Character Notes

Every work of fiction or drama needs characters.

Whether they are people or animals, robots or creatures from outer space, their thoughts, feelings, actions, and reactions drive the plot.

A character is an individual in a literary work of fiction, drama, or narrative poetry.

Authors construct characters through description, dialogue, and situations that reveal the characters’ personalities.

A character’s personality consists of the qualities that make that character different from others, such as whether the character is honest or devious, dull or clever.
 

In order to gather information about a character, pay attention to the following:

What the character's thoughts are: internal responses.
The character's words and actions: external responses.

As we look at internal and external responses, we can analyze how these actions impact the plot.
 

Characters can be either static or dynamic.
Characters can also be flat or round.

Static Characters remain mostly the same. They DO NOT have a significant change in terms of beliefs, personality, or values.

Dynamic characters have significant internal changes. They experience a change in beliefs, personality, or values.

 

Flat Characters lack depth and complexity. These characters can ALSO be static or dynamic.

Round characters have depth and complexity. These characters are well-developed by knowing their thoughts, feelings, and emotions. These characters can also be static or dynamic.