Character (arts)

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For a topical guide to this subject, see Outline of fiction.

A character is any person, persona, identity, or entity that exists in a work of art. Along with plot, setting, theme, and style, character is considered one of the fundamental components of fiction.^[1] Characters may be entirely fictional, or they may be based upon real entities, contemporary or historical. They may be human, supernatural, mythical, divine, animal, or personifications of an abstraction. Characterization is the process of creating an image of a person in fiction, complete with that person's traits, features, and motivation.^[2]

Contents 1 Types of characters 1.1 Function 1.2 Point of view 1.3 Round vs. flat 1.4 Dynamic vs. static 1.5 Archetypes 1.6 Non-fictional characters 1.7 Amalgamated characters 2 Characters as symbols 3 Names of characters 4 Unusual uses 5 See also 6 Footnotes 7 References

[edit] Types of characters

Characters may be classified by various criteria.

[edit] Function

• Protagonist, hero, main character
• Antagonist, villain, opponent
• Minor character
• Foil character

[edit] Point of view

A point-of-view character is a character from whom the story is viewed and sensed. The point-of-view character may or may not also be the main character in the story. A story may have more than one point-of-view character and any number of other characters.

[edit] Round vs. flat

Round characters are characters who are complex and realistic; they represent a depth of personality which is imitative of life. A flat character is distinguished by its lack of a realistic personality. Though the description of a flat character may be detailed and rich in defining characteristics, it falls short of the complexity associated with a round character. Round characters are more likely to change throughout the story.^{[citation needed]}

James Patrick Kelly describes round and flat characters in his article "You and Your Characters" (Writing Science Fiction & Fantasy) as "someone who is characterized by one or two traits." 'Flat' and 'round' were terms first proposed by E. M. Forster in his Aspects of the Novel.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Dynamic vs. static

A dynamic character is one who, during the course of the story, changes significantly. Significant changes might include changes in insight or understanding, changes in commitment, or changes in values. Changes in circumstance, even physical circumstance, would not qualify unless they result in some change within the character's self. An example of a dynamic character is Guy Montag, the main character in the novel Fahrenheit 451.^[3] In contrast, a static character does not undergo significant change, remaining basically unchanged (in understanding, commitment, values) throughout a work.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Archetypes

A character may be based upon a characterological pattern, also known as an archetype or stock character. Archetypes are sometimes modeled after mythology, legend, or folk tales and may be designed to fulfill a particular role in a story. In 1919 Carl Jung identified the first archetypes.^[4] Other writers, including Joseph Campbell^[5] and James Hillman, have continued the work. Some authors have reorganized the information, often blending Jungian archetypes or recognizing sub-archetypes within Jung's structure. These authors include Christopher Vogler, best known for his book The Writer's Journey: Mythic Structure For Writers, and Melanie Anne Phillips and Chris Huntley, whose Dramatica^[6] defines seven different archetypes based upon their "Action" and "Decision" characteristics.

[edit] Non-fictional characters

A nonfictional character (sometimes called a historical character) is a character that was a real-life figure, whether played by an actor or used as an actual historical figure in a work of fiction.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Amalgamated characters

An amalgamated character is one that is based on other characters. Amalgamated characters may be characters whose appearance is entirely original to that author or artist, but whose personality shows aspects of several existing people or fictional characters. Such characters may appear to have a split personality, rapidly and inexplicably shifting between character roles.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Characters as symbols

Some characters, rather than simply being people, may stand for something larger, a given quality or abstraction. For example, some characters in Western literature have been viewed as Christ symbols. Other characters have been viewed as symbols of capitalist greed (as in F. Scott Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby), the futility of fulfilling the American Dream, or quixotic romanticism (Don Quixote). Four of the principal characters in Lord of the Flies may symbolize elements of civilization: Ralph representing the civilizing instinct; Jack representing the savage instinct; Piggy representing the rational side of human nature; and Simon representing the spiritual.^{[citation needed]}

A character may also be representative of a certain group of people. For example, Bigger Thomas of Native Son by Richard Wright may be viewed as representative of young black men in the 1930s, doomed to a life of poverty and exploitation.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Names of characters

The names of characters may have significance. In some Restoration comedies, for example, characters were given emblematic names that sound nothing like real life names: "Sir Fidget", "Mr. Pinchwife" and "Mrs. Squeamish" are examples (all from The Country Wife by William Wycherley). Sometimes a name echoes an adjective or idea, if slightly changed, to suggest qualities of a charater; for example, Mr. Murdstone of David Copperfield suggests "murder" and unpleasantness. A character's name may reference a real-world, literary, or mythological precursor; for example, calling a character in love Romeo, or naming a character who seemingly comes back from the dead Phoenix.

Some 18th and 19th century literature such as Les Misérables represent characters' names by the use of a single letter and a long dash (this convention was also used for other proper nouns, such as place names). This has the effect of suggesting that the author had a real person in mind but omitted the full name for propriety's sake. A similar technique was employed by Ian Fleming in his 20th century James Bond novels, where the real name for M, if spoken in dialogue, was always written "Adm. Sir M***".

[edit] Unusual uses

Postmodern fiction frequently incorporates real characters into fictional and even realistic surroundings. In film, the appearance of a real person as himself inside of a fictional story is a type of cameo. For instance, Woody Allen's Annie Hall has Allen's character call in Marshall McLuhan to resolve a disagreement. A prominent example of this approach is Being John Malkovich, in which the actor John Malkovich plays the character John Malkovich (though the real actor and the character have different middle names).

In some experimental fiction, the author acts as a character within his own text. One early example is Niebla ("Fog") by Miguel de Unamuno (1907), in which the main character visits Unamuno in his office to discuss his fate in the novel. Paul Auster also employs this device in his novel City of Glass (1985), which opens with the main character getting a phone call for Paul Auster. At first the main character explains that the caller has reached a wrong number, but eventually he decides to pretend to be Auster and see where it leads him. In Immortality by Milan Kundera, the author references himself in a storyline seemingly separate from that of his fictional characters, but at the end of the novel, Kundera meets his own characters. Other authors who have manifested themselves within the text include Kurt Vonnegut (notably in Breakfast of Champions), Dave Sim, in his comic book series Cerebus, Alasdair Gray in Lanark: A Life in Four Books, and Stephen King in his Dark Tower series.

Some Hollywood actors are so familiar that viewers may have trouble distinquishing the real-life person from the characters they portray. In some sense, Bruce Lee is always Bruce Lee, Woody Allen is always Woody Allen, and Harrison Ford is always Harrison Ford; each often portray characters that are very alike, so audiences fuse the star persona with the characters they play, a principle explored in the Arnold Schwarzenegger film Last Action Hero.

Some fiction and drama make constant reference to a character who is never seen. This often becomes a sort of joke with the audience. This device is the centrepoint of one of the most unusual plays of the 20th century, Samuel Beckett's Waiting for Godot, in which Godot of the title never arrives. Also, in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket, there are mentions of Snicket in the dialogue of the other characters, but he never physically appears.

[edit] See also

Look up fictional character in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

• Ethos, the ancient Greek term for character, as used in Aristotle's Poetics
• Fiction
• List of fictitious people (people claimed to actually exist)
• Mary Sue
• Player character, in gaming
• Plot (narrative)
• Setting (literature)
• Theme (literature)
• Writing style

[edit] Footnotes

[edit] References

This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (July 2007)

• Obstfeld, Raymond (2002). Fiction First Aid: Instant Remedies for Novels, Stories and Scripts. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 158297117x. 
• Polking, K (1990). Writing A to Z. Cincinnati, OH: Writer's Digest Books. ISBN 0898794358. 

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