Lecture 6: Characters—Round and Flat, Major and Minor
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is that all characters want something or are driven by something; all
characters have something at stake in the narrative.z Flat characters want only one simple thing: Sherlock Holmes wants to
solve a mystery; Miss Havisham wants revenge against men. Round
characters, in contrast, want something complicated, ineffable, or
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about what they want, often to the
point that they have no clear idea
what they’re actually looking for.z With Anna Karenina, for example,
not only is it hard for the reader to
pin down what’s driving her, but
Anna herself can’t articulate exactly
what’s lacking in her life. She
wants her lover, Count Vronsky,
yet having him doesn’t satisfy
her. Her desperation grows as the
costs of leaving her husband and
losing her child mount up. There’s
something unreachable in Anna that
makes her frustrating, poignant, and
supremely human.Character Development
z Distinctions between major and
minor characters offer us a number of
insights into character development.
First of all, minor characters receive
less space and attention in a narrative than major characters do. You
don’t need a complicated backstory for a waiter to bring your main
character a cup of coffee, although you may want to add a hint of
description to give that waiter a bit of substance.By including a bit of description
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waiter brought her a cup
of coffee”—you hint at the
possibility of a richer, fuller
world in your work.© Szepy/iStock/Thinkstock.