Character Device

Introduction to Character Device

Character device is a literary device related only to a character in a story. This is also called characterization. Authors show characters, their personalities, traits, motivations, beliefs, and emotions through dialogues, actions, and interactions with others through characterization.

This process enhances credibility, relatability, and authenticity of the characters, and fosters a deeper engagement between readers and the narrators as well as the narrative, providing valuable insights into the human condition and underlying themes. Character devices fall under this broad category. There are several types of character devices. Some of these are as follows.

Type of Character Devices

1. Direct Characterization: The author explicitly describes a character’s traits or personality in this character device.
2. Indirect Characterization: Through this device, the author reveals a character’s traits through his/her actions, thoughts, and interactions.
3. Dialogue: Dialogue shows a conversation between characters, providing insights into their personalities, relationships, and emotions.
4. Actions: How characters act and react in various situations, revealing their personality traits and motivations depends on how authors use this device.
5. Inner Monologue: This character device gives readers access to the characters’ inner feelings and reflections.
6. Physical Appearance: This character device shows the character’s outward appearance, which may provide clues about their personality or background.
7. Foil Characters: It shows secondary characters whose traits contrast with those of the main character, highlighting specific qualities.
8. Round Characters: This character device shows well-developed and multidimensional characters with depth, emotions, and realistic qualities.
9. Flat Characters: It shows one-dimensional characters with limited depth or complexity, often serving a specific purpose in the plot.
10. Dynamic Characters: This device shows a character who undergoes significant internal changes, personal growth, or development throughout the story.
11. Static Characters: This literary device related to characters shows characters who remain unchanged throughout the story, maintaining consistent traits and beliefs.
12. Symbolism: It shows the use of symbols to convey meaning about characters or their attributes.

These character devices help authors bring their characters to life, make them relatable, and create engaging and memorable stories for readers.

Functions of Characterization/Related Literary Devices

Type of Character Device	Function
Direct Characterization	This character device explicitly describes a character’s traits or personality.
Indirect Characterization	It shows character traits through actions and interactions.
Dialogue	This device provides insights into the characters’ personalities and emotions.
Actions and Behavior	This device shows how characters act and react, revealing motivations.
Thoughts and Inner Monologue	This character device gives readers access to the characters’ inner feelings and reflections.
Physical Appearance	This device provides clues about the characters’ personality or background.
Foil Characters	This character device contrasts with the main character, highlighting specific qualities.
Round Characters	This device creates well-developed and multidimensional characters with depth and complexity.
Flat Characters	This character device portrays one-dimensional characters, serving a specific purpose in the plot.
Static Characters	This device maintains characters unchanged throughout the story, offering stability.
Symbolism	This character uses symbols to convey deeper meaning about characters.

Suggested Readings about Character Devices/Characterization

1. Booth, Wayne C. The Rhetoric of Fiction. University of Chicago Press, 1983.
2. Brooks, Cleanth, and Robert Penn Warren. Understanding Fiction. 3rd ed., Prentice Hall, 1979.
3. Culler, Jonathan. Structuralist Poetics: Structuralism, Linguistics, and the Study of Literature. Routledge, 2002.
4. Forster, E.M. Aspects of the Novel. Harvest Books, 2002.
5. Frye, Northrop. Anatomy of Criticism: Four Essays. Princeton University Press, 1957.
6. Lodge, David. The Art of Fiction. Penguin, 1993.
7. Propp, Vladimir. Morphology of the Folktale. University of Texas Press, 1968.
8. Selden, Raman, and Peter Widdowson. A Reader’s Guide to Contemporary Literary Theory. 5th ed., Routledge, 2005.
9. Showalter, Elaine. A Literature of Their Own: British Women Novelists from Brontë to Lessing. Princeton University Press, 1978.
10. Sternberg, Meir. The Poetics of Biblical Narrative: Ideological Literature and the Drama of Reading. Indiana University Press, 1987.