Second Function

SECOND FUNCTION 

The second function is NORMATIVE. And like any norm, it is difficult to describe. A person is unlikely to find more than two words to describe his or her health, if it is normal: colors, epithets, and images are found only when there is a need to list painful conditions. So it is with the Second Function, it defies description, and like good health, one does not feel it. 

If the First Function can best be compared to a hammer, then the Second Function can best be compared to a river. It is just as strong. But in addition to strength, it possesses qualities unknown to the First: breadth, richness, naturalness, and flexibility. The source of all these virtues lies in the fact that the Second's strength is paired with processionalism, i.e., it is a force charged with constant dialogue, constant interaction. Returning to the comparison between the First and the Second, if the First is our gift to ourselves, then the Second is our gift to others. Therefore, it is the Second function that is the best side of man.

Processionalism, however, is not the monopoly of the Second. The real monopoly, or its main hallmark, is action, impeccably adequate to the situation, without excess and without scarcity, the standard of behavior. I recall the story of one film director about the actress who had to shoot twenty takes in one day, and every time there were tears in her eyes exactly when it was necessary, and there were as many as necessary. Only the 2nd Emotion can do that. The second function is extremely rich in shades and has a tremendous range. Not to go far, I will give an example of the same 2nd Emotion: one researcher calculated that Tolstoy described 85 shades of eye expression and 97 shades of smile. The ability to see and convey such richness is not mere observation-it is a special psychological disposition of the individual. 

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There is one more property of the Second Emotion, conditioned by the processionality: its full realization is possible only in the presence of a partner, an audience. This property is difficult to observe, but one woman with the Second Emotion confessed to me that although life circumstances forced her to do so, she - alone - did not even feel like crying. 

The combination of the power and processionalism of the Second Function endows it with such an extraordinarily valuable quality as pity. Actually, pity is not the Second's monopoly, but one of the aspects of processionality. The specificity of the Second's pity is precisely that it pities from the position of strength, confidence, and experience of the richly gifted side of human nature. Let's say there is nothing better for the sick, the disabled, the elderly than to find oneself under the care of the 2nd Physicist. The relentlessness of her compassion, the constant care, the precision, the quickness and carefulness of her movements are able to provide the utmost comfort to any infirm person. 

Another characteristic of the Second Function is that it is fearless. Moreover, a person experiences a kind of pleasure, putting it to the test often in doubtful and even deliberately uncomfortable situations. And this behavior is easy to explain: the Second is not only strong, but also malleable, so blows to it do not wound, but only give direction to work on its further improvement. Thus, one of my classmates, being a holder of the 2nd Physique, was not lazy to go to the other end of the city for the sole purpose of getting into a fight. Often he drove without knowing whether he was going to be beaten or not. Of course, it was not without bruises and bruises, but the benefits became apparent over time: in time he became a dashing pilot, an Air Force colonel.