Warm-up 1.6 NOT USING THE INDIVIDUAL YOU OBSERVED THIS WEEKEND… Who is the most colorful, peculiar, or unique person you know? Describe this person in detail without using a name; try to capture all the little things this person does, says, believes that makes him or her different. Also tell how the person looks, what he or she wears, and even how others think about this person

Characterizations Indirect and Direct

Words to Learn Narration Narrator Dialogue Quotation Marks Direct Characterization Explicit Indirect Characterization Implicit

Role of the Narrator 1 2 3 Story Narrator Reader Narrative Characters 1 Story 2 Narrator 3 Reader Setting Communication Barrier Events

Voices in the Story Narrator: tells the story to the reader. Narration: when the narrator speaks. Character: people in the story. Dialogue: when characters speak.

Don’t Write This Down When are you going to let us in the classroom the loud student asked. The sleepy student said Mr. Morton said we can come in when we’re quiet. Quiet down students said Mr. Morton. The students were still very noisy students I thought you said you wanted to come in and sit down said Mr. Morton.

How are these passages different? Don’t Write This Down “When are you going to let us in the classroom?” the loud student asked. The sleepy student said, “Mr. Morton said we can come in when we’re quiet.” “Quiet down, students,” said Mr. Morton. The students were still very noisy. “Students, I thought you said you wanted to come in and sit down,” said Mr. Morton. How are these passages different?

“Quotation Marks” (elementary review) Character’s voices go in quotes. It was hot. “Turn on the fan,” she said. N C N He said, “Point it toward us.” She didn’t. N C N Quotes show when characters speak.

Direct Characterizations Narrator explicitly describes a character. Ex: Tom struggled in school but tried hard. Pam was lazy but learned really quickly. Explicit: Clearly stated.

Indirect Characterization Character traits reveled through actions Ex: Jess left the pizza crust on her floor. Tim helped old Ms. Jones with her bags. Indirect characterizations are implicit. Implicit: not clearly stated, implied.

Review The narrator tells the story. Dialogue: when characters speak. Direct characterization: the narrator explicitly describes the character. Indirect characterization: character’s traits are revealed through their actions.

STEAL To understand indirect characterization better, consider STEAL: S—What a character says T—What a character thinks E—the effect the character has on others A—How the character acts L—What a character looks like

Practice Read the passage. Write what indirect character trait is shown. Explain your answer.

Example Mr. Morton was teaching the students about characterizations. Kyle let out a big yawn. “Indirect Characterizations are implied, not explicitly stated,” said Mr. Morton. 1. Kyle is bored or tired. Ex: He yawned, which shows he’s tired.

1 After class, Deija asked Dana a question, “I’m sorry, Dana, but my little brother was sick and my parents made me stay home and watch him yesterday. Can I see your reading notes?” Dana huffed and rolled her eyes. She replied to Deija, “Uh, I don’t know where they are right now.”

Suggested Answer Explanation Dana is rude, uncaring, and unhelpful. Deija asks Dana for something reasonable. Rather than politely declining, Dana does a bunch of rude stuff.

2 While playing football with his friends, Evan overthrew the ball and accidently broke his mom’s picture window. Nobody was home, but all of the other boys soon found excuses to leave. When Evan’s mom came home, she asked what had happened. Evan looked her in the face and said, “A bird smashed into the window, Mom.”

Suggested Answer Explanation Evan is dishonest and cowardly. Rather than telling his mom the truth about what happened, Evan lies. This shows that he is dishonest and not brave enough to fess up to what he did.

3 Tevin was in excruciating pain from football practice. He had been getting terrible sleep ever since training started. He could hardly sleep ten minutes before the pain caused him to roll around. His body was telling him to quit the team, but Tevin refused to hear it. He had one goal in mind: to make the team. Tevin wouldn’t stop until his body stopped him.

Suggested Answer Explanation Tevin is dedicated or committed and he is hard working. Explanation Tevin is working very hard on his training even though it is affecting him in painful ways. This shows that he is dedicated or committed to the cause and that he is willing to work hard.

4 Tim was walking around the store when he bumped into a display of soup cans, knocking them all over. Tim bought two cartons of eggs then got hit by the automatic door on the way out. It almost broke the eggs. Tim let out a sigh of relief. While walking through the parking lot, Tim tripped over the curb and landed on the eggs, getting them all over his shirt.

Suggested Answer Explanation Tim is clumsy or accident-prone. Tim can’t even go to the grocery store without getting into several accidents. He is either clumsy or unlucky.

5 Kim had a bunch of outfits and accessories. It took her forever to decide which combination might impress Kevin. She called her sister several times for advice. Still, Kim could not decide on the right outfit to wear.

Suggested Answer Explanation Kim is fashionable and infatuated. Kim is infatuated with Kevin. This is why she is working so hard to impress him. Since she is trying to impress him with her clothing, this shows that she is probably fashionable.

Characterization—Inferences, Detailed It would be nice if authors told us everything we need to know about people in stories, but…..they don’t. We are left, instead, to make guesses and fill in the blanks about people. For instance, if an author, describing a character, writes, “The boy frowned and reluctantly ate a tiny bite of spinach,” you might infer that this boy hates spinach. Making inferences about characters, analyzing character interactions, and comparing characters to yourself, will help you better understand the characters you meet.

Making Inferences About Characters When you make inferences about characters, you make educated guesses about them based on their appearance, speech, actions, thoughts, and the reactions of other characters. As you read, keep track of your inferences in a chart like this one: Character Detail Text My Inference Character’s appearance Wilma’s hair curls wildly. Wilma is a free spirit. What character says “You never know what can happen.” Wilma is open to possibility. Character’s actions She walks home slowly in the rain Wilma is distracted. Character’s thoughts Wilma regrets her unkind words. Wilma is good at heart. Other character’s reactions Wilma’s classmates rush to her defense. Most other students like Wilma.

Motivation Almost everything we do has purpose behind it. The underlying purpose or reason is called motivation. In short stories, motivation is the driving force behind characters—explaining their behavior and personalities. Writer’s, however, rarely directly state what a character’s motive is. Instead, you are left to guess it on your own. As you read short stories, novels, and complete your homework, consider the following questions when trying to discover the motivation of characters:

Motivation What do the characters want? What are they afraid of? What is at stake—what conflicts do the characters face change? What happens as a result of these conflicts—how do the characters change? Answering these questions above will help you understand why characters act as they do.

Interactions Another way to analyze a character is by his or her interactions with other characters. As you read, also consider the following: How does the main character relate to others in the story? What do others say or think about the main character? Does the relationship between characters change during the course of the story? Does the main character change as a result of his or her interactions with others? When analyzing character try to think about how they do or don’t relate to you—have sympathy for them!