Thursday February 25th- LESSON: Character Archetype
In-Person At WBACTC Starting Monday March 1st
One Day A Week for each school:
Monday: GAR / Crestwood
Tuesday: Meyers / Hanover
Wednesday: Coughlin (Mackin) / Pittston
Thursday: Nanticoke / Old Forge / Riverside / All Other
Friday: COVID-19 Heavy Sanitizing No In-Person
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WEEKLY CLASS ZOOM MEETING WITH BE HELD TOMORROW (FRIDAY FEB 26th) AT 10AM or 1PM
Watch the three video’s as part of the Greatness Studio Starters 1) Bell Ringer Video 2) CNN 10 News 3) Motivational Video
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Watch, Listen, Read everything in the Lesson below.
LESSON: Character Archetype
VIDEO: CLICK TO WATCH
POWERPOINT: CLICK TO READ AND REVIEW
MORE INFORMATION: CLICK TO READ AND REVIEW
LESSON NOTES:
Looking to brainstorm new characters? Perhaps, you want to flesh out existing characters or pair them against another character to maximize drama and develop deeper character arcs. Writing a compelling character is easier said than done. However, it’s helpful to consider tried-and-true character archetypes to ensure every character behaves in a way that is unique, consistent, and believable. In this post, we’ll identify the various character archetypes that you can use to enhance your own characters. Plus, we’ll include plenty of iconic character archetype examples from your favorite movies and TV shows. Lastly, we’ll define which character archetypes can be paired to maximize either harmony…or conflict. Let’s get started.
WHAT IS AN ARCHETYPE?
Understanding character archetypes
Character archetypes are great building blocks for your stories.
You don’t want to make your characters too one dimensional, but understanding why people seem to gravitate to a particular set of character traits will help you analyze human behavior.
Which leads to crafting better characters in your scripts. But what exactly does archetype mean?
ARCHETYPE DEFINITION
What is an archetype?
An archetype is a consistent and typical version of a particular thing. It can be a human, an object, or a particular set of behaviors, but the point is that it fits into a time-tested mold that embodies a pure form.
A character archetype is the core traits, values, and decision making patterns of a particular type of person.
What does a character archetype do?
- Allows for a variety of different characters
- Solidifies the values for a particular character
- Establishes a unique skill set for the character
It’s important to understand that there is a difference between a story archetype and a character archetype.
You can take classic archetypical characters and place them into a narrative chain of events that plays against the associated story archetype.
A quarterback who needs to get to the playoffs is old hat, but a quarterback who is thrown into a murder investigation and gambling plot is relatively fresh. This is how the filmmakers behind The Last Boy Scout handled their archetypical characters.
CLICK FOR MOVIE EXAMPLE
Archetypical Characters in The Last Boy Scout
In fact, this is one of the best ways to make sure that your story is a bit more fresh and a bit less tired and derivative.
Why do character archetypes exist?
Human beings tend to find their place within a group dynamic based around their strongest personality traits.
You may have a group of friends with similar interests but often one will be the “social butterfly” while another will be the “homebody.”
Your friends will begin to identify each other by these consistent traits.
You’ve now defined yourself by a character archetype.
When writing your own scripts, you may have a desire to use a character archetype for your hero, or for your villain.
Other times you may want to build an ensemble with many archetypes.
It’s also important to note that, not every character fits into a tiny little box.
We all have a certain percentage of different character traits. Which of them dominates the majority of our personality? Which traits manifest less often?
Take Michael Scott from The Office:
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Character Archetype Examples • Michael Scott
Michael could be considered a leader, or perhaps a wildcard. Most characters will show signs of multiple character archetypes, but there is still a way to make a sound determination.
The simplest way is through the process of elimination.
Indiana Jones, for example, fits into three different character archetypes, but when you go through the process of stripping them away one at a time, what do you get? Would you still have Indiana Jones?
CLICK TO WATCH EXAMPLE FROM INDIANA JONES
Indiana Jones Embodies Multiple Character Archetypes
Eventually, you’ll learn that there is a dominant character archetype that best exemplifies each particular character.
There are situation like Game of Thrones where a character may begin a seducer, but then walks the path of redemption to the warrior, like Jamie Lannister.
These particular archetypical characters can be applied to heroes, but they can also serve as character archetypes for villains.
Often, the same character traits can be used for different reasons…
You can use your charm for good, or far evil.
Also, many characters (especially in comedy) will attempt to fit into a character archetype that seems the appropriate for their personality…
But they really only possess the negative traits associated with the type.
Often, these characters fall into the unlisted character archetype:
- What is an archetype?
- What does a character archetype do?
- Why do character archetypes exist?