inherent ability to execute like an NTJ. What makes him a specifically IXTJ in this scenario is that there's still that delay between the decision making and the action taking - even though he is relatively quick with his goals (Facebook continental expansion comes to mind), there is still that sense of need to fully establish a where and how before actually doing it, while an EXTJ would look more big picture toward a goal and tend to improvise more along the way. We don't see any of that with Sean - when it goes to shit, he has that visible anxiety and rambles to Mark rather than doing more stupid things to get himself out of trouble. He stagnates instead of being headstrong, though either way it's not necessarily good and just telling of his character.
Additionally, Sean is constantly egging Eduardo on with no remorse even though he knows that he's Mark's CFO/best friend. While this isn't typical INTJ behavior (real life INxJs are more avoidant and then direct only if they have to be), especially since Sean actually gives Eduardo props at one point ("[Eduardo] wants to be a businessman and for all I know he's gonna be a good one but he shouldn't be in New York kissing Madison Avenue's ass."), it seems to come from in all honesty something inside him that he knows is going to end in Mark needing to pick between him or Eduardo. Sean says things what he means because he thinks about them, but that just goes into our next function...
→ Tertiary Function: Introverted Feeling (Fi)
In all honesty, this is probably my linchpin for INTJ Sean.
Sean does not regret the things he says or does, just the consequences of them. He thinks and intends and even uses his own feelings and motivation to subconsciously drive him in the way that tertiary Fi users do. He talks easily about the girl he loved in high school being the basis of Napster; he even talks easily about his previous experiences during the initial dinner, what had happened to him even if it was humiliating. Sean actually has a strong awareness of his feelings and self-perception, and his actual ambitions and goals are to piss people off and get successful, unlike typical real life INTJs whose tertiary Fi drives them to want to be a good person instead.
It's not to say that Sean isn't a good person (though I'm sure there are people who would say this); it's rather that he finds clear cut ways to do the things he wants, and also how he wants to be known. When he pisses Eduardo off, he does in fact think before he talks - "You think you know me," "You know what I've read about you? Nothing." "I heard about your big ticket ad buys lined up. Gary's Tuxedos, the Harvard Bartending Course. You're just one small step away from bagging Snookie's Cookies, I can feel it."lol Ni Especially actually in the laptop crash scene, where despite his annoying interruptions, it actually takes a moment for Sean to give him the cash for $19,000. He barrels in with "He's wired in," "Call security," "You think we were gonna let you parade around here like you owned the place," "Seriously, what the hell's the chicken?" - but it's more of his auxiliary Te being ruthless and tertiary Fi backing up his feelings and seeing no consequence of his actions, even when Mark lashes out at him briefly. Sean has no issue with confronting his flaws, self-perception, and responsibility (as we clearly see with the drug bust scene - he has a lot of immediate self-awareness, when both talking to the officers and to Mark) - it's just a matter of caring about certain consequences and the instances when they happen in the first place, which he clearly does not have any of when Eduardo is in the picture.
One of the biggest differences between an ENTJ and an INTJ is that the ENTJ uses their inferior Fi as a hidden driving force (or a very outwardly visible and superficial one, in healthier instances) - Cartman, Azula, Count Olaf, Louise Belcher, Veronica Lodge (for the parenthetical) - and in instances where it may be exploited there is either a deliberate denial, cognitive dissonance, and dismissal of the feelings to not let them be in the way of their goals. INTJs meanwhile actually let their Fi be in their direct line of vision, sometimes so largely and blindly that they may not fully grasp how to properly view themselves or how other people do, so they keep working with it. INTJs never stop using their value and emotion and awareness of self.
So I suppose this boils down to how we interpret Sean's character. But I think one of his key-traits is, once again, that self-preservation - not for the end goals, but even though he keeps getting burned in his business ventures, he keeps hopping from venture to venture, Stanford girl to Stanford girl, unashamed of being broke or the kind of pathetic life he leads. And why? Because he has the reputation - he doesn't have a lot of evidential successes and things to show for his aspirations, sure - but he still has the skin on his back. After the laptop smash with Eduardo Sean has no reservations when talking about the event with Mark (instead initially asking Mark if he was okay), but after Mark berates him, Sean instead says, "I'll send flowers," but continues not to respond with sincere apologia because he doesn't feel the need to. He knows what he values and who he is and what he intends to do, before doing any of it, which is evidence of tertiary Fi on display.
→ Inferior Function: Extroverted Sensing
Sean lives within his own bubble in the world; he sees what's on the outside and picks and chooses what appeals to him. To be stereotypical - he freely enjoys sex, alcohol, parties, and girls, but still in that superficial inferior function way, with no clear intent or immersion within it. He also jumps from girl to girl and gets excited about new parties and champagne, even though when drunk he immediately goes into his own world and starts discussing things about new apps and websites when everyone else is enjoying themselves.
