CHARACTERIZATION
By: Alisha Kies, Amy Flageolle, Megan Fisher
and Deborah Racicot
DEFINITION:
The presentation of a fictional personage.
There are two ways to do this; direct and indirect.
Direct characterization occurs when a narrator
directly tells us what a character is like.
Indirect characterization occurs when a character’s
traits are revealed implicitly through his or her
actions, speech, behavior, thoughts and actions.
Twyla from Recitatif
Penny and Primrose
from The Thing in the
Forrest
Sister from Why I live
at the P.O.
Roberta from Recitatif
Stella-Rondo, Mama,
Papa Daddy, Uncle
Rondo, and Shirley T
from Why I live at the
P.O.
DIRECT VS. INDIRECT
Examples of Direct Characters Examples of Indirect Characters
Characters from Why I live at the P.O.
By Eudora Welty
SISTER
Flat, Static Character.
She doesn’t grow or
change through the story.
Unreliable narrator-her
prior judgment of each
character is revealed in
how she presents them.
Unable to Accept
Reality
Eggs on the sibling
rivalry between Sister
and Stella-Rondo.
Believes whatever she
is told instead of finding
out the truth for herself.
MAMA
“Steals” Mr. Whitaker
from Sister.
Runs back home from
her unhappy marriage.
The favorite daughter,
and younger than Sister
by 12 months.
STELLA-RONDO
UNCLE RONDO
Mentally unstable.
Very mean-spirited,
vengeful.
Throws firecrackers into
Sister’s room early in the
morning.
Wears Stella-Rondo’s
nightgown around.
Patriarch of the family.
Got Sister her job
through his
“connections”.
Has been growing his
beard since he was a
teenager.
PAPA DADDY
CHARACTERS FROMRECITATIF
BY TONI MORRISON
She narrates the story.
She grows and
changes through the
story.
When the story begins,
she is 8 years old.
TWYLA: THE BEGINNING
Working at Howard
Johnson’s as a waitress.
Recognizes Roberta
and is glad to see her.
Doesn’t understand
why she’s being
snubbed.
TWYLA: IN THE MIDDLE
TWYLA AS A MOM
Married to a fireman.
Has one son.
Loves her stable,
comfortable, family life.
Protests against
Roberta’s protest.
Is mad that Roberta is
protesting integration. Takes it
personally.
Thinks they can’t disagree and
still be friends.
Gets personal with her protest
signs.
Doesn’t mind that her son will
be bussed, she says “I mean, I
didn’t know!”
TWYLA DURING THE PROTEST
Decides to run out and
get a Christmas Tree at
the last minute.
Runs into Roberta;
doesn’t want to talk to
her, but does accept her
apology.
TWYLA; THE LAST TIME
She is 8 years old
when we meet her at St.
Bonny’s.
She is there before
Twyla.
They become
inseparable.
ROBERTA IN THE BEGINNING
ROBERTA AT THE HOJO
Comes in on the
Greyhound, on her way to
see Jimi Hendrix.
She is a customer at the
restaurant and Twyla
serves her.
She is dismissive of
Twyla.
Married to a rich
widower, has 4 step-
children.
Shopping at the high
end grocery store.
She approaches Twyla
and asks her to go to
coffee.
ROBERTA
ROBERTA DURING THE PROTEST
Protesting her son’s school being integrated.
Tells Twyla not to take it personally.
Tells Twyla that you’re the same person who kicked a black lady while she was on the ground and you call me a bigot.
ROBERTA AT THE DINER
She is drunk when she
sees Twyla.
Apologizes for saying
Twyla kicked Maggie.
Wonders what really
happened in the
orchard.
SUMMATION
Characters are who tell us the story. You can’t have a story without characters, even if sometimes the characters aren’t people.
Characters give insight to the story through their voices.
We learn a lot of what an author is trying to convey from the characters.
Characters stick with you after you finish the story.
Not all narrators are characters within the story.
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