MBTI Type: ISFJ
Mr. Brownlow is an attorney who is meticulous and who builds an understanding of people based on his interactions with them. He knows Monks to be unstable and dangerous, but also that he can be controlled through focusing on the financial repercussions of his decisions. He is somewhat skeptical of Rose’s memories and nightmares about what happened, and thinks she might be ‘fanciful’ or have made up her memories out of bad dreams / nightmares centered around her sister’s disappearance, until she tells him enough for him to connect her description of the man who terrorized her as a child to Monks. He admits that he is something of a ‘recluse’ who avoids society, but he is also heavily involved in the lives of those around him. He argues for a judge to show Oliver compassion, saying the boy is going to faint in the dock, and he has no intention of pressing charges.
His compassion is often scoffed at by his friends, who accuse him of being foolishly soft-hearted and bringing children into his house constantly off the street (only for them to rob him). Yet, he maintains an optimistic view of people and of humanity, and searches for the good in them. He urges his ward to talk about her feeling and share her thoughts, but is accepting when she does not want to; and he changes his mind about her suitor, for her sake gently informing them both through a piano duet that they are allowed to court each other. He wants to know why Oliver did what he did, where he came from, and what happened to bring them all to this point, as he seeks details and information to flesh out the larger picture of what is going on—which eludes him at first. He assumes based on the evidence that Oliver is ‘like all the rest, a thief,’ and willingly believes what he’s told about Oliver’s bad nature from a stranger on the street, never once questioning it and scoffing at his housekeeper’s intuitive sense that Oliver is a good person after all.
Enneagram: 2w1
Mr. Brownlow has a habit of taking in boys off the street and caring for them, hoping each of them will find a way to repay his kindness with goodness—and being disappointed each time when they steal from him and disappear. He is especially fond of Oliver, and does the same for him, in addition to acting as Rose’s guardian and fiercely defending her against any potential suitors (he only relents to her seeing the doctor when she confesses her love for the young man). He shows an occasional temper and tendency to get angry with people, especially when he feels that he has been proven wrong or gotten his hopes up for nothing; but he’s also self-governing and self-restraining enough to apologize when he is in the wrong and to attempt to make amends. He can be a little controlling at times, in his attempts to prevent his loved ones from being hurt, and even insists at one point that he never wants to hear Oliver’s name again. But he remains a benefactor and philanthropist to anyone who needs his assistance, throughout the story.
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