INFJ 9w8 Characters

John constantly speaks of “destiny,” and “fate,” and “spirit walks.” He forms an immediate mystical bond with the island and believes it can both teach him things, and show him things about himself and other people. The strange events of the island do not faze him; he takes them all in stride. He tends to fixate and visualize on something, and then not quit pursuing it until he gets what he wants (even on the mainland, he stubbornly clung to his idealistic belief of going on the nature walk / hike despite being in a wheelchair). He has trained himself to be aware of his environment and able to use it, through extensive research into hunting, tracking, and survival skills. Locke completely immerses himself in the experience of the island – when others run for cover, he enjoys the rain. He gets a kick out of dangerous situations and even sometimes puts himself in them for fun. Being out of a wheelchair has made him highly active and eager to pursue purely physical things. He is interested not merely in his own self-growth, but that of others, and tries to guide them to self-awareness as much as he can (teaching Walt how to hunt or throw knives, taking Boone under his wing to educate him about the island). Locke shows an ability to understand other people’s needs and desires; his own emotions only rarely surface (anger over not being allowed to do things on the mainland) but he is attentive to other people’s feelings and needs and can even be manipulative with them in accomplishing what he wants. If the facts seem insurmountable, Locke thinks around them. He trusts that at some point, the solution will present itself. Rather than try to force open the hatch, he would rather meditate on it until a solution comes to him. He often takes direct action rather than announce his intentions or formulate plans. He tends to keep his schemes inside his own head, and at first has no real interest in leadership or controlling others, so much in figuring out what the island, its occupants, and its mysticism all mean to him, personally.

Enneagram: 9w8

Before he gets on the plane, Locke has his heart set on a “walk-about,” which is a way to become “one” with the earth. This is the connection he forges with the island, becoming so in tune with it that he believes he knows what it has to say to him. From the flashbacks, we know he’s obsessed with proving himself, and not being told “what I can and cannot do.” He doesn’t want to hear that he can’t follow his dreams because of his disabilities, and angrily tells people to leave him alone. Locke shifts back and forth between being a silent presence, accommodating in his personal life (allowing his father to crush his feelings, use him, and abandon him out of a hope for reconciliation), and being aggressive, assertive, and authoritarian when on the island, by insisting people follow his leadership and doggedly going after the boar, even after his companions are hurt. He has a polarizing effect on people—either they respect him and look up to him for his calm, detached toughness, or they dislike him for his forceful behavior.