MBTI Type: INFJ

Since the film character is so circumspect, I’ve supplemented this profile with information gathered from the book.

George is insightful into other people and their motivations and appears to think quite differently from his colleagues, which makes him a valuable spy (at one point, he says that “a fanatic is always concealing a secret doubt”) and allows him to systematically unearth the trail of individuals centered around the mole (“I know who he is,” he confesses at one point to a suspect; “do you?”). He often speaks metaphorically (sending people into the lion’s den, and his remark about casting glitter amid the chicken feed). He comes to his conclusion about the mole when on his own, thinking in silence, and has all the pieces click into place. He knows how to engage with each suspect and interrogation, where to apply pressure or to ease off and be more amenable, based on the individual he is speaking to. He also has a cynical affect to conceal his hurt feelings and resentment about the state of humanity; he is sensitive about the wife who has abandoned him (and cheated on him), but avoids the topic rather than tells people to leave it alone. He uses different interrogation techniques with different people, showing his adaptability to what will work best with them. He also feels anger and frustration that neither side of this war has the moral high ground, since both involve human casualties and support a government centered around profiting greedy and immoral men. He shows a great deal of Ti in how he breaks things down, constantly digs at the truth, is trying to understand those around him, and is asking lots of questions. As an inferior Se, he rarely takes risks or goes out on his own investigative work; he invites others to do that sort of thing for him, which also means they incur the risk (he tells one man if he’s caught, “I never knew about it,” meaning he won’t rescue him and must not have his name mentioned). He has the same sorts of dull routines that mark his days (river bathing and sitting behind a desk), without him ever being more adventurous.

Enneagram: 9w1 sp/so

George is polite and self-effacing, and according to various sources, “allows others to mistreat him,” including his serially unfaithful wife whom he continues to love and support, despite her repeated adulterous affairs and humiliations on that front. He passively interacts with other characters from a place of observation, and has no strong ambitions; he is content to work behind the scenes rather than put himself up for promotion or even argue in the committee meetings. When his wife’s lover shows up to the house, he is generally polite to him and acts as if he has no clue about what’s happening. It’s his gentle approach that causes various characters to open up to him and confide in him, which makes his interrogations seem nonthreatening, and allows him to gradually gather information to unearth the mole. He has a sense of duty, moral obligation, and a desire to serve for the greater good which drives him to his espionage work. He’s also somewhat risk-adverse, and in the book, is described as someone who gets away with being unnoticed (“obscurity was his nature, as well as his profession” and he blends in wherever he goes, attracting no notice).

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