Characterization in

Literature

QUIZ – you have 5 minutes. Use a blank sheet of paper. Don’t forget your name!

1) Chapter 17. Who does Grant meet here? (hint: they exchange names)

2) Chapter 18: What does Jefferson want to talk about when Grant comes to visit him?

1) What is a flat character? 2) What is a round character? 3)What is a dynamic character? 4) What is a static character? Just write 1 complete sentence for each question.

*If you have extra time…Who is a flat or round character in our book? Static? Dynamic?

WARM UP

Standard in FocusRL.9–10.3: Analyze how complex characters (for example, those with multiple or conflicting motivations) develop over the course of a grade-appropriate text, interact with other characters, and advance the plot or develop the theme. - We will have a standards test on this next week.

DefinitionsMotivation – Why a character does what he or she does.

CFU: Why does Ms. Emma want Grant to visit Jefferson in the jail?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Are all characters the same?

Some characters are more

COLORFUL and

COMPLEX

than others.

Characters

Protagonist – the main character (the focus of the reader’s attention)

Antagonist – a person or force in conflict with the protagonist

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

FLAT or

ROUND A Flat Character is one

who has only 1 or 2 character traits

These characters have no depth and usually fit a simple role

Examples: Bad guy, class clown, cute girl, etc.

A Round Character is one who has many character traits

His personality has various qualities and is complex, more like a real person

Most main characters are round

Who is Flat or Round? Static or Dynamic?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

STATIC OR DYNAMIC A Static Character

remains the same throughout the story

This character undergoes no change in thought or personality when involved in conflict

A Dynamic Character undergoes a change as a result of learning from conflict

A dynamic character starts the story one way and then will have a revelation that changes his or her views

Static or Dynamic?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Are they similar?Flat and Static?Round and Dynamic?

Flat and Round-refer to character’s COMPLEXITY

Static and Dynamic- refer to the character’s DEVELOPMENT over time

DefinitionsMotivation – Why a character does what he or she does.

CFU: Why does Ms. Emma plead with Mr. Pichot to allow Grant to see her godson, Jefferson?

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CharacterizationCharacterization It is the process by which the writer

reveals the personality of a character.

Two types –Direct Characterization Indirect Characterization

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Direct Characterization

Writers/narrators tell us directly what characters are like or what their motives are

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Direct CharacterizationEXAMPLE: “Sam Guidry was a tall man, well over six feet, and he was well tanned. His hair was dark brown, his sideburns and mustache showed some gray. His face was narrow, well-lined, and strong. He usually wore a Stetson hat and cowboy boots. He had probably left the hat in the library or the dining room, but he had the boots on” (47).

EXPLANATION: This shows that Sam is a powerful man based on Grant’s description of his stature. Sam’s hat, boots, and mustache suggest that he is a man of the law. Kind of like a cowboy sheriff.

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

Indirect CharacterizationA character’s actions,

interactions, appearance, words, thoughts, and feelings

Another character’s thoughts, words, or feelings about the character.

Writers show us characters but allow us to decide what characters are like.

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

EXAMPLE: “Can I fix you something?” she asked me when she came back to the kitchen. “No thank you,” I told her.I was hungry. I hadn’t eaten anything but a sandwich since breakfast. But I would not eat at Henri Pichot’s kitchen table.

EXPLANATION: This illustrates that Grant is proud and stubborn. Despite waiting for hours for Pichot and the white men to come see him, he refuses food and drink and even stands for hours instead of sitting down. This shows that Grant values his dignity above all else.

Indirect Characterization

“Do you feel superior to me?” I asked him. “Of course,” he said. “Don’t be a damned fool. I am superior to you. I am superior to any man blacker than me.” “Is that why you hate me?” I asked him. “Exactly,” he said. “Because that superior sonofabitch out there said I am you.”

CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT

CFU: This is a conversation between Grant and his former teacher, Matthew Antoine. Describe each character based on this conversation. Support your answer.

Skill Steps:Character Analysis

1. Paraphrase the quote; make an inference.2. Explain the character’s motivation/wants. 3. Discuss the character’s influences (who the

character is being influenced by or is trying to influence).

4. Describe the type of conflict the character is facing.

5. Write at least three character traits that describe the character.

Paraphrase/Inference

Motivation Influence Conflict Traits

When he meets Grant and sees that he wants to truly learn. He begins to hate him.

Matthew and Grant are having a conversation about why Matthew stayed in the poor Quarter of Bayonne. He states that he stayed to feel superior to those “blacker” than himself. From this we can infer that Matthew is a racist.

Matthew stays to teach because he wants to feel like a “big fish” in a small pool.

Furthermore, he realizes that he can’t feel superior in the greater world.

His main influence is the larger society and culture. He desires recognition and influence, and can only get it by being “whiter” than his students.

Cold, bitter, cynical, pessimistic, mean spirited.

Example Quote

Paraphrase/Inference

Motivation Influence Conflict Traits