INTP 9w1 Characters
Victor Frankenstein’s MBTI type has fascinated fans of Frankenweenie who see him as one of Tim Burton’s most relatable protagonists. Played by Charlie Tahan, Victor embodies the traits of an INTP 9w1 character, a quiet, imaginative boy whose love for science and loyalty to his dog drive the story. His quirky inventions, withdrawn nature, and moral struggles make him a perfect example of how Burton crafts characters who are both eccentric and deeply human.
Introverted Thinking
Victor has very few friends because he spends most of his time in the family attic tinkering with inventions. His mother often complains that he has made off with some gadget of hers. His grasp of how things work allow him to form a theory that he can resurrect his dog, Sparky, using a form of electricity and other items acting as a conduit, with the lightning storms that happen every night as a result of the windmill that towers over the town. So he collects most of her electrical gadgets, takes them apart, repurposes them, and builds a laboratory which conducts an electrical current down to his pet. Later, when his friends discover the truth, Victor recreates the experiment several times, but it puzzles him as to why the invisible fish does not last forever (the missing element is emotion / love, since he loved Sparky enough to bring him to life).
Because he cares about his dog, Victor doesn’t see this experiment as inhumane or inappropriate, unlike his more feeler-directed parents. He also thinks on his feet, such as when he problem-solves the rampaging giant turtle at the fair and gets rid of the scampering sea monkeys (he uses popcorn and salt to destroy them, and an electrical current traveling through spilled beer to take down the turtle).
Extraverted Intuition
The film opens with Victor’s home movie, in which he stages an elaborate story of a giant creature rampaging through the town and his pet heroically saving the day. When the film splits and burns, rather than get upset, Victor carries it off to his room to fix it. This shows that not only is mechanically minded (Ti), but he also dabbles in a lot of different mediums (film, science, art, imagination).
His room is full of his innovations and inventions, and he spends most of his time alone rather than wanting to try outdoor activities. His father has to bribe him with signing his science fair permission slip in exchange for Victor playing baseball. Victor sees his teacher make a frog’s legs move in class, and instantly connects it to his dead pet, with the idea that he could bring him to life. He wastes no time in collecting objects from the house to build his laboratory and setting to work (showing how easily Ne builds intellectual bridges between separate ideas and wants to act on them).
The limited thinking of the townspeople doesn’t affect him, because he can see beyond it to the potential of reanimating animals… but this also means he doesn’t foresee the consequences of teaching the other kids how to do it, unleashing terrors upon their small community when their lack of discernment in the pets they reanimate causes chaos.
Introverted Sensing
Victor has an appreciation for old-fashioned things, such as styling his home movie after Godzilla. The fact that his experiment worked shows his immaculate attention to detail and the time he spent to make sure everything would be exactly right in time for the lightning storm.
He is sentimental about his pet and how Sparky is his only friend. Rather than think about adopting a new puppy, he would rather dig up his old buddy, stitch him back together, put bolts in his neck, and give him a few jolts of electricity. This captures low Si’s desire for things to stay the same forever, because it feels familiar and comfortable and preferred, rather than to see everything change all at once.
Extraverted Feeling
When his parents are disturbed by him bringing his dead dog back to life, Victor doesn’t understand, because it only makes sense that if you can do something, you ought to do it. He feels deeply for his pet, but doesn’t comprehend fully how emotions play into his experiment and cause the other kids’ pets to “go wrong.” They had all the wrong motivations (to beat each other and be competitive) and that transformed their pets into monsters, because his love for Sparky and their special friendship was the missing emotional component that he forgot to account for. This is common in INTP protagonists, and in real life, because inferior Fe experiences fewer emotions than other types and when it does surface, the INTP isn’t sure what to “do” with those feelings at times.
Victor doesn’t fit in and feels no desire to try to, because the other kids won’t understand him. He has a low desire to connect with them and would rather speak to his teacher, who shares his passion for science, instead. But when the kids come to him asking how to reanimate their pets, Victor tells them.
The Enneagram 9
Where an Enneagram 5 would delight in the uniqueness of their experiment and not want to share it with others (the act of sharing with lesser minds would taint it), Victor does not hesitate to trade his knowledge for the other kids’ secrecy. In my opinion, this is 9ish of him. Also 9ish is his tendency to self-isolate, to want to avoid confrontations and for his mother not to be upset with him. He doesn’t like change or disruptions to his preferred way of doing things, and avoids telling his parents about Sparky because it might create an emotional upset or earn him their disapproval.
When he comes up with an idea, Victor withdraws and works on his own to solve it, a trait of being a withdrawn type. 9s pull away from other people both to resolve things for themselves, since they trust themselves to come up with the right answer, and so that no one imposes their opinions or their will on them, since then the 9 would be forced to deal with that. They want to be left alone, in peace, to make decisions nobody can disagree with until it’s too late, and that’s how Victor goes about his life. Quietly floating in the background, dwelling in his imagination, and searching for answers to his own problems.
The 1 Wing
It bothers Victor when he feels he has done something wrong, since it means he has to deal with their feelings (his parents), but that doesn’t stop him from believing that it was “right” to resurrect Sparky, the best dog any boy could ever have. 1s do not doubt that what they are doing is right; it’s right, because they feel it in their body that it is right.
In Victor’s mind, it isn’t right that a wonderful dog should die before his time. It’s only right to correct that, so he can continue living perhaps forever. His 1 wing is idealistic in that fashion, hoping to correct a wrong of reality so that he can be happy. It’s also right to share this knowledge, but when it gets out of hand, his desire to correct the situation drives him to figure out how to defeat all the monsters and save his town. When Sparky dies a second time, Victor at first is willing to let him go (maybe it’s right and good that he should be at peace), but encouraged by his parents, brings him back to life again.
Why Victor’s Story Resonates
I think this is one of Tim Burton’s best little movies, because it is both uniquely his and reminiscent of all his favorite films, with little nods to horror movies throughout. I like the idea that this world might be an extension of the one in the Corpse Bride, with this Victor being a descendant of Victor van Dort, since they are so much alike in temperament and in appearance. It is also touching and speaks to the yearning inside all of us to not experience loss and pain. Anyone who has ever loved and lost a pet cannot help but feel connected to Victor in those tearful moments of anguish, and joy when Sparky comes to life.
