Stock character

From Free net encyclopedia

A stock character is a fictional character that relies heavily on cultural types or stereotypes for its personality, manner of speech, and other characteristics. Stock characters are instantly recognizable to members of a given culture. Because of this, a frequent device of both comedy and parody is to wildly exaggerate the expected mannerisms of stock characters.

In the United States, courts have determined that copyright protection can not be extended to the characteristics of stock characters in a story, whether it be a book, play, or film. Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corporation, 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930).

Contents

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History

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Ancient Greece

By the loosest definition, stock characters have been around even since the tragedy of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, having drawn upon the pool of mythological characters. Although mythological characters are not representations of real people, they are group that would have been fully recognized by ancient audiences. Mythological characters do tend to fall under the now-established types. Characters like Mercury, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Prometheus, for example, represented the ever-present fool character as “jesters to the gods.”

Stock Characters, in a stricter definition, first emerged in form of theater. The Greek Old Comedy of Aristophanes, for example, typically employed three stocks: the alazon, the boastful imposter, his ironical opponent, the eiron, and, of course, the buffoon, known as the bomolochos. The fact that the prototypes of Old Comedy were assigned an accent costume piece or prop, illustrates the desire to have the audience readily recognize the characters as stock. The servants wore short-sleeved cassock, parasites carried a short truncheon, rural deities, shepards, and peasants held a crook, heralds and ambassadors, had the caduceus; kings held a sceptre, heroes, a club, and old men, carried a crooked staff.

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Aristotle

As Aristotle explored theories of how to achieve happiness, he discussed the virtues of people surrounding him, and, perhaps unintentionally, was the first person to study characters.

Book IV of Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics encourages “liberality,” “magnificence,” “noble-mindedness,” “ambitiousness,” “mercy,” “politeness,” “sincerity,” “wit,” and “bashfulness”. Following this, he sketched such characters as the “rich man of vulgar profusion,” the “vain-glorious,” the “great-souled man,” the “choleric,” the “good tempered man,” the “officious,” the “contentious,” the “self-detractor,” and the “buffoon.”

In his Rhetoric, Aristotle explored how “young men, old men, men in their prime, well-born men, rich men, men of power, men of good fortune” varied emotionally. Although Aristotle’s work closely resembles what came to be known as the Character, Ethics and Rhetoric contained “disquisitions,” not Characters.

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Theophrastus

The study of the Character, as it is now known, was conceived by Aristotle’s student Theophrastus. In The Characters (c. 319 BC), Theophrastus inaugurated the “character sketch,” which became the core of “the Character as a genre.” It included 30 character types— twenty-six moral types, four social types. Each type is said to be an illustration of an individual who represents a group, characterized by the trait which dominates him. The Theophrastan types are as follows:

  • The Insincere Man (Eironeia)
  • The Flatterer (Kolakeia)
  • The Garruolous Man (Adoleschia)
  • The Boor (Agroikia)
  • The Complaisant Man (Areskeia)
  • The Man without Moral Feeling (Aponoia)
  • The Talkative Man (Lalia)
  • The Fabricator (Logopoiia)
  • The Shamelessly Greedy Man (Anaischuntia)
  • The Pennypincher (Mikrologia)
  • The Offensive Man (Bdeluria)
  • The Hapless Man (Akairia)
  • The Officious Man (Periergia)
  • The Absent-Minded Man (Anaisthesia)
  • The Unsociable Man (Authadeia)
  • The Superstitious Man (Deisidaimonia)
  • The Faultfinder (Mempsimoiria)
  • The Suspicious Man (Apistia)
  • The Repulsive Man (Duschereia)
  • The Unpleasant Man (Aedia)
  • The Man of Pretty Ambition (Mikrophilotimia)
  • The Stingy Man (Aneleutheria)
  • The Show-Off (Alazoneia)
  • The Arrogant Man (Huperephania)
  • The Coward (Deilia)
  • The Oligarchical Man (Oligarchia)
  • The Late Learner (Opsimathia)
  • The Slanderer (Kakologia)
  • The Lover of Bad Company (Philoponeria)
  • The Basely Covetous Man (Aischrokerdeia)

It is unclear where Theophrastus derived these types. Many clearly echo those from Nicomachean Ethics. Despite the fact that Theophrastus sought to portray a character type and not an individual, some of the sketches, it is presumed, may have been drawn from observations of actual persons in Athenian public life. Although, Theophrastus wrote that he intended to catalogue “human nature, associate[ed] with all sorts and conditions of men and contrast[ed] in minute detail the good and bad among them,” it is clear that many types are not represented. This is especially noticeable because each of the thirty characters represents a negative characteristic (“the bad”); it is therefore suspected that another half of the work, covering the positive types (“the good”), once existed.

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New Comedy

Template:Main New Comedy was the first theatrical form to have access to Theophrastus’ Characters. Menander was said to be a student of Theophrastus; it is no wonder he is remembered for his prototypical cooks, merchants, farmers and slave characters. Although we have few extant works of New Comedy, simply the titles of Menander’s plays have a “Theophrastan ring.” These titles include The Fisherman, The Farmer, The Superstitious Man, The Peevish Man, The Promiser, The Heiress, The Priestess, The False Accuser, The Misogynist, The Hated Man, The Shipmaster, The Slave, The Concubine, The Soldiers, The Widow, The Noise-Shy Man.

