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the sequence of events that shape a broader narrative, with every event causing or affecting each other

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What is the Plot of a Story by Example (A Short Video)

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the introduction to a story, including the primary characters' names, setting, mood, and time

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the second of six essential plot elements, which comes right after the opening of a story, otherwise known as the exposition

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What is the Rising Action of your story?

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the point at which the highest level of interest and emotional response is achieved.

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the period after the dramatic confrontation of the climax

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the end of the story

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the time and place in which a story is told

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Story Elements for Kids: What Is a Setting?

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A protagonist and antagonist are opposites – antonyms. The protagonists are generally the good guys (even it means that sometimes they are antiheroes) while antagonists are generally the bad guys.

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those problems are called conflict. More precisely, conflict means thwarted, endangered, or opposing desire.

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when a character struggles with their own opposing desires or beliefs

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Confusion Within a Character

In the classic novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the main character, Guy Montag, is an unusual kind of fireman. In the futuristic world of the novel, his job is to actually burn books that are considered dangerous, archaic, banned objects.

One day, Montag does something completely forbidden. In the process of burning a home full of books, he finds himself taking one in secret rather than destroying it. What does it mean that he hides the book and smuggles it out? He's supposed to be burning all of the books he encounters, but somehow an inner impulse takes over.

This lesson looks at the internal conflict that this creates for the character in literature. We'll also use other examples from the novel to consider how internal conflicts differ from external conflicts.

What is Internal Conflict?

An internal conflict is a struggle within a character in which debates occur in their own mind about what to do or think. In the case of Montag, he will struggle with his actions and try to understand what it means that he violated his own sense of duty to burn rather than save books. In the process, his sense of what is right and wrong is altered.

The beliefs, emotions, and desires of a character all factor into internal conflicts. Usually, the character finds themselves conflicted between at least two goals. In this case, Montag is caught between doing his job as a fireman in his society versus exploring other possibilities for how to live.

Even when a conflict is primarily internal, there may be factors outside of a character that influence their internal experience. For instance, the expectations of Montag's society make his internal conflict even more heightened.

Other characters may have no way of knowing about an internal conflict since a struggle within a person may not be visible to others.

In the case of Montag, conflicts for his character are both internal and external. An external conflict occurs when a character clashes with some force outside of themselves. This outside force could be another person, society, the circumstances of his life, or even nature.

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what is internal conflict in literature? - video & lesson transcript | study.com

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What is Internal Conflict in Literature? - Video & Lesson Transcript | Study.com

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In the classic novel Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury, the main character, Guy Montag, is an unusual kind of fireman. In the futuristic world of the novel, his job is to actually burn books that are considered dangerous, archaic, banned objects. One day, Montag does something completely forbidden.

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sets a character against something or someone beyond their control

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an important idea that is woven throughout a story

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Understanding theme | Reading | Khan Academy

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the linguistic choices a writer makes to effectively convey an idea, a point of view, or tell a story

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the set of rules that helps readers and writers make sense of sentences

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Connotation and Denotation are two principal methods of describing the meanings of. words. Connotation refers to the wide array of positive and negative associations that most words naturally carry with them, whereas denotation is the precise, literal definition of a word that might be found in a dictionary.

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the mood implied by an author's word choice and the way that the text can make a reader feel

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the emotional atmosphere within the story produced by the author's use of language

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interrupts that chronological sequence, the front line action or “present” line of the story, to show readers a scene that unfolded in the past.

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a narrative device in which suggestions or warnings about events to come are dropped or planted.

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the repetition of grammatical elements in a piece of writing to create a harmonious effect

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the narrator's position in relation to the story

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uses the pronouns “I,” “me,” “we,” and “us,” in order to tell a story from the narrator's perspective

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uses the pronoun “you” to address the reader

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the narrator reports the events that take place without knowing the motivations or thoughts of any of the characters

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where the narrator tells the story from the perspective of a single protagonist, referring to them by name or using a third person pronoun such as they/she/he

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the most open and flexible POV available to writers

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a figure of speech that compares two unlike things using the words “like” or “as.”

