GRANGE SCHOOL

1. GRANGE SCHOOL YEAR 8- LITERATURE CHARACTERIZATION AND THEME

2. DO NOW (3 Mins) • Name three captivating novel characters you’ve read, and the book(s) you read them in. • Name three captivating drama characters you’ve read, and the play(s) you read them in.

3. STARTER (3 Mins) Pick one of the characters mentioned previously, and write three sentences about the character. What concept in the play can you deduce from your sentences?

4. OBJECTIVES/OUTCOMES • Students should have a good knowledge of characterization and theme. • Students should be able to identify character traits in main characters. • Students should be able to identify character traits in other major characters. • Students should be able to identify themes from character traits • Students should be able apply this knowledge to real life situations.

5. MAIN LESSON CHARACTERIZATION Characterization in Literature is the way the writer portrays the characters in a play or novel. It is also the description of the character of the nature of the person. There are different kind of characters; • Major Character: which is the most important character to the story, and is the most mentioned character. ( we will be looking at the major character Ray, in “Gangsta Rap” by Benjamin Zephaniah in our next lesson. • Minor Character: the least mentioned characters; least important characters in the story. • Flat character: this character only shows one major personality trait throughout the story. • Round Character: this character shows a number of major personality traits throughout the story. • Static Character: this character stays the same throughout the story. • Dynamic Character: this character changes as the work progresses. • Protagonist: this is the central character in the story, he/she serves as the focus for the theme. • Antagonist: the character acts as the source of conflict for the central character. No two people are exactly alike, and the main character isn't a “typical” boy or girl, or even a flat character (like a spoiled kid, a whiny kid or anything out of the ordinary). Instead, he/she is made up of a package of traits that propel the character, affect motivation, and influence action. Different people respond differently to the same problems, that’s why each character has his own personality.

6. THEME A theme is the underlying meaning of the story; a universal truth; the significant statement the story is making about society, human nature, or even human condition; it must be stated (explicit) or implied (implicit). Theme deepens the value of the story, and the most successful stories are those that have their themes presented through the struggle and action and effects upon the main character. As the main character struggles through the plot pressure, he is almost sure to change. Struggle tends to result in change for humans. It makes us stronger. It makes us change out direction. It makes us think. It strengthens our beliefs, or makes us rethink them. As a reader of the story, you are placed in a position where you struggle with your main character, then you think also…thinking about what the main character is experiencing. Theme is not the same as “the moral of the story”. Theme explores. Moral just tells us this-is-this. If you explore themes of friendship – how can you tell if someone is a true friend? How can you be a true friend? Is friendship more important than obedience? Then you as a reader must think about these things, and maybe friendship, as it occurs in your own life. But a “moral of the story” is an opinion already thought out. The reader reads the stated moral and moves on, without any further thought or opposition to the opinion.

7. WORK Write a short-story of no more than 10 paragraphs, the main character must have traits that propel an identifiable and stated theme.

8. PLENARY Define characterization, and theme.