Characterization
Characterization
 Characterization means the techniques by which an author
of a work of fiction represents the moral, intellectual, and
emotional natures of the characters.
Flat vs. Round
• A flat character, also called a two-dimensional character,
is more a type than an individual.
– Generally stays the same throughout the story
– Includes stereotypes
• A round character, or three-dimensional character, is
multifaceted and subject to change and growth.
– May have inconsistencies
– More similar to “real” human beings
• Characters can start out flat and end up being more rounded
as the story progresses.
Showing vs. Telling
• Authors either show or tell us information about characters.
• Showing means simply presenting characters’ words and
actions without commentary and allowing that dramatization
to imply their motives, feelings, and values.
• Telling is the method by which the author describes, and
comments on, characters’ motives and values and often also
passes judgment as a means of shaping the audience’s
response.
Protagonist
• The protagonist (from the Greek word for “first actor” or “first
contender”) is the main character in a work of fiction.
• The events of the work center around him or her, as does the
reader’s interest.
– Elizabeth Bennett, Pride and Prejudice
– King Lear, King Lear
– Odysseus, The Odyssey
• Can also be called the hero or heroine
– Does not fit protagonists who are less heroic:
• Holden Caulfield, The Catcher in the Rye
• Willy Loman, Death of a Salesman
Antagonist
• In many works, the main character has an antagonist (from the
Greek word for “against the contender”)
• This character opposes the protagonist’s goals and interests and so
creates the major conflict of the work.
– Poseidon, The Odyssey
– Augustus Caesar, Antony and Cleopatra
– Iago, Othello
• Only truly evil antagonists are called “villains”
• Sometimes, however, the protagonist is evil, which makes the
antagonist a sympathetic character
Antagonist
 Does not have to be another character
 It may be some larger force that challenges the protagonist
 Fate, Oedipus Rex
 Paralyzing cold, “To Build a Fire”
 Traumatic effect of battle, The Red Badge of Courage
Antagonist
 The antagonist may also be internal, in the form of conflicting
desires or values within the protagonist
 Jane Eyre: the protagonist is torn between remaining with the
man she loves in an adulterous relationship, or else obeying the
dictates of her conscience by leaving him for a life of emptiness
and poverty
Antagonist
• Works may have more than one antagonist
– Hamlet: the human antagonist is Claudius, who has murdered
Hamlet’s father, seduced his mother, and seized the Danish
throne.
– Hamlet, however, is also antagonized by the demands of fate,
which has designated him the “scour and minister” who must
restore order to Denmark, even at the cost of his life.
– The third antagonist that Hamlet faces is internal, the conflict
between his desire to take swift and violent action and a
propensity to introspection and moral scrupulousness that keeps
him from acting.
Foil
• The foil is a character who contrasts with the protagonist in
ways that bring out certain of his or her moral, emotional, or
intellectual qualities.
– Hamlet calls attention to that function just before his fatal duel
with Laertes, the main foil in the play.
– The men are about to engage in what Hamlet believes is not a
serious combat, but a friendly demonstration of their skill with
“foils,” that is, swords.
– He has quarreled with Laertes earlier, and to make amends, he
gives a flattering speech:
Hamlet’s Foil
“I’ll be your foil, Laertes. In mine ignorance
Your skill shall, like a star I’th’ darkest night,
Stick fiery off indeed.”
• The pun—”foil” in Shakespeare’s day meant not only a rapier
but a piece of thin metal foil on which jewels were placed to
show off their sparkle—this suggests both aspects of Laertes’
relationship to the hero: to oppose him in the conflict with
Claudius, with whom Laertes is in league, and to highlight
Hamlet’s honorable conduct and contemplative nature.
More Foil
• In Romeo and Juliet, the hero has several foils:
– The cynical Mercutio, who mocks the very concept of the
romantic love that Romeo celebrates with Juliet
– The hot-tempered Tybalt, who is obsessed with defending his
family name in the feud that Romeo sees as senseless
– The sweet-tempered Benvolio, who strives only to be a good
friend and a peacemaker in the midst of all the violence.
• Each of the characters is a flat character, while Romeo is
three-dimensional.