I think his throwing himself into new projects is actually a healthy way of fulfilling/marrying the dom Ni-inferior Se relationship. Sean does not do these things opportunistically (though it definitely seems like it with Facebook, I'll admit) like an ENxJ - but rather with the need to have a project and new goals. We see this more evidentially when he discusses how he worked with his online rolodex - "I tied my tie and shined my shoes, but no one wants to take orders from a kid." He invests himself in the projects he partakes in rather than waiting and looking for things to pop up that he can take advantage of. Do we see him involved with anything else when he's with Facebook? Or even before or immediately after? Facebook has all of his Se attention.
It's not to say, of course, that inferior Se can only focus on one thing at a time; just that Sean lets himself be driven by a singular goal and the concrete method, like an INxJ. Even when he discusses Instagram actually, he immediately discusses the best plan of action and how it can be done according to him (rather than an ENxJ who would more likely have a big picture and initial intention but also let things happen along the way.) Sean likes to find new ideas to be a part of them concretely, rather than helping or commanding them.
I also think that a lot of his pissing-people-off persona stems from his inferior Se. Again, while I wouldn't want to call Sean fake, a lot of his personality appears more dressed charismatic or annoying than a natural energy - the natural energy is what we see during the drug bust, his being frenetic and need to plan. During the first dinner, with Amy, goading Eduardo... he looks like a ruthless extrovert, but he knows the air he gives off that he sets it in a certain way intentionally. It's not false, but rather I think actually a guard from the Se world, to fit in with them even though he can think he's above them ("this is our time.") His dominant Ni knows how to, and his inferior Se works within it like a chameleon.
Overall
Sean is, honestly, your stereotypical INTJ mastermind in my opinion, so much so that he actually is pretty developed with it, using his introverted functions to mask the inner workings and initial intentions before doing anything. He is methodical though we don't strictly see it on screen; we see little of his regrets and more of his weaknesses that he's turned into strengths (past business experiences.) Is he worried about the articles that people have written about his reputation? No, because he doesn't see it as an issue, either to his own self-worth or to how other people perceive him. Sean has his Ni-Fi intentional and preconceived priorities, and easily uses his Te-Se to make what he wants to happen, happen. He lives a lot in his head first, but that's what gives him the knowledge to easily and confidently interact with the world second.
other typing:
(fanon) dustin: enfp
(fanon) chris: intj
(headcanon) erica: infj
divya: intj
cameron: esfj
tyler: esfp
MARK: INTP
Don't ask me about real life Mark
Another one I wrote
→ Dominant Function: Ti (Introverted Thinking)
I feel like it shouldn't be much of a question that Mark leads his life with logic and patterns… but since this is an Actual Analysis(TM) I'll go in-depth.
He is an analytical person. And instead of it coming from a place of introverted intuition (Ni) where he is actively aware of results; or extraverted thinking (Te) where it pushes him to take action - it's just analysis. It's just him finding patterns and rationalities in the world: we see where he tries to apply this to people in the first scene, with final clubs; we see how natural he is with computers and hacking in just the next scene over.
And I think what makes this the most obvious is that he blogs about it. He talks about the reason and the method and the technical logic behind everything he's doing to hack into the Harvard dorms (paired with the movie scenes - this isn't indicative of real life Mark, whose blog this was actually used for), and it's less out of a sense of Action (Te) or Final Result (Ni) but more with a need and fascination to explain the logic behind his hacking.
Moreover, he basically relies on logic when he talks to people. His sarcastic quips are about pointing out fallacies or picking out logic in other people's words - "Except if you had known what you were looking for, you would've found it on my dorm room window" / "Let me just check your math on that" / "No, it was addressed to me" - and although we know that he is very focused and capable of reaching future goals (Ni) and is very ambitious about them (which is just a personality trait unrelated to MBTI), he most naturally calls upon logic and reasoning in the world more than anything else. He does not constantly look for the results - he constantly looks for the methods, logic, and reasons.
(For the record, I used a lot of comparisons in the above with Ni because I once saw someone call Mark an INTJ and INTJs lead with Ni. Mark does not.)
→ Auxiliary Function: Ne (Extraverted Intuition)
What Facebook is about!!!
The whole narrative of TSN implies that Mark stole the idea, yeah. But what did he do when he "stole" the idea? He came up with a better one. He even states pretty explicitly that he could see/knew all the possibilities that HarvardConnection/Facebook could be, more than the Winklevosses and Divya.