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What are similes? 🤔 | Similes in English | Learn with examples

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An extended metaphor is when a metaphor goes on for multiple sentences, multiple paragraphs, or even for the duration of the book, poem, or other work.

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figurative language in which inanimate objects are or animals given human qualities

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Personification | Award Winning Personification Teaching Video | What is Personification?

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a rhetorical and literary technique where an author or speaker intentionally uses exaggeration and overstatement for emphasis and effect

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What is a Hyperbole? || Literary Device Lectures

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a literary device that uses symbols, be they words, people, marks, locations, or abstract ideas to represent something beyond the literal meaning

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any grouping of oppositional words to create a new, unique word or phrase

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Oxymoron Examples For Kids // English Language Features

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a word or phrase that is used in place of something that might be shocking, inappropriate, or unpleasant to say or hear

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an implied or indirect reference to a person, event, or thing or to a part of another text

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the repetition of vowel sounds across a line of text or poetry

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What is Assonance? || Literary Device Lectures

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the repetition of the same sound at the start of a series of words in succession whose purpose is to provide an audible pulse that gives a piece of writing a lulling, lyrical, and/or emotive effect.

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Alliteration | Award Winning Alliteration Teaching Video | What is Alliteration?

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a phrase or idea that has been used to the extent that it has lost its original meaning—and its allure

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an expression with a figurative or metaphorical meaning that differs from its literal meaning

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Idioms for Kids | Figurative Language Lesson

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A pun is an intentional rearrangement or selection of words in order to create humor

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Joke Of The Day: A big shot politician had to spend a few days in hospital - he got what he deserved

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a literary device that contrasts expectations and reality

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The 3 Types of Irony | Literary Devices | Good Morning Mr. D

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The speaker intends to be understood as meaning something that contrasts with the literal or usual meaning of what he says

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What is verbal irony? - Christopher Warner

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the irony of something happening that is very different to what was expected

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a literary device by which the audience's or reader's understanding of events or individuals in a work surpasses that of its characters.

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What Is Irony? Dramatic Irony & Cosmic Irony in “The Story of an Hour”

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the process by which the writer reveals the personality of a character.

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a type of literary device used to tell conclusive details about a character to the reader with little or no ambiguity

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Learn Direct and Indirect Characterization Using Movies and TV

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a type of literary device that reveals details about a character without stating them explicitly.

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a type of character who remains largely the same throughout the course of the storyline

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Last updated on

Static characters do not change over the course of a story. Readers are almost always more invested in dynamic characters who exhibit well-developed character development, but interesting static characters are also crucial in good storytelling.

As a rule (with few exceptions), your protagonist should be a dynamic character with satisfying characterization and relatable internal change.

However, secondary characters, foils, minor characters, and antagonists can all make for great static characters. Whether it's in a novel, poem, short story, movie, or song, static character archetypes serve an essential purpose and can improve an overall narrative in various ways.

What is a static character example? An example of a static character that most everyone knows is Emperor Palpatine in Return of the Jedi.

Writers should use dynamic characters to show how change is good or bad in relation to your central themes. On the other hand, static characters can show how remaining the same is good or bad in relation to your central themes.

In this article, you will learn:

1. What a static character is

2. Static character vs. dynamic character

3. Round character vs. flat character

4. How to write interesting static characters

5. Examples of static characters from literature

What is a static character?

A static character is a character in a story that does not undergo any significant changes throughout the course of the story. The static character may be a well-developed character but does not experience a meaningful character arc.

A static character's role can be to progress the plot or foil the dynamic main character.

Static characters may sound boring at first, but they are often necessary to develop the major characters. (Think about the "You've changed!" speech from every movie ever.)

The opposite of a static character is a dynamic character, who does undergo meaningful change, AKA a character arc. (Prince Zuko, anyone?)
Static vs. dynamic is a different dichotomy than round vs. flat.

Static vs. dynamic refers to whether or not a character changed throughout the story.

Round vs. flat refers to whether a character has deep, layered characteristics.

