Name________________________________
Date_________________________________
Character Traits: Internal and External
Directions: Use your scene to answer the following questions.
1. Who is your character?
2. How old do you think your character is? How do you know this?
3. What happens during your scene?
4. What is your OBJECTIVE in your scene? What do you WANT? What is your OBSTACLE in
the scene? Recall that having high STAKES will make your objective stronger. STAKES are
what the character may win or lose as a result of the outcome of the scene. “What will I lose if
I do not get my objective?”
Internal Traits:
5. Is your character intelligent, clever, dull, slow, average? How can you tell from the scene?
Give evidence!
6. Does the character have morals? How can you tell?
7. What is the character’s attitude toward other people and toward life in general?
8. Is the character confident, outgoing, happy and poised, or sullen, confused, nervous, cynical
and timid? How can you tell?
9. What do you think the character likes and dislikes? Make a list of interests the character has as
well as things that the character would NOT want to do.
Likes
Dislikes
10. How does the character respond to others? Is he or she easygoing or likely to snap? Why?
11. Is this character like you? Why or why not?
External Traits:
12. How do you believe the character would sit and stand? Does he or she have confidence or is he
or she shy?
13. Would the character move in a nervous manner or would he or she move confidently? What
does the character’s movement reveal about his or her age, health, and attitude?
14. Should the character have any habits that provide keys to his or her personality? Does he or
she bite nails, chew gum, tap a foot, etc.?
15. Does the character have any kind of accent? Does the character speak in any other specific
way?
16. How does the character dress? Is the character neat, casual, proper, sloppy? What is the style
of the character? Costume ideas?
17. Where is the setting for your play? What props do you need?