Characterization Overview

Characterization
An Introduction

Characters
 There are two meanings for the word character:
1) The person in a work of fiction.
2) The characteristics of a person.
 People in a work of fiction are usually presented through their actions, speech
and thoughts as well as by description.
 There are major/main and minor characters
 the most important character in the story; the one the story is about. There is usually
one single major character, though it is possible for there to be multiple major
characters (for example, in the TV series Friends, Monica, Rachel, Phoebe, Chandler,
Joey, Ross are all major characters)
 person of less importance than the major character, but who is necessary for the story
to develop. Dorie from Finding Nemo is a minor character; she is important, but the
story is not about her.

Characters
 Characters can be:
 Individual: many sided and complex personalities
 Developing/dynamic: a character whose personality changes during the course of the
story; a character who grows, emotionally, due to or learns from the actions or events
in the story.
 Static: a character who does not change throughout the course of the story; a character
who does not “grow” emotionally, a character whose personality remains the same at
the end of the story as it was at the beginning of the story. They represent stereotypes
or caricatures, archetypes or foils, e.g. brilliant detective, drunk, scrooge, cruel
stepmother, etc.
 There are, generally speaking, two types of characters in fictional works:
 Round characters
 Flat characters

Round Characters
 A round character may be similar to real individuals and have several traits and
behave in a way that is life-like (individual, dynamic)
 A round character usually changes in the course of the story
 The main character in a story is called the protagonist (or hero/heroine) and is
almost always a round character. The antagonist is the opposer of the protagonist.
 Hero/Heroine – a character whose actions are inspiring or noble. In the movie I, Robot,
Will Smith's character is inspirational; though no one believes him, he continues to do
what he thinks is right.
 Villain – a character who is evil or capable of cruel or criminal actions; usually (but not
always) an antagonist. In the Harry Potter series, Voldemort is an evil wizard who wants
to kill Harry; Voldemort is a classic villain, and is Harry's antagonist. In the movie
Catwoman, Catwoman is a villain who steals and breaks the law, even though she is the
protagonist.

Flat Characters
 A character has only a limited number of traits or represents only a single quality.
 Usually, flat characters have a limited purpose to serve a specific role in the plot
development
 A crude representation of a character which is meant to be laughed at is called a
caricature.
 A stereotype (personality type observed multiple times, especially an oversimplification of
such a type) or an epitome (an typical example of a personality type, especially an extreme
version of such an example is called an archetype
 A character who serves to point out the strengths or weaknesses of the protagonist is
called foil. Most of the time, the foil is the antagonist (like Darth Vader in Star Wars: A New
Hope [Vader wears black, Luke wears white; Vader is strong and powerful, Luke is weak;
Vader is respected, Luke is not]), though the foil does not have to be the antagonist; some
times, the "sidekick" or "friend" of the protagonist has traits that are opposite of the main
character (like Donkey in Shrek; Donkey is small, cute, talkative, and nice, while Shrek is the
opposite of these traits).

Characterization
 Characterization is the way in which the author presents his or her characters.
The author may reveal a character in several ways:
 his/her physical appearance
 what he/she says, thinks, feels and dreams
 what he/she does or does not do
 what others say about him/her and how others react to him/her
 We usually distinguish between two kinds of characterization:
 Direct or explicit characterization
 Indirect or implicit characterization
 Authors often combine explicit and implicit characterization in the presentation
of their characters.

Character Traits
 Character Traits are elements of a character's personality that define who
the character is.
 You should map out a character's physical and mental traits.
 You also need to consider your characters’ rationale/motivation/reason –
information that explains or justifies a condition, an action, or a decision;
why a character does a certain action
 Examples:
 Shrek is grouchy and irritable, but kind-hearted; these are his character traits.
 In the Spiderman movies, Peter Parker's character traits are his intelligence, his
shyness, and his cautiousness.

Direct/Explicit Characterization
 “Dena was a kind, caring individual.”
 The reader is told about a character’s personality directly by
a) the narrator,
b) another character or
c) by the character him- or herself

Indirect/implicit Characterization
 The reader is expected to draw conclusions about a character by
a) studying his or her behavior and actions
b) opinions
c) choice of words and or way of talking
 Means of indirect characterization:
 Setting: Characters are what the contents of their room/house/surroundings suggest.
 Testimony: Characters are what other characters say about them
 Plot: Actions: Characters are what they do
 Plot: Statements: Characters are what they say
 Internalization: Characters are what they think and feel
 Hints and comparisons: Characters are what they are compared to other characters

Example
“Ant was bright enough to be in the A class, bright enough to pass everything,
even Maths and Chemistry. (…) Ant wished he was stupid enough so he could
get into Special class: they did Art, Metalwork, Woodwork, Tech Drawing,
Carving and Casting, Photography, Screen Printing and Excursions. Even more
to the point, Ant wished he could go to the Creative Arts School. (…)”

Character Analysis for Ant
 In the first sentence Ant is characterized explicitly (“Ant was bright”), so the
reader is told he is intelligent.
 In the second and third sentence Ant is characterized implicitly as a creative
person with artistic interests – this the reader learns from the subjects he
wishes he could be doing and the school he wishes to attend.

Characterization Overview

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Characterization Overview