And in the deposition scenes with them, there's a part where Mark says, "… where my colleagues and I are doing things that no one in this room, including and especially your clients, are intellectually or creatively capable of doing." Mark is open to so many possibilities even if it's taking major risks or doing things that have never been done before. When Eduardo wants to have ads on the site, even though it would make logical business sense for them to, Mark says no, because, "we don't know what it can be… we don't know what it will be," and he is all too eager to take that chance. This is how he cognitively interacts with his ideas, and his Ti allows him to rationalize them out to (sometimes/frequently/as we can see in TSN) concrete things. He not only tries to understand the reason and logic behind things, but he also is always ready to anticipate the world of possibilities in the future.
→ Tertiary Function: Si (Introverted Sensing)
There's not much we can say here, but I want to point out that his whole response to the Winklevosses talking about rowing crew after Erica dumped him after mentioning that she liked guys who row crew is a pretty tert Si thing to do.
Also his whole "you would really do that for me?"
Since Si is about one seeing what reality "should" be - not in terms of the future, but the present reality - I feel like Mark is not socially incapable, but rather that his Ti/Ne and also his confidence in his skills (getting a 1600 on the SATs, etc) makes him feel smarter and better than everyone else - and he uses this as an excuse to actually treat people that way. (This also has to do with his inferior Fe, but we'll get to that later.) He knows that he's smarter than other people, and he knows that people are largely academically stupider than him - that is his expectation of the present. When he says the thing to Erica about taking her to parties so she can "meet people [she] otherwise wouldn't have the chance to meet," he may know it's an insult - but he also sees that as a fact, and that fact should trump any sort of emotional impression his words have on her. She should be impressed, she should be flattered - not just because he belittles her feelings, but because it's true.
Si also draws a lot on memory and whatnot, which I suppose we can say feeds into the Mark in the depositions. Actually, on that thought - in an interview Andrew had said that he thought that if Mark had shown any emotion or regret or sorriness in the depositions, Eduardo might've brought it on himself to forgive him.
But Mark didn't. And since a lot of this is acting and implicit and we only hear so much from Mark, there's a lot to assume. But I personally interpret Mark's character during his depositions with Eduardo, not just because he was never sorry or regretful at all, but because that's the type of person Mark felt like he should've been. He knows that Eduardo is pissed at him - he broke is laptop and is suing him for 600 million, so - so he sees no reason to try to debate or make himself a sympathetic character when Eduardo is presenting the facts. He does not actively defend his actions or his character; Eduardo did most of the talking (from what we can see.) But Mark never apologizes nor does he vocally justify any of his actions - even about the chicken thing, he was mostly apathetic about it, and his lawyer had been the one to explain that Mark had defended him.
But he still says "Eduardo was my best friend" during the Winklevoss depositions, and I do think he meant it. He is conscious of the present, and we can assume his memory is excellent (getting a 1600 on the SATs), but his drawing his past on his present appears to be subconscious or moments of helplessness more than anything else.
→ Inferior Function: Fe (Extraverted Feeling)
This may be obvious, but…
His wanting to be in a final club to impress people. The lowkey insecurity he has with wanting people's approval, while at the same time trying to reject that desire - which is a very token trait of inferior Fe - basically comes from the whole final club spiel in the beginning. Mark is aware that you can't use logic to explain people, and it's so much easier for him to fall into the logic of hacking and computers than to consider the concept of sympathy.
Again, I disagree with the frequent interpretation that Mark is socially incapable, but that doesn't mean I think he tries to be socially liked. I think he's aware of what he should do and that people's feelings and impressions of him are important, but it's not as important as logic and reason and justice ("[the Winklevosses] are upset because for the first time in their lives, things aren't going the way they want them to go.") His Fe being in the inferior place makes it very prominent that he's aware of the expectations and feelings of others, that he wants them to hate him if they can't handle him, but still be jealous of his skills and talents. I mean, it works, but I also think it's something he consciously cultivates.
But he still values his friendships a lot - he asks Chris and Dustin (who were closer to him irl, but still) to assist with him on Facebook, is shown to be frequently friendly with Dustin and to value both his intelligence and friendship ("The Wall"; the scene where Eduardo signs the papers and sees Mark and Dustin amicably talking outside), and I think very obviously placed value in his friendship with Eduardo. There are so many ways to interpret the movie, I know - but there are little things like "he was my best friend" (which could have been for emotional appeal); or when he and Eduardo were at the Bill Gates lecture even though Eduardo showed clear disinterest but Mark seemed to be happy to have him there (honestly I'm probably just imposing but, like, when he and Eduardo were walking out and those kids stopped them, I feel like Mark drew away from these strangers and closer to Eduardo, who was his friend/whom he was more familiar with); or honestly just my favorite E/M parts: "this is our thing" and Mark's ease to get as physically close to Eduardo as Eduardo was to him; E/M after the blowjobs standing close together and smiling; and like. A week of spring break. Like, Mark willingly spent a week with his supposed best friend whom he's known for two years. So I think we can conclude that he did place a lot of value in Eduardo.
