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Techniques for Characterization

Techniques for Characterization. I.I. DARMS. Inform. The easiest and most direct way to create a character is simply to inform the reader. Although direct, your information doesn’t have to be plain or boring. Infuse information with figurative and descriptive language. Inform.

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Techniques for Characterization

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  1. Techniques for Characterization I.I. DARMS

  2. Inform The easiest and most direct way to create a character is simply to inform the reader. Although direct, your information doesn’t have to be plain or boring. Infuse information with figurative and descriptive language.

  3. Inform “The first man was small and quick, dark of face, with restless eyes and sharp, strong features. Every part of him was defined: small, strong hands, slender arms, a thin and bony nose. Behind him walked his opposite, a huge man, shapeless of face, with large, pale eyes, with wide sloping shoulders; and he walked heavily, dragging his feet a little, the way a bear drags his paws.” John Steinbeck, Of Mice and Men

  4. Imply SHOW don’t tell—the oldest lesson in creative writing. Inference relies so much on using our own experiences to make meaning. When we make readers inference our meaning, the story comes alive for them. This gives space for the reader to connect with the text. We need to leave room for readers to make judgments and form their own interpretations.

  5. Imply “The first challenge was the combination of shoulders and face. I wouldn’t say there were muscles, just larger bones that made the shoulders look broad… The dark hair was to LaniGarver’s shoulders—with the top layers kind of bobbed under and going behind the ears… I waited as LaniGarver turned left and gave us a profile… ‘Nope, no triangles.’” Carol Plum Ucci, What Happened to LaniGarver

  6. Dwelling and Environment The personal dwelling, environment, and possessions of a character give us plenty of clues about them. http://kduncan.phoenix.wikispaces.net/file/view/The+Things+They+Carried+Excerpt.pdf

  7. Actions Of course, the actions and choices of characters define who they are. “Jack drew his knife again with a flourish. He raised his arm in the air. There came a pause, a hiatus, the pig continued to scream, and the blade continued to flash at the end of a bony arm. The pause was long enough for them to understand what an enormity the downward stroke would be. Then the piglet tore loose from the creepers and scurried into the undergrowth… Jack’s face was white under the freckles. He noticed that he still held the blade aloft and brought his arm down, replacing the blade in the sheath….” William Golding, Lord of the Flies

  8. Reactions of Others How many times have you judged someone, rightly or wrongly, based on how other people react to him or her? There is important information to be gleaned by how other people treat a character? Willy Loman, in Death of a Salesmen, is obsessed with how other people treat his sons. He pays no attention to their own actions. Rather, he places all of his judgment squarely on whether or not they are “well-liked” by others.

  9. Reactions of Others “At that instant the cottage door was opened, and Felix, Safie, and Agatha entered. Who can describe their horror and consternation on beholding me? Agatha fainted; and Safie, unable to attend to her friend, rushed out of the cottage. Felix darted forward, and with supernatural force tore me from his father.” Mary Shelly, Frankenstein

  10. Mind and Thoughts Mind: This is what produces thought. Consider concepts like morality, emotions, mental health, experiences, age, gender, etc., that are all a part of the mind. Thoughts: These are the actual product of the mind. How do thoughts shift and change based on some of the variables listed above?

  11. Mind and Thoughts “I opened the gate and they stopped, turning. I was trying to say, and I caught her, trying to say, and she screamed and I was trying to say and trying arid the bright shapes began to stop and I tried to get out. I tried to get it off of my face, but the bright shapes were going again.” William Faulkner, The Sound and the Fury

  12. Speech and Dialogue Dialogue: The words that are spoken out loud by a character in terms of their communicative value—the words, regardless of how they are spoken. Speech: How those words are spoken. • Emotion • Grammar • Idioms and Slang • Dialect • Description of accent • Phonetic approximation

  13. Speech and Dialogue “It's aw rawt: e's a gentleman: look at his be-oots.” “Te-oobranches o voylets trod into the mad.” “Ow, eezyooasan, is e? Wal, fewddan y' de-ootybawmz a mather should, eed now bettern to spawl a pore gel's flahrzn than ran away athahtpyin.”

  14. Speech and Dialogue DR. RUMACK: Can you fly this plane, and land it? TED STRIKER: Surely you can't be serious. DR. RUMACK: I am serious... and don't call me Shirley. Airplane (1980)

  15. Speech and Dialogue PRINCESS LEIA: I love you. HAN SOLO: I know. Star Wars Episode V: The Empire Strikes Back, (1980)

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