Characterization
Characterization is the process by w hich the w riter rev ea ls the persona lity of a cha racter. C haracterization is rev ea led through direct
characterization a nd indirect characterization.
Direct Characterization d i r e c t l y tells the audience wha t the persona lity of the character is.
Ex a m ple:
Ex pla na tion:
“The patient boy a nd quiet girl were both well m annered a nd did not disobe y their m othe r.”
The a uthor is directly telling the a udience the persona lity of these two children. The boy is “patient” a nd the
girl is “quiet.”
Indirect Characterization shows things tha t rev ea l the persona lity of a character. B a s e d o n t h e i r a c t i o n s , t h o u g h t s ,
s p e e c h , l o o k s , a n d e f f e c t o n o t h e r s , y o u m u s t i n f e r t h e i r p e r s o n a l i t y t r a i t s . There are fiv e different m ethods of
indirect cha racterization:
S peech
W ha t does the cha racter sa y ? How does the character speak ?
T houghts
Wha t is rev ea led through the chara cter’ s priv a te thoughts a nd feelings?
E ffect on others
tow ar d the
character.
Wha t is rev ea led through the character’s effect on other people? How do other
characters feel or behav e in reaction to the ch a racter?
Actions
Wha t does the character do? How does the cha racter beha v e?
L ook s
Wha t does the cha racter look lik e? How does the character dress?
Character Roles:
Protagonist- A character or group of characters in a story, around whom the events of the story’s plot revolve. The “good guy.”
Antagonist- A character or group of characters that represent opposition to the main character of a story. The “bad guy.”
Minor Characters (or stock characters)- minor parts in the story that often do not affect the plot.
Types of Characters: Dynamic OR Static; Round OR Flat
Dynamic- A character who changes, matures, or evolves in the course of the plot.
Static- A character who remains the same from beginning to end of the plot.
Round Character: a well developed character who often demonstrates complex characteristics.
Flat Character: a character which is mostly undeveloped, demonstrating one or two personality traits.
Character Foil: a character that directly contrasts another character.
Ex am ples of Indirect C haracterization from The Cat in the Hat
Type of Indirect
Characterization
Exam ples
Explanation
S peech
Many of the words spok en by the cat at the
beginning of the story hav e an upbeat
connotativ e m eaning. For instance, the cat
say s to the children, “B ut we can hav e /
Lots of fun that is funny !” (7 ).
S o all we could do was to
S it!
S it!
S it!
S it!
And we did not lik e it.
Not one little bit (3 ).
Throughout the first three quarters of the
story , three different illustrations portray
the fish scowling at the cat (1 1 , 25 , and 37 )
im m ediately after each of the cat’s
activ ities. W hen the cat returns to clean up
his m ess at the end of the story the fish is
shown with a sm ile on his face (57 ).
On page 18 , the cat engages in “U P- UP- UP
with a fish” an activ ity that inv olv es the cat
standing on a ball while balancing sev en
objects. Later in the story , the cat releases
two “things” that fly k ites inside the house.
Throughout the first three- quarters of the
story , the cat is shown with a sm ile on his
face. Towards the end of the story ,
howev er, when the cat is told to leav e, he is
shown leav ing the house with slum ped
shoulders and a sad face.
This rev eals that the cat’s character is an
upbeat character that lik es to hav e fun.
T houghts
E ffect on others
A ctions
L ook s
These are the thoughts of the narrator as
he stares out the window on a rainy day .
These thoughts rev eal that this character
is not happy about his current situation.
The scowls on the fish’s face support the
argum ent that the cat’s behav ior at the
beginning of the story is not acceptable to
the fish. The fish’s sm ile at the end of the
story rev eals that the cat is engaging in
behav ior that is now acceptable to the
fish.
These activ ities are outrageous, dangerous
and should not be conducted in the house.
They rev eal that the cat’s character is not
concerned about rules related to safety
and appropriateness.
The sm iles rev eal that the cat is enjoy ing
him self and is not apologetic for his
outrageous behav ior. The frown and
slum ped shoulders at the end of the story
show that he is not enjoy ing him self
any m ore.