Oh yeah, and "I want - I need you out here (please don't tell him that I said that.)" (This also insinuates his wanting approval from Sean, too.)
… and also his bad apology to Erica. I think to some degree he always wanted her approval. See: the beginning with trying to impress her, the bad apology, and the friend request at the end. He's so bad at it which is why this is in the inferior place - but his inferiority of it also leads to this wanting of it that he doesn't know what to do with, or how to do it. It's so much easier for him to work in a world where people already feel about him the way he wants them to feel about him, which is why his arrogance/logic and intentional insults work out.
EDUARDO: ESTP
My characterization and impression of Eduardo actually largely comes from fanon, because I feel like it explores his character more than the actual movie does. The movie is told from his point of view (largely) and he is the protagonist - but at the same time the movie is about Mark and Facebook, and though all the parts of him do characterize him consistently, I feel like a lot of his cognitive functions and personality are significantly more implied in the movie and then become expanded in fanwork. I've also analyzed his character/personality, if that helps to get a better idea of a) how I interpret him, and b) how I think the movie subtly characterizes him.
The impression his character leaves on us at the end of the movie may seem more that of a Feeler, but after having watched the movie 30+ times and also reading a lot of fic which has molded with my interpretation of his character (which I also think is consistent with his movie personality), I think he is a Thinker who is good at socializing.
Thus, an ESTP.
→ Dominant Function: Se (Extraverted Sensing)
What we draw from the movie perhaps the most significantly with regards to Mark's betrayal and Eduardo's hand in Facebook, is advertisements. Eduardo wants Facebook to have advertisements so they can gain revenue. Mark doesn't.
This event can be argued for quite a few functions (aux Si, aux Te…) but I think largely the conflict of interest is here is Mark and Eduardo's visions for Facebook. Mark had proposed a business to Eduardo; Eduardo wants what he thinks would be best for the business. They have a company. Mark wants the company to be successful. To be successful, the company needs ads.
Eduardo focuses on the moment, on the now - when he finds the letter from the Winklevosses, he needs to know what is absolutely happening with the letter - what it means, why Mark got it, an explanation for what he didn't realize what was happening (thanks Mark.) Obviously it's natural for anyone to go ahead and find out what to do about it, but we see clearly that he reacts immediately to it, needs to immerse himself in the situation and understand it fully. This is extraverted sensing.
Additionally, he doesn't seem to be a stressed or paranoid person, but he also doesn't seem to be the type who is lost in his thoughts. Eduardo interacts with his environment as it is - in the depositions, he's not an emotional wreck, and mostly delivers the facts in a platonic manner. (During the chicken and 0.03% he was emotional, but c'mon, anyone would be.) We see him in three piece suits most of the time, but during Caribbean Night he seemed to be just as happy and comfortable in his ridiculous "Hawaiian" getup. He takes the world as it is and knows how to live with it.
With fanon examples, I think his interest in the weather (which is mentioned once in the movie) also ties into this quite nicely. Canon Eduardo loves the weather (and honestly I wouldn't be surprised if he's an ESTP too) and is excellent at chess, both things which I think that the dominant Se assists with. A lot of fanon Eduardo has him being fascinated with rain and storms and being in them and just studying and experiencing them, which is honestly probably the most dominant Se thing I've ever heard.
→ Auxiliary Function: Ti (Introverted Thinking)
This is a bit of a leap, admittedly, but my giving him the auxiliary function both works with a consequent tertiary Fe (more on that later), and also because he's just a huge nerd.
Mark tells us that Eduardo made $300,000 on betting oil futures. Because he likes the weather. And I think that if you go ahead and use your love for the weather to make 300 grand by gambling, there is some large skill of logic here.
Plus, I think he operates very much based on what is reasonable rather than anything related to his identity, emotions, or self. Obviously we know that any Thinker is can still be an emotional person, but, again with the letter from the Winklevosses, Eduardo goes, "Okay, so what are we going to do about this?" He stresses out for a minute before calming down and trying to find the path that he and Mark could take. Though he is worried, he clearly prioritizes a practical approach than a gut feeling one (and it says a lot that Mark had already taken a pretty reasonable course of action before even consulting with Eduardo - and Mark leads with Ti.)
