Let's begin by stating the obvious: a writer may provide one of his characters with either a temporary belief or a core belief-or both, for that matter.
A temporary belief exists only until it is proven wrong. That doesn't mean the belief cannot be firmly encased within the mind of a character: indeed, anything that is just half believed wouldn't even qualify as a temporary belief. It just means that nothing has come along in the story to shoot the belief down. For instance, Tom can believe Dick murdered Harry, but if he later finds out that John was the killer—poof! Goodbye, belief.
The death of a temporary belief can often be detected when one character says to another, "I find it hard to believe that she could do such a thing." But she did. Scratch one belief.
All temporary beliefs have the potential for creating action. If, for example, a character decides to settle a dispute between two people because he believes he has influence over one of them, he may find out not only that he was wrong but that they have also turned their anger upon him. The ensuing comedy could be delicious, as the peacemaker tries to hide from them and the plot takes a different turn altogether.
A core belief is something that a character acquires over an extended period of time, and it is always the result of education, either formal or informal. Core beliefs accumulate over a person's lifetime, and in the end they form a makeshift philosophy. Pieced together, they become as unique as a set of fingerprints, for no one else will think about everything in exactly the same way as that particular person. It will be a hodgepodge of such influences as church instruction, the belief of one's mother and father, the things one reads, some public attitudes, and first-hand experience. Moreover, it usually takes a great deal more than a single piece of evidence to make anyone let go of a core belief; indeed, any attempt to dislodge such a belief constitutes a great psychological threat, and a person will usually defend a core belief with considerable vigor.
Whether a belief resides in a person's core or is destined to be only temporary, the reasons can be narrowed down to six:
1. The character has experienced something.
2. The character has seen something.
3. The character has heard something.
4. The character has read something.
5. The character has been taught something.
6. The character has intuitively felt something.
When the writer decides that a character's belief is somehow essential to the story he or she is trying to tell, the nature of the belief may require the writer to make at least one of several different decisions. For example: Is it necessary to explore the roots of the character's belief? Is it the result of a conversion? Is the belief incorrect? If the character finds out he is wrong, will his belief change? In what way do the character's beliefs control him? Does he share his beliefs with others, or does he keep them to himself? Is there anyone in the story who is appalled by what the character believes? Does the character try to convert anyone else to his way of thinking? Finally-and this is very important—is the character truly in possession of this conviction, or is he only serving as a mouthpiece for you, the author?
Now, let's look at some possibilities.
FORMAL PHILOSOPHIES
What follows is a brief explanation of some specific philosophies. In trying to fashion a rather loose philosophy for a character you have in mind, you may find something here that fits his nature. You could even use a combination of two or more.
Agnostic Holds the opinion that nothing in life, including God and the origin of life itself, can be known by man.
Atheist Convinced that God does not exist. Lacks any true faith. Sometimes called an infidel.
Deist Believes that God exists, but completely rejects the idea that the Christian scriptures (Bible) are God's revelation.
Dualist Believes that the universe is neither idealistic nor materialistic, but rather is comprised of mind and matter. A theological dualist sees life as a struggle between the forces of good and evil. An ethical dualist, however, thinks it is proper to alter one's conduct to satisfy the social group one is in.
Empiricist Thinks that all knowledge is gained through the senses.
Hedonist Believes in self-indulgence; permits himself to excessively engage in all pleasures available to him.
Humanist Believes that man's cultural and practical interests and developments are more important than those that are material or scientific.
Materialist Places more value on man's earthly interests.
Mystic Convinced that he is especially in union with God and that he has been given spiritual knowledge, gained through either intuition or meditation. In this capacity he may initiate, or be a rapt witness to, certain occult rites.
Naturalist Holds the belief that all things occur because of natural causes and that they can be scientifically explained.
Nominalist Thinks that abstract ideas have no reality and are names only.
Pantheist Believes that everything that exists, including that which we cannot see such as the boundless journey of our minds—is, in fact, God.
Positivist Rejects pure speculation. Believes that only well-known facts, including that which can be perceived, represent the only worthwhile knowledge.
Pragmatist Accepts the reality of intangible ideas and thoughts, and yet measures their worth by their practicality only.
Rationalist Convinced that elusive truth and knowledge can be gained only through reason, not experience.
Realist Spurns ideals and accepts only what he knows to be facts; yet he believes that abstract concepts, e.g., love and hate, have an existence that is more real than physical matter.
Supernaturalist Convinced that a higher power transcends natural law, that events are divinely inspired.
Theist Feels sure that God is perfect; that He is the Creator and ruler of the universe.
Utilitarian Believes that the greatest good for most of the people should be the goal, and he leans heavily toward material needs rather than spiritual. In his eyes, usefulness is the great leveler.
Vitalist Holds that intuition is greater than intellect, and esteems man's inherent creative power. Believes that the beginning of life was not organic or material.
