Character Development:
Exploring Characterization in Children’s Literature
Out of all the literary elements, Characterization is considered one of the most powerful. A believable, entertaining story needs Characters who are lifelike and who develop throughout the story. Unforgettable characters we recall from our childhood had several sides to them; like real people, they were depicted as complex individuals with a mixture of traits from both nature and experience. The integrity of a character is dependent upon the writer’s ability to reveal the character’s nature, including their strengths and weaknesses. Authors accomplish realistic characters by demonstrating how the character responses to conflict and change. Let’s look at some memorable characters created by talented children’s authors that exemplify these qualities’.
In “Tuck Everlasting”, Natalie Babbitt uses these methods to reveal the changes that occur in her protagonist Winnie Foster as she faces difficult decisions and overcomes her fears.
At the beginning of “Tuck Everlasting”, we see how much Winnie wants to break free from the bonds of childhood and become more independent. As the story unfolds we see Winnie start to contemplate the beauty of living as well as dying. Winnie’s newfound maturity is revealed when she understands “…
…show more content…
Take Wilbur for instance, the main character in E. B. White’s “Charlotte’s Web”. Even though Wilbur is a pig that doesn’t stop White from giving him human attributes. Wilbur experiences an array of emotions on his journey through the novel. At the start of the novel when Wilbur is faced with any type of conflict he responds with hysterics. By the novel’s end Wilbur demonstrates his character’s growth by being able to transport Charlotte’s egg sac back to the farm while maintaining his
Characterization is generally defined as a graphic description of a character. It could be vague or straight to the point. For example, in page 4 of Butter, a scene is described where Butter refrains from snacking any further, offended by a girl on T.V expressing her opinion on charging obese people more for taking up more than one seat on an airplane. “Can’t a guy enjoy a little sandwich in his own living
It is important to create complex, progressive characters. Characters should speak with intent and purpose. You can establish who a character is through tone and what they say. You can also reveal character through thoughts and background information. Not all characters have to have an origin; they can just be there. You should have conflicting traits between the characters. Challenging your characters adds
To have a good story, there must be good characters. Characters help the reader relate to the plot and struggle of the story, as well as creating a picture of the scenes on each page. But what exactly makes a character? What defines their personalities and relatableness to the reader? The way a character thinks, acts, and views the world are influenced, much like in the real world, by the people and places around them.
Characterization is an essential component in a short story. Characterization is based on two things , indirect or direct characterization. Indirect Characterization shows the audience what the personality of the character is , and Direct tells the audience what the personality of the character is. Authors make characters be presented by means of description,through their actions,speech,thoughts and interactions with other characters. Authors frequently apply characterization to their stories to develop a theme or moral to the stories. Practically every novel that was made in the history of literature has a theme.This means any kind of short story like The Whistle by Anne Estevis and Marigold by Eugenia Collier has characterization.
Characterization is the process by which the author reveal the personality of a character. Characterization can be created in two different ways: direct and indirect characterization. Direct characterization is when the author tells the readers what a character is like. Indirect characterization is based on clues from the story, the reader decides what a character is like. Indirect characterization can come from what the character says/does, what the character thinks, what others say about the character, and the character’s physical appearance.
...ecisions throughout the narrative led her to transform in to a heroic character. From deciding to not call out to the man in the yellow suit while the Tucks are kidnapping her to deciding to help the Tucks get out of jail, Winnie's journey became a heroic one. At the beginning, all Winnie wants to do is make a difference in the world, and by the end she accomplishes this. By keeping the Tucks secret, she saves the world from wanting to become immortals which Winnie knows from living with the Tucks that it is actually a curse. Her key decisions throughout the tale are what make her personality so fearless. While it appears that Winnie Foster is a timid introvert, she is actually an daring character who's qualities alter in to a gallant hero at the end of the narrative.
A character is a person in a story that plays a particular role. Stories require characters so that it forms conflicts, tensions and resolutions. Characters also carry certain traits to make the story interesting and unique. Each character might have different attributes. Others could have similar and different qualities. Those who read many novels might notice that characters from various books are similar to each other to an extent, but are not completely the same. The old English poem, Beowulf, and Shakespeare's Macbeth contain characters with similar characteristics. Beowulf and Macbeth share similar traits, but do not have the same objective. Comparing and contrasting determine the similarities and differences of things. Comparing and contrasting is an excellent tool to determine what is right and wrong. When choosing the best car to drive, comparing and contrasting helps in the choice of the best vehicle. Macbeth and Beowulf demonstrate that a warrior's motivations matter for both soldiers and the people.
Each of these characters posses a different personality which contributes to the book as a whole. Throughout the book I felt connected to one character, that character was George. George and I share similar qualities and our lifestyles can relate. One major characteristic I found in George is his ability to take the initiative in whatever he is doing, therefore showing his sense of leadership qualities. This caught my eye automatically since I am the type of person to stand up and demonstrate my leadership to others.
There is three things necessary to make a convincing or developing character; “first It must be consistent with the individual’s characterization as dramatized in the story, second It must be sufficiently motivated by the circumstances in which the character is placed, and finally the story must offer sufficient time for the change to take place to be believable.” [page 172]
Raymond Carver, the author of “Cathedral” uses characterization to describe the main character, the narrator’s development in the story upon meeting a blind man. This blind man, Robert, unintentionally changes the narrator’s perspective on life and on himself. The narrator first starts off as an arrogant, close minded individual who later opens his mind and is introduced to new perspectives of life. The most important element used in this writing is characterization because it makes the reader change perspectives on how the narrator develops throughout the story and deeply goes into a lot of detail to support the narrator’s development. good thesis, but the wording is a little bland and lifeless
The characters in the novel, Tuck Everlasting, by Natalie Babbitt, experienced many trials and tribulations throughout the story. One lesson learned in this story was love is powerful. Mae Tuck love Winnie so much, that she killed the man in the yellow suit for her. Winnie love her toad so much, that she give her only bottle of water from the spring to the toad. Jesse love Winnie very much, that he tells Winnie that he wants to be with her forever. When analyzing the text, a deeper understanding of the theme was revealed.
Children literature is a term that refers to the texts written for children. The artist uses creative ways to ensure that children are provided with educational books, touching on a variety of themes. This paper will include comparison of two characters from the two texts, “Hana's Suitcase: A True Story,” authored by Karen Levine and “Charlotte’s Web,” written by E.B. White, with the aim of understanding ways in which problems are solvable as indicated by selected characters.
are characters that can be defined by their traits as certain archetypes. All novels and films contain archetypes that allow their audience to understand and relate more to
Novels of the 1950s such as Crucifixus Exam by Walter M. Miller, Jr. had a very complex style of writing that was almost poetic and often focused on something small with very much detail. On the other hand later writings like James Patterson’s Maximum Ride have almost all child characters who are quite relatable for anyone 10-17 years old. The writing is also very young, straightforward, and direct to the readers for a much more “kid-like” reading experie...
Characterization is the description or portrayal of a character in a literary work. In The Old Man and the Sea , Santiago is old fisherman living in Cuba. In the novella