Anyway, we know that Eduardo is smart - though I don't think his punching by the Phoenix is indicative of his intelligence, we know about the oil futures, the chess is a canon fact that we can apply to TSN Eduardo if we want to, and I also think his being a business major and even exploiting some of that in the movie also feeds into his Ti. Eduardo is good at logic. He is learnt: he has the algorithm for the beginning; he knows why his shares initially increase. He debunks Sean's argument with, "Wait, they won in court," even though Sean throws another clapback at him right away. When Mark explains things to Eduardo about the site, he might not understand it fully with regards to coding: but he understands the motivations and reasons right away, is able to follow Mark's line of thinking. ("… they'll have a chance to - " "Get laid." "Meet a girl. Yes.") It is innate but even if he is good with his emotions and people, he reasons them out first.
Moreover, much like Mark but less driven-wise, when he speaks/thinks he still operates by logic, especially somewhat humorously. In the scene when they're walking back from the Bill Gates lecture, Eduardo talks about what Christy said to him - and how it been so great. "She said 'Facebook me', and -" "They want to get drinks later, yeah." He clearly enjoys reasoning out this very small thing that he could've just expressed his feelings about instead of rationalizing why it's great. Additionally, again with Christy's words, when they're at dinner with Sean, she brings up the 3000lb marlin and he almost immediately goes, "Well we know that marlins don't really weigh 3000 pounds, right?" and then, "That would have to be an incredibly large fish and a really strong guy." EDUARDO NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR LOGIC! But though this is a more small and "funny" part, I think it still fundamentally shows that Eduardo focuses more on reason than feeling.
→ Tertiary Function: Fe (Extraverted Feeling)
People with the tertiary Fe are good at people or at least know how to make an impression on them, but it's not something that they innately try.
I think with all of Eduardo's capabilities with people, it's something more that feels naturalized to him more than something that drives him and that he values. When Christy talks to him he knows how to respond; generally he knows how to be likable. The suits thing may feel over the top but being in the Harvard Investor's Club, AEPi, and getting into the Phoenix - and paired with his pretty face - we can easily assume that people like him and easily accept him.
It's not that Eduardo either doesn't actively try or doesn't care - with all his Se/Ti leading, the tertiary Fe allows him to be aware of people and understand both their value and how he can interact with them. Since the tertiary spot is where the "immature" function tends to be, it means that the user doesn't necessarily know how to control it but it can also balance the aux Ti out. Where Eduardo has reason (Ti), his Fe allows him to be a charming likable person and to hold his tongue when he needs to be. It's when he's with Sean Parker - someone he actively does not care about, both generally and also sympathetically - where we see his snarky "reasonable" self (i.e. Mark's brand of logic-based asshole) come out. Otherwise, with people he cares about, he knows how to care.
Additionally, his tert Fe comes out a lot whenever he's with Mark. When he speaks to Mark about the letter, he consciously uses logic - but he also uses emotional appeal to Mark. "What are we going to do about this?" "If there's something wrong, if there's ever anything wrong, you can tell me. I'm the guy who wants to help." Immediately after telling Mark about the Phoenix punch, Eduardo backpedals - "It was probably just a diversity thing" - because he realizes/remembers what it means to Mark. He wants Mark to apologize to Erica even though he's presumably never met her; he is good at emotional appeal during the depositions; he knows the impression that Facesmash will make but overall still gives Mark the algorithm because he wants to help his friend.
Contrary to some interpretations of his character, if Eduardo behaves in a caring/motherly way at all, it's not fueled by his care for other people. It starts with what he knows what a human needs to function, what logically makes sense, in order to care for other people. This is either Fe/Ti or Ti/Fe in the middle two spots, but I believe that Eduardo prioritizes the practicality in caring rather than caring with practicality.
→ Inferior Function: Ni (Introverted Intuition)
And we come back to the advertisements.
And the freezing the bank account.
And… the dilution.
Introverted intuition in the inferior spot means that someone largely thinks about the future, but sometimes focuses a lot on this one spot in the far future without really going for it because they don't think it's important to prioritize because they're so stuck in the present. Other immature traits of the introverted intuition include: missing signs of a probable result, and also some sort of fear about the future.
Eduardo actually does not fit this perfectly because he did gamble with the oil futures, but I think that's because he could've been working on it; and because he's studying to be a businessman, which while does require the trust for one to take risks (which is actually a Dom Se trait anyway), still requires a reasonable head for the future.
And of course we all work with our inferior functions at different points in our life with different ways.
I think considering his profession and interests, Eduardo has likely worked on maturing his inferior Ni (though this actually draws mostly from the fanon-canon fact of his liking chess and the weather) through the economics-business, which he's good at anyway. But we can still see where it immaturely comes out in the most conflict-ridden parts of the movie's narrative.