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Mimistry

Another early form that illustrates the beginnings of the Character is the mime. Greco-Roman mimic playlets often told the stock story of the fat, stupid husband who returned home to find his wife in bed with a lover, and therefore loosely portrayed stock characters. Although the mimes were not confined to playing stock characters, the mimus calvus was an early reappearing character. Mimus calvus resembled Maccus, the buffoon from the fabula atellana or Atellan Farce. The Atellan Farce is highly significant in the study of the Character in that it contained the first true stock characters. The Atellan Farce employed four fool types. In addition to Maccus, Bucco, the glutton, Pappus, the naïve old man (the fool victim), and Dossennus, the cunning hunchback (the trickster). One additional character, Manducus, the chattering jawed pimp, also appeared in the Atellan Farce, possibly out of an adaptation of Dossennus. The Roman mime is also of the same family Papus; Bucco, and Dossennus of the Atellan farce.

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Roman input

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Plautus

The Roman playwright Plautus drew from Atellan Farce as well as the Greek Old and New Comedy. He expanded the four types of Atellan Farce to eight (not quite as distinct as the farcical types). The types include the old man, probably a miser; the young man, possibly the miser's son, who rebels against authority; il furbo, the smart slave, il stupido, the stupid slave; the parasite; the courtesan; the slave dealer or pimp; and Miles Gloriosus, the braggart soldier. Plautus’s fool was either the slave or parasite.

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Laertius

In revision of Theophrastus, Diogenes Laertius published Ethical Characters (Circa 230 BC), sparking interest in two lines of study.

The first is that of the character book. Imitators of Theophrastus including Satyrus Atheneus, Heracleides Ponticus, Lycon, and Rutilius Lupus wrote their own character sketches. Circa 212 BC, Ariston’s discourse on morality included several proud Character types and mimicked the Theophrastan style. Following Philodemus of Gadara’s work on “Self seeking Affability” and Ariston’s characters, evidence of acquaintance with the genre is present, however popularity of the portrait over the generalized stock figures in increasing. This may explain the gap of time from the beginning of the Common Era to the 16th century marked by an absence of character sketching.

The second field is the study of nomenclature. As the Character rose as a literary genre, many terms were coined in attempt to place labels on the new subject. The translation Theophrastus’ title is based on the terms charassein and Charakter, associated with the stamping of an impression. Rhetorica ad Herennium (c. 20 BC), attributed to Cicero, split the character up into two qualities: effictio, the description of physical appearance, and notation, the nature of man. Later in his De Inventione, Cicero divided the character, or conformation as he called it, into eleven points: name, nature (natura), way of life (victus), fortune (fortuna), physical appearance (habitus), passions (affectio), interests (studium), reasons for doing things (consilium), one’s deeds (factum), what happens to one (casus), one’s discourses (orationes). Seneca, too, played a part in providing labels for the new genre in his Epistulae Morale, using the terms ethologia and characterismos for characteristic conduct of moral types. Circa 93 AD, Quintilian’s Institutio Oratoria discussed the effect of personality on rhetoric and in so doing, coined the terms ethopoeia, an orator’s imitation of another person’s character or habits, and prosopopoeia, the same thing, but with a dramatization of the person as well as the giving of his words. Other terms conceived in the period include figurae sententiarum and descriptio personae. Decorum, the rhetorical principle that an individual’s words and subject matter are appropriately matched, also became a relevant term, and would remain significant into the Renaissance.

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Supersession by philosophy

The Roman “perverse admiration for decorum,” is in part responsible for the deterioration and the resulting blackout period of the Character genre. During this blackout, the Character smoldered under the philosophies of such men as Horace. In the Ars Poetica (c. 18 BC), Horace drew pictures of typical men at various ages, from childhood through senility. Horace’s belief that “what is typical of a class should be observable in the individual,” was illustrated in his epistles classifying Achilles as a man of rage and love, Paris, an impractical lover, and Ulysses, the model of virtue and wisdom. Others such as Hermogenes, Aphthonius, and Priscian shared this belief and sought to explore the workings of human nature.

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English resurgence

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Steady return

In Medieval England, the character began its slow recovery. This seems an appropriate setting, because the existence of feudalism at this time created clear types in society.

The Canterbury Tales of Chaucer included prototypical characters, including moral and professional types as well as astrological or physiological classifications. The use of allegorical characters, such as Death, Everyman, Strength, Discretion, Beauty, Fellowship, Knowledge, and Good-Deeds, Avaricia, is a device not unlike the use of stock characters. Although both will be recognized by society and represent an institution beyond the individual, stock characters are representative of actual men, while allegorical characters are horizontal studies of one tendency in all men. Works such as Vision of Piers Plowman (c 1380) and Everyman (c 1520) employed such allegories. The English Mystery plays, also contained a form of prototypical character: the vice or devil, and the clown. Although some trace these characters no farther that our natural proclivity for fools, the devil and clown figures seem to have descended from the satirical interludes of the Grecian stage (the satyr play), the Fabula Atellana of Rome theaters, and the Exodiarii and Emboliaria of the mimes. Brant-Barclay’s Ship of Fools (1494) drew upon these simple characters of mystery plays, miracle plays, and morality plays to create this early source of strong medieval sketches.

Erasmus proved to have a deep understanding of the Character in his De Duplici Copia Verborum ac Rerum (1512). In Copia, Erasmus sketched the moral types of “amantis,” “luxoriosi,” “avari,” and “voracis,” as well as the “pretender to wealth.” