CHARACTERIZATION

Flat v. RoundStatic v. Dynamic Relating and Reflecting

What do you think a round character is?

A flat character?

ROUND CHARACTER•Well-developed•Has many traits, both good and bad•Not easily defined because we know many

details about the character•Realistic and life-like•Most major characters are round

The test of a round character is whether it is capable of surprising in a convincing way. If it never surprises, it is

flat character.

FLAT•Not well-developed•Does not have many traits•Easily defined in a single sentence

because we know little about them•Sometimes stereotyped•Most minor characters are flat

SO…•ROUND- complex and realistic; capable of

surprise

•FLAT- summed up in one sentence

Like Puck Midsummer night’s dream

ROUND OR FLAT?

•“Dead Pockets” ▫Wife? ▫Tom Benecke?

•“The Bet”▫Lawyer?▫Banker?

•“Shaving” ▫Barry?

What do you think a static character is?

Dynamic?

DYNAMIC•Undergoes an important change in

personality in the story•Comes to some sort of realization that

permanently changes the character•A change occurs within the character

because of the events of the story•The protagonist is usually dynamic, but

not always

STATIC•Remains the same throughout the story•Although something may happen to the

character, it does not cause the character to change

•Minor characters are usually static

SO…•DYNAMIC- character that changes

significantly

•STATIC- a character that does NOT go through significant change

•“Dead Man’s Pockets”▫Wife? ▫Tom Benecke?

•“The Bet”▫Lawyer?▫Banker?

•“Shaving” ▫Barry?

Satire •A story which exposes human vice or folly

(as opposed to parody which is mostly to entertain)

Point of View

Point of View: •Who is telling the story? How much do

they contribute?

First Person Narrator•Uses “I”•Story told from a main character’s POV

Second Person Narrator•Very rare•Uses “you” and

presents commands

•Often the narrator

Third Person Narrator•Objective: neutral observer or recorder;

reports what happens and what characters say▫May be a narrator outside the text

•Omniscient: all-knowing; not only reports the facts but also may interpret events and relay the thoughts and feelings of any character

•Limited Omniscient: gives the impression that we are very close to the mind of ONE character, though from a distance