Functional Order: Si/Fe/Ti/Ne
Dominant Function: Si
Robert has tremendous respect for the inheritance he has been handed, and the responsibilities that Downton Abbey entail. He finds it hard to step away from hundreds of years of tradition in order to challenge the entail, which would enable him to leave the estate to his daughter, Mary, instead of a son. He nurses strong personal memories about the past, and how things are done, but is also interested in the “improvements” and “ideas” Matthew has for the estate.
Auxiliary Function: Fe
Robert helps Matthew to see that his decisions impact the community, not just his own household – he reasons that if they no longer need a staff, others will be put out of work. He cares very much about those under his roof and those in the wider community, and makes choices based on their well being – even when it means over-spending to keep the servants employed. Robert can be emotional and needy, showing his feelings instantly and working through them quickly – such as when he throws a man out of his house for insulting his daughter, or bemoans the idea of Edith being stuck “looking after us in our own age” (“Oh, what a ghastly thought!). His deep need for encouragement almost causes him to have an affair with a maid when Cora proves too distracted to fulfill his emotional needs.
Tertiary Function: Ti
But he can also be rational, able to grow with the times and adopt new ideas provided they are useful.
Inferior Function: Ne
They work well together, with Matthew providing the intuition Robert needs to foresee ways to economize and change. Robert struggles mightily to adapt to the world as it moves forward, since it means leaving some of his old prejudices and habits behind. He has a sense when others are lying to him, but does not much care to speculate on massive change and likes things to remain the same (inferior Ne).
Note: This argument has been taken from Funky Mbti in Fiction
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