character
Quick Summary
A "personage" is a person of high rank or a dramatic, fictional, or historical character. The word originates from the Latin "persona," meaning an actor's mask or role. While "personage" can sometimes be used as a synonym for "person," this usage is less common.12
In literature, a "character" is a person or other being in a narrative. Characters can be human, animal, or even prehuman, and they are essential for creating a compelling story. The term "character" itself has a long history, stemming from the Greek "charassein," meaning to engrave or cut.34
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- dramatic literatureCommon elements of drama
ā¦detach the idea of a character from the situation in which he is placed, though it may seem possible after the experience of the whole play. Whether the playwright conceives character before situation, or vice versa, is arbitrary. More relevant are the scope and scale of the character-in-situationāwhether, for example,ā¦
Read Moreā¦detach the idea of a character from the situation in which he is placed, though it may seem possible after the experience of the whole play. Whether the playwright conceives character before situation, or vice versa, is arbitrary. More relevant are the scope and scale of the character-in-situationāwhether, for example,ā¦
Read More - dramatic literatureInto the 16th and 17th centuries
Second, basic types of comic character derived from the central characters, who reappeared in the same masks in play after play. As these characters became well known everywhere, dramatists could rely on their audience to respond to them in predictable fashion. Their masks stylized the whole play and allowed theā¦
Read MoreSecond, basic types of comic character derived from the central characters, who reappeared in the same masks in play after play. As these characters became well known everywhere, dramatists could rely on their audience to respond to them in predictable fashion. Their masks stylized the whole play and allowed theā¦
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theatrical productionThe actor as characterAnother aspect of the dramatic performerās work has to do with the portrayal of characters, both as individuals and as types. In portraying an individual character, the performer adopts a fictional framework and acts according to the textās demands. When playing Macbeth, for instance,ā¦
Read MoreAnother aspect of the dramatic performerās work has to do with the portrayal of characters, both as individuals and as types. In portraying an individual character, the performer adopts a fictional framework and acts according to the textās demands. When playing Macbeth, for instance,ā¦
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theatreProduction aspects of Expressionist theatreCharacters were frequently presented as fragments of a unified consciousness. Crowds were often not differentiated but were used in mass to express or underline the power of the protagonistās position. Expressionist roles often required actors to express aspects of character through the use of isolatedā¦
Read MoreCharacters were frequently presented as fragments of a unified consciousness. Crowds were often not differentiated but were used in mass to express or underline the power of the protagonistās position. Expressionist roles often required actors to express aspects of character through the use of isolatedā¦
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tragedyClassical theoriesā¦soul of a tragedy, with character in second place. The goal of tragedy is not suffering but the knowledge that issues from it, as the denouement issues from a plot. The most powerful elements of emotional interest in tragedy, according to Aristotle, are reversal of intention or situation (peripeteia) andā¦
Read Moreā¦soul of a tragedy, with character in second place. The goal of tragedy is not suffering but the knowledge that issues from it, as the denouement issues from a plot. The most powerful elements of emotional interest in tragedy, according to Aristotle, are reversal of intention or situation (peripeteia) andā¦
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Charles DickensNovels from Bleak House to Little Dorrit of Charles DickensāDickensianā characterization continues in the sharply defined and simplified grotesque or comic figures, such as Chadband in Bleak House or Mrs. Sparsit in Hard Times, but large-scale figures of this type are less frequent (the Gamps and Micawbers belong to the first half of his career).ā¦
Read MoreāDickensianā characterization continues in the sharply defined and simplified grotesque or comic figures, such as Chadband in Bleak House or Mrs. Sparsit in Hard Times, but large-scale figures of this type are less frequent (the Gamps and Micawbers belong to the first half of his career).ā¦
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William ShakespeareRomantic criticsā¦supreme as a creator of character. Maurice Morgann wrote such character-based analyses as appear in his book An Essay on the Dramatic Character of Sir John Falstaff (1777), where Falstaff is envisaged as larger than life, a humane wit and humorist who is no coward or liar in fact butā¦
Read Moreā¦supreme as a creator of character. Maurice Morgann wrote such character-based analyses as appear in his book An Essay on the Dramatic Character of Sir John Falstaff (1777), where Falstaff is envisaged as larger than life, a humane wit and humorist who is no coward or liar in fact butā¦
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