Character:
1. A person who is portrayed in an artistic piece such as a novel or short story.
2. The combination of qualities and/or attributes that distinguishes one person, group or category from the rest.
Types of Characters:
Round Character: A character who is very detailed and the reader is able to see and visualize all sides of this character. Round characters are usually protagonists and antagonists but exceptions do occur. An example of a round character would be Frodo Baggins of The Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien. In the books and movies all sides and personalities to Frodo is seen.
Flat Character: A character who is not very detailed and the reader usually only sees a few sides to a character. A flat character usually appears in the background. A flat characters’ appearance may be detailed but its character is not and usually proceeds on one characteristic. Whitney from The Most Dangerous Game is a flat character as the reader only gets the chance to see a few sides of him.
Stock Character: Often known as a stereotypical character, the stock character relies on cultural stereotypes for its character, appearance, language and manners of speech. A few examples of stereotypical characters are the country hillbilly and the urban street thug/gangster.
Dynamic Character: A dynamic character is one that under goes change during the course of the plot. Change that applies to allow the character to be dynamic are changes in insight or understanding, changes in commitment, and changes in values. Changes in circumstance do not apply unless the change has caused the character to change within itself. An example of a dynamic character is Rainsford from The Most Dangerous Game. He classifies as a dynamic character because after his hunt with General Zaroff he now cares for those that are the hunted because he was one and it nearly cost him his life. He has changed insights and changed values because he now cares for those who are unfortunate enough to be the hunted. Dynamic characters are very usually the protagonists. Another example of a dynamic character is Gandalf from the Lord of the Rings. He changes physically but also within himself making himself more powerful. Gimli quotes that “the new Gandalf is more grumpy than the old one” in the extended edition of The Two Towers. Gandalf also tells them that he is Saruman as Saruman should have been. But antagonists are known to be dynamic.
Static Character: A static character is one that no change is applied to during the course of the story. Static characters are usually background or secondary characters so that they can serve as thematic or plot elements. However, sometimes static characters can be the main ones such as Tom and Daisy from The Great Gatsby do not change their qualities of carelessness but move away from heir problems as they did before.