INFORMAL PHILOSOPHIES
Everyone has an informal philosophy of some sort. It is always nameless and is comprised of convictions that cover a broad range of subjects. An informal philosophy is always in the process of being recreated, with some parts being dropped and new ones added. What follows are several of the categories from which informal philosophies are born. Bear in mind, however, that there is some overlapping—that is, some beliefs will appear in more than one category but possibly under a different name.
Basic Concepts
Based solely upon what the character has observed during his own lifetime, and therefore placing all textbook definitions aside, in what way does the character view courage, cowardice, wisdom, unkindness, nobility, morality, corruption, success, achievement, friendship, justice, injustice, selfishness, beauty, forgiveness, ingratitude, respect, freedom, virtue, vice, wrongdoing, education, love, marriage, a promise, blame, fairness, friendship, change?
Does he have any convictions about the field of business, big or small? For example, does he think the free enterprise system works for everyone or just a minority? Does he believe the businessman must be constantly monitored, lest he take unnecessary advantage of the common man?
Does he believe a parent owes a child anything? If so, what is it? Love? Attention? Lodging? Food on the table? Schooling? Clothes? And where does the obligation end, or does he think it ever does?
What are his convictions regarding work? That no job is too small to do well? That if he doesn't do it, no one else will? That a person is measured by the quality of the job he or she does? That the common man does all the work and the big shots don't do any? Or, like Eliza Doolittle's father in My Fair Lady, does he believe that "with a little bit of luck" the work will be done by someone else?
Regarding the future, does the character believe that one should prepare for it, or is he of the opinion that what will be, will be?
Duty to Oneself
Does the character believe his only responsibility is to look out for himself? That it's a dog-eat-dog world and no one is going to look out for Number One if he doesn't do it? Does he believe that the welfare of others should not be his concern? Is he of the opinion that, to get what he wants, all other things might be sacrificed? Is he convinced that the pursuit of self-gratification should stand at the center of one's thinking?
Duty to Others Does the character believe he is morally obligated to help, protect, and care for others when it is within his power to do so? Does he believe in doing unto others as he would have them do unto him? Does he believe he must value friendships? Keep promises? Be forgiving? Display good manners? Respect opinions different from his own? Be fair in his dealings with others? Tell the truth? Does he think it is incumbent upon him to be an educator when necessary? To provide charity when it is needed? To engage in compromise?
Eternal Questions
What are the character's beliefs regarding God and Satan? How does he feel about creation and evolution? Heaven and Hell? Man's free will or predestination? Reincarnation, ghosts, and angels? Prophecy? Evil spirits? Omens?
What does he believe constitutes a good person—that is, what does the character believe is virtuous? (For example, Plato named justice, temperance, prudence, and fortitude as the four cardinal virtues. To this group the Christian moralists added three more: faith, hope, and charity. Are these the traits your character believes represent moral excellence?)
Does the character believe that the worth of individuals should be measured by what they display in terms of fairness, honesty, sexual purity, kindness, trustworthiness, sense of obligation?
But how about wickedness? Does the character believe that the seven deadly sins, as described in medieval literature, are avarice, sloth, wrath, lust, envy, pride, and gluttony? Does he believe that human vice includes dishonesty? Corruption? Abandonment? Malevolence? What does he believe constitutes an evil person?
Feelings About the Government
What beliefs does he hold regarding the role of government in the lives of people? Without necessarily being a member of a political party, does he align himself with the principles of one of them? Does he believe what is espoused by the conservatives? The liberals? The radicals? Or those who try to stay in the middle of the road?
What does he believe to be good about his government, and what does he think are its bad features? If he believes changes should be made, what are they? Does the character believe in a democracy, a monarchy, a dictatorship, a socialist state, a communist state?
Does he think people should be taxed? Does he think his political system ignores the needs of one class and promotes, as well as protects, the interests of another? Is he of the opinion that a little rebellion now and then is a good thing?
PROVERBS
Just about everyone, at one time or another, will utter a cliché that will in turn summarize how he feels about a certain situation. These statements usually serve as a verbal shorthand and provide a quick insight with regard to something that an individual believes. Some examples:
Practicality: Handsome is as handsome does. Sexual Equality: What's good for the goose is good for the gander. Perseverance: If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. Leniency: Spare the rod, spoil the child. Compromise: To get along, you've got to go along.
Do you know of a proverb that one of your characters might use that would summarize how he feels about something?
EXTREMISM
A person who leaps head first into extremism—i.e., the total acceptance and fervid promotion of all tenets pertaining to a particular philosophy—is almost always a person who spurns all reason and sees things in black and white only. Consequently, his beliefs are "good" in his eyes and anything contradictory is of course "bad." In his mind, there are no gray areas and therefore there is no room for discussion. More often than not, he becomes an unqualified mouthpiece for the philosophy he supports, spewing slogans in all directions like a volcano belching ash.