With the advertisements and the site, Mark says he doesn't want ads because he is open to the site being exactly what he wants it to be, even though at the time and as a business it's fundamentally unrealistic. Eduardo, however, wants ads - not just because he's very much based in the present, but also because he doesn't think it could be a successful business model otherwise. It's clear that he thinks the company would fail and not be able to work if they don't try to look for a more secure future - he's so focused on this idea and this future that it's hard for him to be open to Mark's large world of possibilities.
In freezing the bank account, Eduardo clearly doesn't see the results it could lead to. He wanted to get Mark's attention, but it was a ridiculously personal thing to do when doing business. He is so focused on getting Mark's attention now that he completely misses that it could yield personal results from Mark. He has absolutely no clue or suspicion that the dilutions will happen until the moment he's presented with the papers - he's off at Harvard living his life that the time skips right over it to the dilution because it narratively is so fast that it's a shock. "In all honesty, I should've known," he says in the depositions - he can realize the logic in the result, but he had been unable to see its path at the time.
→ Overall:
I also want to note that a very typical personality trait of ESTPs is that they're smart risk takers, but Eduardo doesn't necessarily exhibit the risky trait. I think the biggest risk he took in The Social Network was investing $19,000 in Facebook which is… okay, that's also a big risk. And suing Mark was actually admittedly another big risk, because he wanted to show Mark the repercussions of his actions now.
But on the point of risk taking - I think that Eduardo could cognitively easily fall to the idea of it. But a lot of fanon (and this is probably canon too?) Eduardo has his father pressure him to go into business from a young age, and that kind of environmental pressure forced him to think more practically and economically. ESTPs actually do also tend to go into stock, marketing, and entrepreneurship, which - well, real life Eduardo is something of an entrepreneur now. (Fic also has him either starting his own companies or helping young creatives by giving them money/investing in them, which is also what canon Eduardo is doing…) I think Eduardo is not exactly the most exuberant type of ESTP, but fundamentally he likes to give things a chance while also analyzing them to make sure that they are practical chances, which is a core ESTP trait.
SEAN: INTJ
I have told people before that I read Sean as an INTJ, to which they often reply to me saying, "Isn't Sean too extroverted to be an INTJ?" But also I've watched the movie like five million times and each time I pick up more and more traits, characteristics, and methods/reasons of behavior indicating what I believe to be his fictional character's cognitive functions constantly pointing more towards INTJ, with further support and evidence. Remember: MBTI introversion does not necessarily indicate introverted behavior, and how people act alone means nothing about MBTI - it's why and how (at the same time!) that matters.
→ Dominant Function: Ni (Introverted Intuition)
This is tricky, because my familiarity with dominant Ni users (who have made up a large portion of my closest friends) is largely based on vibe. This also directly contrasts Eduardo's inferior Ni usage leading to an under-the-skin anxiety with him, while Sean is much more self-contained and gathers information to easily adjust into his behavior and plans.
I suppose the best way is to lead with example. Sean discusses business and the music industry in a way where he knows how it works in and out - especially the falsities and inconveniences - and needs to share it. And the way he does it is with the confidence and advice-giving position he comes from - yes, it does come from his experiences, but Sean says things like, "And even if you've managed to live your life like the Dalai Lama, they'll make shit up," and talks about how Case Equity people had tapped his phones and targeted him by high-priced escorts and such, discussed the Victoria's Secret story with the demeanor of someone who knows what they're talking about because he does. While the paranoia means nothing either way, Sean still discusses these things with the air of someone who knows, whether you listen to him or not. He doesn't give concrete advice like an Si-dom would, or discuss things in the air of "this is what you should do and if you don't then it's your fault for not listening to me" like a Te-dom would, or really even get wrapped up in these past experiences when talking about them more than anything like an Ne-dom/Si-inferior. Sean himself has the knowledge and he chooses to share it because the situation may benefit from it, though he keeps his distance in case it doesn't/backfires for the sake of self-preservation.
We also see Sean talking on the phone a lot, always discussing and finding ways to work his way back to Case Equity before actually doing anything about it. And when he and Mark are in the club, Sean says things like, "When you get to 100 schools I'll put you on two continents." Sean has that internal path and tries to find it with the least and most individualistic resistance. He understands the point and goal of Facebook right away even when Eduardo doesn't; Sean doesn't need Mark to tell him with his own words, because he already knows and is immediately on his side because he gets that big, long-term picture, even if for Mark it's more of the static intention of the thing. He says things like "this is our time" and works strongly with that internal confidence and understanding, anticipatory and working with what he has in his mind.
