SPAENG Character Notes

8/4/2019 SPAENG Character Notes

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CHARACTER NOTESBased onCharacter: Revealing Human Nature and Give-and-Take

by John Leggett


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CHARACTER

character:

definition: a person in a story, poem, or play

definition: a set of qualities that make someone special

purpose:

characters tell us what human beings are like

examples:

__________________

__________________

__________________ Well learn to describe a characters character.

http://www.safenetwork.org/meanTeacher.jpg


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HOWDOWELEARNABOUT

CHARACTERS?

OAATS


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OTHERS THOUGHTS & WORDSREVEAL CHARACTER others thoughts and words

What do the other characters think about the character?

What do they say about the character?

http://blissfullydomestic.com/wp-content/gallery/inspired-bliss/women-gossiping.


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APPEARANCE REVEALS CHARACTER appearance

What does the character look like?

How does the character dress?

http://www.ocean.edu/images/man_business_attire.jpg


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ACTIONS REVEAL CHARACTER actions

What does the character do?

How does the character act?

http://www.cis.edu.sg/pyp/images/Caring%20(Small).jpg


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THOUGHTSAND FEELINGS REVEAL CHARACTER inner thoughts and feelings

What does the character think?

How does the character feel?

http://www.attributemagazine.com/index/images/stories/Staff/kat-thinking.jpg


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FOUR WAYSSPEECH REVEALS CHARACTER first-person narration

definition: characters tell their own stories by speaking

directly to the reader

what they tell:

facts, backgrounds, thoughts, and feelings

look for:

pronouns, such as I, me, my, we,and us

http://www.freedomscientific.com/LSG/imgs/200610_images/talking%20girls.jpg


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FOUR WAYSSPEECH REVEALS CHARACTER dialogue

definition: a conversation between characters

pay attention to:

what characters say about themselves and how they respond to

each other

look for:

I got an A in Mr. Andersons class, said Kelly.

You are such a kiss-up! replied Tara.

http://www.d.umn.edu/~cwjohnso/images/GirlsReading_000.jpg


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FOUR WAYSSPEECH REVEALS CHARACTER

dramatic monologue

definition: a character

speaks to silent listeners

it is a poem within a playor story

soliloquy

definition: a character

speaks thoughts aloud

only the audience/reader

hears

the speaker is onstage

alone in play


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HOWDOWRITERSEXPLAIN

CHARACTERS?direct & indirectly


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TWO TYPESOF CHARACTERIZATION

definition: readers are

told directly what a

character is like

look for:

adjectives

definition: readers must

use their own judgment

to decide what a

character is like, based

on given evidence

look for:

OAATS

direct characterization indirect characterization


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WHATARETHETYPESOFCHARACTERS?protagonist, antagonist,

and subordinate


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PROTAGONIST

protagonist

definition: the main character

also known as (AKA):

hero


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ANTAGONIST

antagonist

definition: the character or forcethat blocks the protagonist

aka:

villain

external conflict

internal conflict


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SUBORDINATE CHARACTERS

subordinate characters

definition: characters who play an important role in the

story, but are not part of the main plot

AKA:

supporting roles

extras


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STOCK CHARACTERS

stock characters

definition: characters that play a minor role in the story and

fulfill a stereotype

example:

evil stepmothers


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HOWARECHARACTERSDESCRIBED?flat or round

dynamic or static


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HOWCOMPLEXISTHECHARACTER?

definition: character with

only one or two

character traits

sample traits:

outgoing and popular

definition: character with

many different character

traits

sample traits:

loving mother, but cruel

teacher

flat characters round character


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DOESTHECHARACTERCHANGE?

definition: character that

changes as a result of the

storys events

often:

protagonist or antagonist

definition: character that

does not change much

during the story

often:

subordinate characters

dynamic character static character


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WEREFINISHED!Adapted from:

Holt Literature and Language Arts: Third Course

Documents

SPAENG Character Notes