How textual details

reveal a character
CHR 1.A
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 How characters
reveal themselves
CHR-1.A Description,
dialogue, and behavior
reveal characters to
readers.
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Lit & More
 Characterization
●Writers can build
characterization in
several ways, including:
●Character description
●Dialogue and inner
thoughts
●Character behavior
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 Character Description

●Character description can include the way a

character looks, dresses, talks, walks, thinks,
and more.
●Writers almost always describe their characters,
but it usually goes beyond a basic physical
description. In fact, they sometimes omit that!
●When a writer does describe a character, consider
what is described for you, and what is left for
you to determine for yourself.
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“Shaving” by Leslie Norris
●Read the excerpt on your
handout.
●Why would the author go to
such lengths to describe the
protagonist in this way?
●What predictions can you
make about this story or
this character, based on
this characterization?
 Dialogue & Inner Thoughts

●Another way to learn about a character is

to examine the way he or she speaks, or in
some cases, how they write or speak in
their minds.
●A character’s speech style and patterns
can show their culture, socio-economic
status, values, intelligence, and more. ©2020, AP
 “Flowers for Algernon”
by Daniel Keyes
●Read the excerpt on your
handout.
●What conclusions can you
make about the narrator?
●What predictions can you
make about this story or
this character, based on
his characterization?
 Character Behavior

●The saying goes, “actions speak louder

than words,” and this goes for fictional
characters as well.
●One of the biggest ways to learn about a
character is to observe his or her
behavior. You can learn virtually
anything about a character based on his
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or her actions. Lit & More
“The Tell-Tale Heart”
by Edgar Allan Poe
●Read the excerpt on
your handout.
●What can you deduce
about the narrator of
this piece based on
his actions alone?
 Perspective
CHR-1.E Characters reveal
their perspectives and biases
through the words they use,
the details they provide in
the text, the organization of
their thinking, the decisions
they make, and the actions
they take
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 Perspective
●Point of view differs from perspective in that a
point of view is a narrative viewpoint, which
sometimes employs a characterized narrator.
●Perspective is broader, referring to the feelings
and outlook of the narrator as a person.
●Read through these three excerpts and describe the
narrative perspective of each.

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 “Click Clack the Rattle Bag”
by Neil Gaiman
●What is this
character’s narrative
perspective?
●What details can you
use to learn about
him?
 “The Snows of Kilimanjaro” by
Ernest Hemingway
●What is this
character’s
narrative
perspective?
●What details can you
use to learn about
him?
 “The Garden Party” by
Katherine Mansfield
●What is this character’s
narrative perspective?

●What details can you use to

learn about her?
 Motivation
CHR-1.K Readers can
infer a character’s
motives from that
character’s actions
or inactions.
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Motivation
●Character motivation refers to
the drive behind a character’s
actions. Characters are motivated
by desires, needs, or even the
story’s conflict.

●Read Saki’s short story “The Open

Window” and consider the
motivations of young Vera.
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