I think it comes out the most explicitly during the drug bust scene. In all honesty, I'm convinced that a lot of what we see of Sean's character is his deliberate persona - not a falsity or a mask, just a more intentional way of holding and exerting himself - until that scene, where his "true" self comes out. Sean is frankly worried and anxious both about the situation he's in and the consequences it'll have, but he starts saying assuring words to Mark saying that he'll figure it out (rather than actually figuring it out, like a Te-dom would.) Sean keeps talking about what could happen or that it'll be all right and starts pointing fingers to how the drug bust got happened anyway, trying to figure out and understand the situation out loud to figure out what to do from here. This is when we see a lot of his self-confidence - which was not false, just more obvious - crumble, and see the full extent of his Ni-dom, not just from his anecdotes about people stalking him, but also this internal need to unravel situations fully in his head to himself before anything else.
→ Auxiliary Function: Te (Extraverted Thinking)
I doubt that Sean having Te is really up for debate, since I find it to be rather obvious - again, the declaration with putting Facebook on two continents (and doing so), the way he discussed his past ventures with Napster/the online rolodex; not only does he have clear goals, but he executes them pretty methodically too.
Actually, compare the way that he was talking about Instagram (at the end) to the way Mark initially discussed Facebook - obvious shows of their auxiliary function. While Mark was rambling about Facebook's initial intention to Eduardo, he was mostly monologuing and brainstorming and putting things together out loud. He talked about why people would be on the site in the first place (dom Ti/inf Fe) and just had a singular selling point that he would branch off of: the exclusivity aspect. Meanwhile Sean's monologue is the following:
The next transformative development? A picture sharing application. A place where you view pictures that coincide with your social life. It is...the true digitalization of real life. You don’t just go to a party anymore, you go to a party with your digital camera and your friends relive the party on Facebook. And tagging. The idea--[...]
I’ve spent hours watching what people do when they log on. How they check their friends’ status updates, checked to see which of their friends had changed their profiles, changed their photos and mostly[...]
We lived on farms and then we lived in cities and now we’re gonna live on the internet.
First of all, Sean is mostly talking to himself to have these things splayed out verbally for him (which is pretty inferior Se anyway) and beginning with this concrete idea, goal, and plan, before leading to a big picture endoff. The way he talks about these things above is discussing the practicalities of something working - the way people would do it, concrete analysis of why they would do it - and supported with also the external evidence he's gathered. While Mark had talked more in theory about why people would come onto Facebook in the first place, Sean clearly thinks more about people carrying another app/website outside of the internet and into their own lives.
Sean is constantly finding ways to do things. With the Case Equity prank, with the Palo Alto business meetings - he has the clear goal of intent and inherent ability to execute like an NTJ. What makes him a specifically IXTJ in this scenario is that there's still that delay between the decision making and the action taking - even though he is relatively quick with his goals (Facebook continental expansion comes to mind), there is still that sense of need to fully establish a where and how before actually doing it, while an EXTJ would look more big picture toward a goal and tend to improvise more along the way. We don't see any of that with Sean - when it goes to shit, he has that visible anxiety and rambles to Mark rather than doing more stupid things to get himself out of trouble. He stagnates instead of being headstrong, though either way it's not necessarily good and just telling of his character.
Additionally, Sean is constantly egging Eduardo on with no remorse even though he knows that he's Mark's CFO/best friend. While this isn't typical INTJ behavior (real life INxJs are more avoidant and then direct only if they have to be), especially since Sean actually gives Eduardo props at one point ("[Eduardo] wants to be a businessman and for all I know he's gonna be a good one but he shouldn't be in New York kissing Madison Avenue's ass."), it seems to come from in all honesty something inside him that he knows is going to end in Mark needing to pick between him or Eduardo. Sean says things what he means because he thinks about them, but that just goes into our next function...
→ Tertiary Function: Introverted Feeling (Fi)
In all honesty, this is probably my linchpin for INTJ Sean.
Sean does not regret the things he says or does, just the consequences of them. He thinks and intends and even uses his own feelings and motivation to subconsciously drive him in the way that tertiary Fi users do. He talks easily about the girl he loved in high school being the basis of Napster; he even talks easily about his previous experiences during the initial dinner, what had happened to him even if it was humiliating. Sean actually has a strong awareness of his feelings and self-perception, and his actual ambitions and goals are to piss people off and get successful, unlike typical real life INTJs whose tertiary Fi drives them to want to be a good person instead.
