Character

Characterization

Direct Characterization

Direct characterization tells the reader directly about the personality of a character.

• “David was an aggressive boy.”

Indirect Characterization (5 types)

Indirect characterization reveals a character’s personality through 5 different methods: appearance, speech, thoughts, actions, and others' reactions.

Appearance

What does the character look like? How does he/she dress?

• “David’s jeans had a tear in the knee, and his shirt displayed a picture of his favorite professional wrestler. His face tightened into a frown when he saw someone sitting in his favorite seat.”

Speech

What does the character say?

• “David shouted, ‘That’s my seat! Move! You make me wicked mad!’ to the first grader sitting in the back left corner of the school bus.”

Thoughts

What are the character’s thoughts and feelings?

• “David thought, How many times do I have to tell these little kids not to sit in my seat? He decided that it would go on no longer.”

Actions

How does the character behave? How does he/she interact with others?

• “David picked up the child roughly, flung him into the aisle, glared at him menacingly, and sat in his seat.”

Others’ Reactions

How do other characters react to the character? How do they treat him/her? What do they say to or about him/her?

• “The boy who was now in the aisle, too terrified to argue, crept quietly up the aisle to a new seat. He would never go near the back of the bus again.”

Character Traits

This is not a complete list of possible character traits; there are many adjectives that can describe people.

Note that characterization and character traits refer to a character’s personality, not a temporary mood. For example, just like real people, a character can sometimes feel angry without being an angry person.