CHARACTER IN FICTION

Character Traits

Are words or phrases that describe the personality and or actions of the characters in a story.

They don’t describe the physical traits of a character, they describe the interior of a person.

How do we learn the traits?

Sometimes, authors will state them directly in the story…like,

“Red was a bold girl who had no problem stating her opinion.”

Actions

What a character does in the story can give us an idea of their traits… If a character is always telling others what to

do(like Lucy in Charlie Brown or Sheila Tubman in Tales of a Fourth Grade Nothing), we can infer that she is bossy

Thoughts

We can discern character traits through characters’ thoughts If a character in a story often afraid of things

we can deduce that he or she is fearful and timid.

Their words

We can also learn about a character from what they say If a character says, “Once again, I know the

answer! You all wish you were as smart as I am.”, we can tell that they are obnoxious and conceited!

Other people’s reactions

The way that other people respond to a character can also tell us about him or her. Let’s say Jane comes up to Sarah and Ashley

and asks to be part of their science group. They sarcastically say “NO!”. After she walks off, Sarah and Ashley whisper to one another…”Now she knows what it is like to be left out.”

This probably tells us that Jane may not always be such a nice person and might exclude others