Character

The term character generally refers to the whole nature of a person in a literary work. This nature may be revealed in a number of ways. A fictional character may be discovered through his actions, his speech, his appearance, his ideals, and his beliefs. What others say about him, including the narrator, and how they behave toward him are also indications of the nature of the character. When doing a character sketch of a fictional character, the following four categories should be considered.

Physical

Includes: clothes, physical appearance, body language, race, gender, language, sexuality, and the setting he chooses (home, furniture), etc.

Social

Includes: friends, family, work, relationships with others and with community, social standing/class, & peoples feelings about him, etc.

Emotional

Includes: feelings about self, feelings about others, feelings about situations he is in, moods, reactions to feelings (e.g. has a temper tantrum when angry or is mean if someone hurts his feelings), how people feel about him, etc.

Spiritual

Includes: religious beliefs, moral values, relationship with nature and society, ideological and political beliefs, etc.

When doing a character sketch, you should also consider what the is the type of character you are discussing. There are two major types of characters. Two-Dimensional Characters sometimes called flat or cardboard characters lack vitality and never seem to come to life they express little or no emotion and often are poorly described by the narrator secondary characters are often two-dimensional they tend to be static they are relatively unaffected by the events of the plot and do not experience growth as a result of said events. Three-Dimensional Characters sometimes called real characters have vitality: they seem to be made of flesh and blood, to have real emotions, heart and soul, and they seem to take on an independent existence main characters are often three-dimensional in nature they tend to be developing characters they change and grow over the course of time and as a result of the events of the narrative