o_19kdfsn0q18e31dfraas1esh19vta.pdf

square fireplace in the square room of his London flat." He would complain about things like oddly
shaped toast (he would cut it into perfect squares before eating it) and the irregularity of golf
courses ("The obstacles, they are not arranged mathematically."). Or note how he describes his
appreciation for flowers:
He had stepped outside the French window, and was standing, apparently lost in admiration, before the
various shaped flower beds.
"Admirable!" he murmured. "Admirable! What symmetry! Observe that crescent; and those diamonds
—their neatness rejoices the eye. The spacing of the plants, also, is perfect."
Poirot's OCPD behavior is reminiscent of Monk's mild, preTrudy, state and later recovered state at
the end of the show. It might be that if Poirot suffered a similar tragedy, he too would develop a
full-blown version of the disorder.
Poirot, however, did not see his OCPD tendencies as a problem. At one point he was criticizing
some suspiciously haphazard behavior on the part of a methodical serial killer. Poirot's SP friend
Hastings piped up, "Isn't that because you're biased on that subject, Poirot? ... You yourself are
normally methodical and orderly. It's almost a disease with you." Poirot's reply was, "No it is not a
disease! Quelle idée!" ["What an idea!"]
Considering that Poirot was happy, fulfilled, and successful in his chosen profession, I'd say he was
correct not to consider his tendencies a disease. In fact, it was his very habit of tidying things up
that often provided the key to the case. By noting crooked rugs, dust on shelves, rearranged vases,
and other tiny, irritating details, Poirot often turned up inconsistencies that others missed. Poirot
would probably say, "It's a gift, not a curse."
Multicultural INTJs
Poirot further furnishes us with an interesting look at how the INTJ personality manifests outside
the American/British culture. INTJs are thought to be one of the less "feely" types, but upbringing
can modify this tendency. As a Belgian, Poirot was accustomed to hugging his friends and kissing
them on the cheeks as a matter of ordinary greeting. This of course horrified his stiff British
acquaintances, who behaved more like stereotypical INTJs than Poirot did in this regard. An
interesting contrast between nature and nurture.
SP Foil
Hastings (SP) was Poirot's "Watson," an impulsive, good-natured Englishman and loyal friend. He
was said to have an open, honest, easy-to-read nature, and it was implied that he was not terribly
bright. Following the SP pattern, Hastings was always chasing a new love interest while the case
progressed. Whereas Hercule Poirot preferred to stay home and meditate on the problems of the
case, Hastings was always pressing him to get out there and take action. Hasting also had a habit of
disarraying the objects in Poirot's house and taking books out without putting them away. INTJ
detectives seem to suffer from their choice of companions in this regard.
Author Corrected Type
In the first Poirot book Agatha Christie wrote, there were some anomalies that do not match typical
INTJ behavior. For example, while noting Poirot's self control, Christie also had Hastings observe
that, "I could not help regretting that my friend [Poirot] was so prone to lose his head in moments of
excitement." Or how about, "And, in very truth, run and leap he [Poirot] did, gambolling wildly
down the stretch of lawn outside the long window." INTJs are calm, restrained and self controlled
—not excitable and frolicsome.