Character

What kind of man tries to explain character in one page? Oh heck...

Characters are not people but they should act, feel and sound like people, to the extent that they may conflict with your plot points. That's part of the fun or writing, and when you think you'll simply force your character to match your plot, remember, as Flannery O'Connor indicated, God doesn't do that to you, so don't do that to your characters.

Rather, develop characters that best convey the emotion of your story climax. remember, you're trying to move an audience, so ask yourself - "Who is best to carry the emotional weight of my story?" That's your main character. Treat them as real, and build their world.

Deepening the Character

Just giving your characters amusing quirks doesn't deepen the character, but here's an idea: Characters have a dominant trait + a contradiction: a CONSISTENT conflicting attribute within deep character (Macbeth's guilt-ridden ambition) or between characterization and deep character (a charming thief)

This is the distinction:

• Characterization is the sum of all observable qualities: appearance, culture and setting, speech, style, mannerisms, attitudes, values, IQ, occupation. Characterizations tell us NOTHING unless the protagonist has a particular attitude toward the characteristic that helps define him (Cyrano de Bergerac’s nose)
• Character can only be expressed through CHOICE in dilemma. How the person chooses to act under pressure is who he is – the greater the pressure, the truer and deeper the choice to character. (1)

So, to build our character, we need pressure! A dilemma! In other words - CONFLICT!

Conflict = Want + Obstacle

Want – something the character desires strongly. Things MUST change, urgently, otherwise you have false want and false conflict. At every point in your story, ask yourself, what does my character WANT? What choices does he make and actions does he take to get it? This is determined by your story Premise.

Obstacle – someone or something that is as determined, driven and desperate to block or deny the want as the want is driven to overcome the obstacle. (see Antagonist below)

To test your obstacle, ask what will happen if the character ignored the obstacle. If he suffers no injury, then you have no story. We must have an obstacle that requires ACTION.(2)

Want + Obstacle + ACTION = Story

Action is not activity. Activity can be anything that happens in a scene, but action is a direct attack upon a problem or defense against it. As Aristotle said, character is revealed through conflict.

Once you determine what a character will do to overcome the obstacle, all that's left is the outcome - did he succeed or not? THAT is your story climax, the ultimate revelation of character.

So, who's best to create this obstacle? Let's ask the Antagonist:

Antagonist

Here are a few different ways to look at the Antagonist. He:

• Wants the same thing as the hero but is morally different (opposing belief systems vying for control)
• Is the physical representation of the protagonist’s worst fear
• The “flipside” of the protagonist - what the hero would be under different circumstances (See Raider's quote at right)

Why am I talking about the Antagonist first? A protagonist and his story can only be as intellectually fascinating and emotionally compelling as the forces of antagonism make him. Typically (and especially in action films), the antagonist is ACTIVE – protagonists are REACTIVE.(4)

To build a great antagonist, he must have a great plan. The bigger the plan, the bigger the movie. Ask, would WE do the same thing in his shoes? Remember, the Antagonist is simply a protagonist of a different belief system. DON'T make him pure evil or crazy because that weakens him and the protagonist! Give him clear reasons for his different beliefs, and let him be RIGHT about certain things. That way, he will be the one person best able to attack the hero's greatest weakness. Then as the two belief systems battle, both the antagonist and protagonist are forced toward greatness.

Protagonist

This could fill volumes. Let's not...

A good Protagonist arouses a strong emotional response from the audience – pity, amusement, admiration, but NOT indifference. This does not mean all central characters have to be likeable (eg. Darth Vader, Don Corleone, Sidney Falco). In fact, to create that inner contradiction, a "sympathetic protagonist must have an undesireable side if any tension is to be created in the audience concerning the protagonist’s goal- the more he desires, the greater our concern". As the hero pursues his desire, he declines morally - he must become the villain - “cross the line” - in order to conquer him.

To help us, Michel Hauge donated 5 elements of a "Hollywood Concept":

1. A Hero is a main character who is on-screen more than anybody else and whose desire (outer motivation) drives the story.
2. Identification-the audience must identify with the hero. Here are five ways to create empathy and identification:
   1. Sympathy
   2. Put the character in jeopardy
   3. Make the character likable
   4. Make the character funny
   5. Power - make the character good at what they do.
3. Outer motivation-this is what the hero pursues. This is the essence of the story. It should be a visible goal with a clearly defined ending. Instead of "The hero wants to get better at baseball," find a recognizable end-point: "The hero wants to guide his team to victory in the world series."
4. Conflict-every story must be a David and Goliath story where the person has to overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. Conflict is the only way to elicit emotion in the audience.
5. Courage-there must be the need for courage on behalf of the hero.

So, the writer's goal is to create an entertaining protagonist, who overcomes obstacles and creates an emotional response in the audience by reaching the finish line (story climax). So, what's in it for him? Character change! Self revelation!

Character ARC

Stephen Covey says, begin with the end in mind, or as John Truby says, begin with the self revelation, the moment at the end when the hero uncovers a false idea about himself, and based on it, takes new moral action (and resolves the story). 

The self revelation moment will allow you to define the hero's WANT and NEED. For character growth, we need both an external desire (want) that drives the story, and an internal lack/problem (need) that the hero is unaware of (even though it's negatively effecting people) that is his key to change. (3)

For example, in Witness, John Book's WANT is to protect the witness and solve the case. But he's part of the system and as it turns out, he works with the bad guys. His NEED is to discover a righteousness independent of his culture of violence. Once he finds it with the Amish, he is able to resolve the conflict and satisfy his WANT.

With a clear want/need and self revelation, you can create a single desire-line for your hero. 

That NEED, once resolved expresses the theme of your story.  Put another way: character arc = theme.

But wait!

NOT ALL PROTAGONISTS HAVE AN ARC!  Why?  Not all characters change. Changing might not be a part of their personality  (Dirty Harry, James Bond, Jesus Christ) (5).  That said, most characters arc because stories are about transformation, learning to live in this world.

Clear?

As mud but hopefully it covers the ground. If you have questions or comments, contact me.

Footnotes:

(1) Robert McKee, STORY
(2) Jerry Cleaver, Immediate Fiction
(3) John Truby, Great Screenwriting
(4) William C. Martell, Secrets of action Screenwriting
(5) Linda Palmer, How to Write it, How to Sell it