The three most common extremists are the disciple, the dogmatist, and the fanatic, and writers have frequently used them as characters in their stories, within which they usually appear as either tragic or comic figures. The line that divides these three is extremely fine, and some traits that can be found in one can also be found in another.
Disciple
The disciple accepts, without question, all aspects of a particular doctrine or the teachings of someone who espouses that doctrine, or both. He frequently promotes not only the tenets of the doctrine but the virtues of its leader as well. He is melded into the group and becomes subservient to it. As such, his personality becomes significantly modified. He takes pride in the sacrifices he has made, the hardships he has endured, and the time he has devoted on behalf of the "cause."
Dogmatist
The dogmatist and disciple are much alike, except that the dogmatist is more prone to slide into anger whenever his beliefs are challenged. For the most part, the dogmatist is likely to be quite stubborn and inflexible. He does not like to admit he is wrong. He will speak long and loud about what he sees as the merits of his philosophy, but he will have no patience whatsoever with any statements that counter his claims. To him, dissent is intolerable. The dogmatist is, metaphorically, a table-pounder. If any subject comes up that challenges his beliefs, he will fight to have the last word; otherwise, he may well be silent and look for instances where he can feed and greatly nourish his convictions.
Fanatic
The fanatic is a character whose self-conviction is no longer enough; he must pound everyone else into his way of thinking as well. He is a lightning bolt of lopsided thought. Rather than compromise, it is kill or be killed. So dark and stifling is his extremism that simple reason—poor thing—has no room to breathe. His frenzy of enthusiasm for or against something perverts his behavior and twists it completely out of the norm. This is a character who supports measures that place him at the forefront of danger. Here is the anarchist, the zealot, and the wild-eyed radical who is willing to sacrifice himself and others in the name of the cause.
7. What Are the Character's Strengths, Weaknesses, and Habits?
The strengths or weaknesses that cause plots to thicken are almost always members of a character's internal family of traits (a rather extensive list of which appears in Chapter 1). In Othello, for example, Shakespeare uses the persuasive skill of one character (Iago) to play upon the gullibility of another (Othello), who easily becomes convinced of his wife's infidelity.
Some strengths or weaknesses, however, are secondary, and if they have any plot-generating ability at all it is severely limited. Case in point: In the motion picture Rainman, one of the main characters (brilliantly portrayed by Dustin Hoffman) is autistic, but he has the remarkable ability of instantly calculating large numbers in his head. His brother takes advantage of that skill to make himself some quick money at the gambling table. Afterwards, this particular strength fades quickly in importance, and a much greater emphasis is placed upon the evolving relationship between the two brothers.
The purpose of this chapter is to draw your attention to those secondary strengths, weaknesses, and habits your character may have—the kind that add only an extra interesting facet and little more.
Now, in most cases, whether it is of principal or secondary importance, a character's strength will be seen as a positive trait and his weakness as a negative one. On the other hand, it may depend upon who's doing the looking, for strengths and weaknesses can surely be an arbitrary matter. One character may view another's strength as a weakness and his weakness as a strength
. It all depends on how the author tells the tale, and upon which character he bestows the ability to understand the difference.
In either case, it will do the writer little good to assign a particular strength or weakness to a character if it is not somehow going to be tested during the story. For example, it would be pointless to let the reader or viewer know that a certain character has a photographic memory if he or she is never going to be placed in a situation where that strength can be displayed.
Besides strengths and weaknesses, this chapter will also briefly examine some habits—another device for adding true-to-life detail or dimension to your characters.
STRENGTHS AND WEAKNESSES
There are two kinds of strengths and weaknesses: inherited and acquired. The difference is important.
Bestowed at conception, an inherited strength is viewed as a blessing and is often called a talent. Its presence is inexplicable, and it can develop into an extraordinary skill.
By contrast, an inherited weakness is usually seen as a curse that is blamed upon the recipient's ancestors. It is usually called a failing, and often inspires mean remarks like, "You can't turn a sow's ear into a silk purse." Usually, someone with very little ability in a certain area will not show much interest in it. Obviously, there are exceptions: there are bad actors in the movies and in the theater, for example, and press reviews attacking their ability seem unable to diminish their enthusiasm.
An acquired strength gives credence to that old saying, "Practice makes perfect." One is not born an expert marksman, for example; it takes a lot of shooting (and missing) to become one.
An acquired weakness, on the other hand, is an inability to pass up what the body or mind has become accustomed to. At some point in life a person may be irresistibly lured toward the direction of something that should be left untouched, and forever after he may suffer the same temptation. To resist the temptation, even just once, is to enjoy a small moment of heroism. Ex-smokers know the feeling.
Creating Characters Page 14