These literary terms help authors distinguish their characters and properly balance their stories in the most satisfying way.
What are the 4 types of characters?

1. Static characters are characters who never change during a story.

2. Dynamic characters are characters who go through an inner change within a story.

3. Flat characters are underdeveloped, one-dimensional characters without a layered backstory, motivations, or internal conflicts.

4. Round characters are characters with well-developed strengths, weaknesses, goals, and relatable flaws.

How to Write Interesting Static Characters

To write interesting static characters, make them round characters that effectively foil the main character - bonus points for an unchanging tragic flaw that evokes strong emotion in your reader.

What is a round and static character? Whereas flat characters aren't layered or well-developed, a round and static character has a compelling backstory, relatable goals and flaws, and fascinating character traits - all while staying the same. A static character doesn't have to be a flat character.

One of the most effective ways to write static characters is for their lack of dynamic change to evoke a tragic sadness in the reader.

Suppose your static character exhibits traits that your main character shares initially but not at the end of the story. In that case, your static character ends up being a very effective signpost to display how your protagonist has changed.

5 Tips on How to Write Static Characters

1. Write a round static character - complete with backstory, goals, and relatable flaws.

2. Give the static character a tragic flaw. When they don't change, it should lead to their downfall. This is a tragic but satisfying experience for readers.

3. Make your static characters vital to the progression of the plot.

4. Copy personality traits from your dynamic characters to your static characters. Then, when the dynamic character changes and the static character doesn't, the arc is most effective for your audience.

5. Have another character try to change your static character, but fail. The offer and rejection of change give the static character's unchanging personality a sense of purpose and confidence.

5 Tips on How to Write Dynamic Characters

1. List out your dynamic character's character traits at the beginning of the story. Then write out what new characteristics they will have by the end of the story.

2. Connect the change in your dynamic character with the central themes of your story.

3. Make your dynamic character responsible for the central conflict. This means they will change with the conflict. It's easy to write your main character as a victim, but there is more growth to be had if they must deal with the responsibility of initiating the conflict.

4. Give any dynamic character a foil to compare against throughout the story.

5. Don't feel like you have to make every dynamic character a round character. There are plenty of flat dynamic characters that perfectly serve their story.

15 Examples of Static Characters

Here are some great examples of static characters in literature:

Sherlock Holmes in Sherlock Holmes stories

Atticus Finch in Harper Lee's To Kill a Mockingbird

Alice in Alice's Adventures in Wonderland

Romeo Montague in Romeo and Juliet

Ebenezer Scrooge's nephew Fred in Dickens's A Christmas Carol

Joe the blacksmith in Dickens's Great Expectations

Mr. Collins in Pride and Prejudice

Dumbledore and Voldemort in the Harry Potter series

Examples of static characters from movies:

Shrek from the Shrek series

Scar from The Lion King

Indiana Jones from the Indiana Jones series

James Bond from the James Bond series

Yoda from the Star Wars series

Evil Stepmother from Cinderella

Will you use static and dynamic characters in your book?

Just writing about well-written static characters made me wanna write a whole book of them!

Of course, the most satisfying thing for readers is dynamic characters with relatable, interesting character arcs. However, juxtaposing them with intriguing static characters is a very effective tool for authors.

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Static Characters vs. Dynamic Characters: How To Use Both

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A static character stays the same over the course of a story. Dynamic characters, on the other hand, go through significant changes by the end of a story.

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one who learns a lesson or changes as a person

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Introducing Static and Dynamic Characters

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one that lacks complexity in several facets

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deep and layered character in a story.

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What is a Round Character? Explained in English | Literary term | Easy Explanation NET 2021 #shorts

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the art of effective or persuasive speaking or writin

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an element of argument and persuasion through which a speaker establishes their credibility and knowledge, as well as their good moral character.

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An Introduction to Ethos, Logos and Pathos

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to persuade an audience by purposely evoking certain emotions to make them feel the way the author wants them to feel

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the use of logic and reasoning in crafting a piece of persuasive writing or rhetoric