Character
“You can tell a lot about a fellow's character by his way of eating
jellybeans.” -- Ronald Reagan
Direct
Characterization
– …And
playbowed
the dozens
or us
believe
Indirect
Characterization
– TheI don’t
old man
to all of
in thein
standing
somebody
myand
face
doingslowly
a lot ofand
talking.
I much
room.around
Then with
he removed
his in
hat
gloves,
carefully.
rather
justonce
knock
takeinmy
chances
evenheifhanded
I’m a little
with
Chaplin
didyou
thatdown
in a and
picture,
a bank.
Then
his girl
things
skinnytoarms
squeaky
whichbehind
is howthe
I got
name
Squeaky.
the and
boy, awho
stoodvoice,
obediently
oldthe
man's
chair.
“Raymond’s
Run”
by T. Bambara
fromfrom
“Gentleman
of Rio
en Medio”
by J. Sedillo
I. Creating Character -- Revealing what humans are like is the
point of stories. Readers must care. (i.e. Scout in To Kill a Mockingbird)
A. Characterization – Revealing character (people, animals, things, places)
1. Character’s Speech/Dialogue
2. Character’s Appearance
3. Character’s Thoughts/Feelings
4. Character’s Actions
5. How Others Feel About Character
B. Direct & Indirect Characterization
1. Direct – Writer simply tells info
2. Indirect – Requires reader’s interpretation of info
Bumper Sticker Character
II. Types of Characters
Protagonists
A. Static & Dynamic Characters
1. Static – Makes no change
2. Dynamic – Changes/grows
B. Flat & Round Characters
1. Flat – 1-dimensional, few traits
(not psychologically complex, easily accessible)
2. Round – 3-dimensional, many traits
(inconsistent, unpredictable, hard to summarize & understand)
C. Stereotype/Stock Character – Based on
preconceived traits about a group
D. Protagonists & Antagonists
1. Protagonist – Main character story
focuses on (usually likable, “good guy”)
2. Antagonist – Character or force blocking
the main character (the “bad guy”)
Antagonists
III. Motivation -- Reason for acting or feeling a certain way
(Understanding motivation is important to understand character.)
A. Must be logical & plausible