Who else but the INFJ could train a god among men such as Batman? Who? Who, I ask you!
Ra’s al Ghul isn’t your run-of-the-mill super villain, nor are any of Batman’s foes. But Ra’s is cast in a different light due to several major reasons. Reasons only an Idealist would have in mind when they become as twisted as the other criminals in Gotham. Heck, he’s not even in Gotham when he faces Batman half the time.
Take notes here. This is the rare INFJ villain.
The Joker may want to have fun and doesn’t care who dies in the process, Two-Face may be obsessed with duality to the point of committing a crime only to turn himself in, but Ra’s al Ghul wants to kill most of humanity in order to bring balance to the world. He’s a hero in his own mind and nothing can change that.
A hero with a sense of decor!
No other villain seems to have the relationship with their archenemy that Ra’s does; He wants his enemy, Batman, to get with his daughter Talia, have Batman kill him, and take over his empire. Not only this, but he’s the grandfather to the latest Robin, Damien Wayne; whom Bruce Wayne had with Talia. These things don’t say “Idealist” but it’s a starting point.
Ra’s first function is Ni, Introverted Intuition. Ra’s age may change depending on the writer but it’s a sure thing that he is in the hundreds range. Maybe four to six hundred at least. He’s afforded this by his Lazarus Pits- pools that granted immortal life and cure fatal wounds. Even though Ra’s has used these throughout his life, he knows it’s inevitable that he will die.
He’s not living in the moment, but looking for an heir and he thinks he’s found one in Batman.
Ni’s long range planning and organizing is found here to a uniquely strange degree. Some villains want to kill Batman while some don’t care what happens but none of them want Batman to take their mantle from them- or their daughter.
Ra’s second function of Fe seems unlikely at first seeing as how he doesn’t really have a problem with killing as many people as he has to so he can achieve his objectives. But we’re not looking at the actions, we’re looking at motive. And Ra’s motives involve not only having his legacy continued after his death but for the safety and security of the modern world.
To kill as many people as you see fit to reach your goal is highly twisted yes, but it’s not only easy to have your mentality twisted depending on your environment, many “big picture” types can get so caught up in the big picture that the day to day sins they commit just don’t seem to matter in the long run…even if their sins have been building up for hundreds of years, Ra’s still thinks he’s doing the world a service ultimately.
Ra’s has used bombs and released lethal viruses in hopes to take out anyone he’s deemed unworthy to live, which is a pretty high number. One of his Lazarus pits saved the Riddler from cancer without his knowledge, leading to the “Hush” story line.
His daughter Talia and her bodyguard Shiva are competent villains in their own right and in the video game for Arkham City, he’s shown to be the mastermind behind the main story line.
His role in Nolan’s films and his portrayal by Liam Neeson has brought him closer to the limelight in the past several years and it’s interesting, the chain of events that have come to be in the films because of his role.
Ra’s trains and attempts to defeat Bruce Wayne/Batman. After his death, Bruce continues fighting, hoping to rid Gotham of organized crime which eventually leads to the rise of the Joker. From the events of The Dark Knight, Bruce faces Bane and Talia, who continue Ra’s work and seek to truly destroy Batman as a “gift” to Ra’s for his death. Full circle, just how the INFJ likes it.
It’s how Big Daddy Ghul likes it too.
Several flaws of the INFJ that Ra’s al Ghul possesses are many of the traits found in people and characters but specifically more dominating characters. They have a tendency to believe something and dismiss others input or ideas, and always think that their way is the right way. It goes without saying that he would be this way, as his plans involves looking at the big picture through a very narrow view.
In the comics, it’s also funny that INFJs are thought to have unrealistic expectations of others considering Ra’s expecting Batman, having dedicated his life to fighting crime, to take over his mantle of killing criminals. If someone were to tell a person “no” several times and been put into several life or death situations, one should be able to take a hint.
But Ra’s sees not just how his own daughter and Wayne feel toward each other, but the potential of Batman as an heir. These few things are powerful enough to motivate this particular INFJ to continue his global crime spree and to keep trying to adopt Batman as his successor.
Would you success a man with a daughter like this? I’d totally success him.
Strong and independent- just how I like my coffee.
This entry was posted on 09/04/2013 at 2:01 am and is filed under MBTI Idealists, MBTI Stuff with tags arkham city, batman, dark knight, infj, mbti in fiction, ra's al ghul.	You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Out of all the types NF Idealists seem to have the most interesting perspectives and rationalization of their actions.
Yeah, there’s a reason they’re as misunderstood as they are. Noble goals, bizarre methods.
Well ok if its not irony. When Ras says that line in Batman Begins you have to admit it shows how twisted he is. It might make you think out loud to yourself, “Did he hear what he was saying” kind of thought.
Actually, INFJ and killing most of humanity…that sounds like someone history remembers with shivers down it’s spine.
Absolutely. When I’m introducing people to MBTI types, it’s always important to get across this notion that type is not character.
When I mention that I am the same type as Ghandi, Jane Goodall, etc., they see “Okay, that type is one of great people.” Then I mention Adolf Hitler, and I think this distinction between temperament and character becomes clear.
It’s scary that while no one should EVER excuse his actions, I (perhaps as an INFJ) can at least understand where his rage came from, how a sensitive artist can turn to a genocidal dictator.
INFJs can be straight-up evil, but it’s never that simple – they’re evil out of strong ideals, no matter how wretched they may be.