Lesson 30 — Activity 2: Understanding Character

All the characters from the Hunger Games.

You know that you learn about yourself and grow as an individual through your own experiences. Reading about the experiences of characters in a novel can also have an impact on you. Even if we do not have exactly the same experience, we can still learn by seeing how a character deals with a particular situation.

In Lesson 26 — Activity 2, you learned about the types of characters and the techniques that an author can use to develop characters.

Think about Max, who is the main character in Freak the Mighty. If you were asked to write a paragraph about him, you would have to gather information on the following topics to be able to do this:

physical: which might include age, gender, size, hair and eye colour, and other physical characteristics

actions: what he does

dialogue: what he says and what other characters say about him

thoughts: what he thinks

Here is a list of character traits that could be used by authors.

What words could you use to describe Little Red Riding Hood's personality?

Once you have gathered this information, you will be able to suggest some words that describe Max’s personality.

For example, one could say that Little Red Riding Hood was caring because she took the time to take a basket of goodies to her grandmother.

Images courtesy of www.imagesgoogle.com

How would you go about presenting a character like Max to an audience? You could use a graphic organizer, design a visual or dramatic presentation, or compose a speech. A common method is to write a character sketch. Remember that to truly understand and appreciate a character, it is necessary to take some time to reflect about that individual.