A character is a real or fictional animated being who acts in a story (literary, dramatic, or visual). In other words, a character is an entity that is attributed a series of actions, words and / or thoughts within the framework of a story.
Characters can be people, animals, animated things, fantastic beings or supernatural beings. In all kinds of stories or narrations there are characters. For example, plays, novels, stories, movies, TV series, or even paintings or sculptures that tell stories.
The word character is also used to refer to those people whose qualities (positive or negative) make them stand out, which generates a series of stories or myths about his figure. The most paradigmatic example are the so-called historical figures. It also applies to refer to the so-called “everyday characters” (coworkers, neighbors, teachers, etc.).
Character types
In dramatic and literary theory, characters are classified according to function and configuration. When we talk about the role of the characters, we refer to the purpose and meaning of their presence within the story. According to this there are main and secondary characters.
In turn, these characters may have different qualities, from which other classification criteria emerge, regardless of their degree of importance in the story. In this sense, they can be classified as round and flat characters; static and dynamic characters; characteristic characters; archetypes and stereotypes.
Main characters
The main characters are those on which the plot of the story focuses, as they lead and dominate the story. These are divided into protagonists and antagonists. In general terms, the main characters should move from a situation “A” to a situation “B”.
- Protagonist:the protagonist is that character on which the main plot is centered, that is, the one that organizes and mobilizes the entire story. It can be a hero or an antihero. There may also be more than one protagonist, in which case there is talk of a co-protagonist . An example is Prince Hamlet, in the play Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare.
- Antagonist:the antagonist’s function is to oppose the transit or the plan of the protagonist or protagonists. In this way, it creates more dramatic tension around the main conflict. An example of an antagonist is Claudius, brother of King Hamlet, whom he murders to gain the throne, in the play Hamlet, Prince of Denmark by William Shakespeare.
Secondary characters
The secondary characters are those whose function is to give support or support to the protagonists and antagonists. In this sense, they complement the main characters. In movies, supporting characters are often also called supporting characters .
Round characters and plain characters
It is called round characters to those complex characters expressing various dimensions and embody a major inner conflict. Given their characteristics, they are exposed to undergo transformations throughout the story that usually surprise the reader. This quality makes the characters win in depth.
The flat or flat characters are characters very few features or simple characteristics, which do not express a dominant facet and also not accuse an internal conflict. Therefore, they are also usually quite stable and easily identifiable as good or bad.
Dynamic and static characters
The dynamic characters are those who can only discover and understand through what they reveal their actions, words and thoughts exposed in the text, so you are never finished. Dynamic characters are always on the move, that is, they always undergo transformation processes
The static characters are those who can know through the information being provided to us by the narrator. These characters usually account for a socially established model, which can be economic (the authoritarian boss), psychological (the sentimental girl), intellectual (the know-it-all ) or religious (the priest).
Archetypes and stereotypes
An archetypal character is one whose qualities make him a prime reference model in the collective unconscious. The word archetype comes from the Greek arjé , which means ‘fundamental’, ‘origin’ or ‘beginning’, and type , which means ‘model’.
An example is represented by the character of Ulysses or Odysseus in The Odyssey , which has become an archetype of the western hero.
A literary stereotype is a socially accepted image or idea of a character, which does not change over time, that is, it has an immutable character. The word stereotype comes from the Greek esteros , which means solid, and type , which means model.
In the narrative, stereotypes such as the representation of foreigners are common. Other examples may be: the self-sacrificing mother, the drunkard, the murmuring pious, etc.
Characteristic character
A characteristic character is a “type” character, or even a stereotype, endowed with such detailed or specialized characteristics that it becomes a unique character within its category.
See also:
- Stereotype.
- Narration.
- I count.
- Novel.
Character characteristics
The characteristics of the characters as elements of a story or narration can be summarized as follows:
- Characters can be fictional or based on real subjects.
- In addition to human beings, any element can be a character as long as it is “personified”, that is to say, attributes of a rational being are attributed to it: animals, things, supernatural and fantastic beings.
- All the characters are endowed with physical (visible or sound) and psychological features, which vary in degree of complexity according to their importance.
- The characters are expressed through voice and / or their actions.
- The action of the characters modifies the story.
- In literature, characters act as conflicting ideological paradigms in fiction.
Historical figures
A historical person is a person from the past who has marked history and, therefore, has transcended time. This definition includes both figures who have brought great benefits to humanity and those who have caused great harm.
They gain the name of “characters” because the story, although it describes real and concrete events, is also a form of narration, just like the story and the novel, only that they tell fictional stories.
Some examples of highly relevant historical figures are: Cleopatra, Julius Caesar, Pericles, Constantine, Joan of Arc, Galileo Galilei, Copernicus, Elizabeth the Catholic, Christopher Columbus, Hernán Cortés, Leonardo da Vinci, Luther, Napoleon Bonaparte, Simón Bolívar, José Stalin, Adolfo Hitler and JF Kennedy.