It's not to say that Sean isn't a good person (though I'm sure there are people who would say this); it's rather that he finds clear cut ways to do the things he wants, and also how he wants to be known. When he pisses Eduardo off, he does in fact think before he talks - "You think you know me," "You know what I've read about you? Nothing." "I heard about your big ticket ad buys lined up. Gary's Tuxedos, the Harvard Bartending Course. You're just one small step away from bagging Snookie's Cookies, I can feel it."
One of the biggest differences between an ENTJ and an INTJ is that the ENTJ uses their inferior Fi as a hidden driving force (or a very outwardly visible and superficial one, in healthier instances) - Cartman, Azula, Count Olaf, Louise Belcher, Veronica Lodge (for the parenthetical) - and in instances where it may be exploited there is either a deliberate denial, cognitive dissonance, and dismissal of the feelings to not let them be in the way of their goals. INTJs meanwhile actually let their Fi be in their direct line of vision, sometimes so largely and blindly that they may not fully grasp how to properly view themselves or how other people do, so they keep working with it. INTJs never stop using their value and emotion and awareness of self.
So I suppose this boils down to how we interpret Sean's character. But I think one of his key-traits is, once again, that self-preservation - not for the end goals, but even though he keeps getting burned in his business ventures, he keeps hopping from venture to venture, Stanford girl to Stanford girl, unashamed of being broke or the kind of pathetic life he leads. And why? Because he has the reputation - he doesn't have a lot of evidential successes and things to show for his aspirations, sure - but he still has the skin on his back. After the laptop smash with Eduardo Sean has no reservations when talking about the event with Mark (instead initially asking Mark if he was okay), but after Mark berates him, Sean instead says, "I'll send flowers," but continues not to respond with sincere apologia because he doesn't feel the need to. He knows what he values and who he is and what he intends to do, before doing any of it, which is evidence of tertiary Fi on display.
→ Inferior Function: Extroverted Sensing
Sean lives within his own bubble in the world; he sees what's on the outside and picks and chooses what appeals to him. To be stereotypical - he freely enjoys sex, alcohol, parties, and girls, but still in that superficial inferior function way, with no clear intent or immersion within it. He also jumps from girl to girl and gets excited about new parties and champagne, even though when drunk he immediately goes into his own world and starts discussing things about new apps and websites when everyone else is enjoying themselves.
I think his throwing himself into new projects is actually a healthy way of fulfilling/marrying the dom Ni-inferior Se relationship. Sean does not do these things opportunistically (though it definitely seems like it with Facebook, I'll admit) like an ENxJ - but rather with the need to have a project and new goals. We see this more evidentially when he discusses how he worked with his online rolodex - "I tied my tie and shined my shoes, but no one wants to take orders from a kid." He invests himself in the projects he partakes in rather than waiting and looking for things to pop up that he can take advantage of. Do we see him involved with anything else when he's with Facebook? Or even before or immediately after? Facebook has all of his Se attention.
It's not to say, of course, that inferior Se can only focus on one thing at a time; just that Sean lets himself be driven by a singular goal and the concrete method, like an INxJ. Even when he discusses Instagram actually, he immediately discusses the best plan of action and how it can be done according to him (rather than an ENxJ who would more likely have a big picture and initial intention but also let things happen along the way.) Sean likes to find new ideas to be a part of them concretely, rather than helping or commanding them.
I also think that a lot of his pissing-people-off persona stems from his inferior Se. Again, while I wouldn't want to call Sean fake, a lot of his personality appears more dressed charismatic or annoying than a natural energy - the natural energy is what we see during the drug bust, his being frenetic and need to plan. During the first dinner, with Amy, goading Eduardo... he looks like a ruthless extrovert, but he knows the air he gives off that he sets it in a certain way intentionally. It's not false, but rather I think actually a guard from the Se world, to fit in with them even though he can think he's above them ("this is our time.") His dominant Ni knows how to, and his inferior Se works within it like a chameleon.
Overall
Sean is, honestly, your stereotypical INTJ mastermind in my opinion, so much so that he actually is pretty developed with it, using his introverted functions to mask the inner workings and initial intentions before doing anything. He is methodical though we don't strictly see it on screen; we see little of his regrets and more of his weaknesses that he's turned into strengths (past business experiences.) Is he worried about the articles that people have written about his reputation? No, because he doesn't see it as an issue, either to his own self-worth or to how other people perceive him. Sean has his Ni-Fi intentional and preconceived priorities, and easily uses his Te-Se to make what he wants to happen, happen. He lives a lot in his head first, but that's what gives him the knowledge to easily and confidently interact with the world second.
other typing:
(fanon) dustin: enfp
(fanon) chris: intj
(headcanon) erica: infj
divya: intj
cameron: esfj
tyler: esfp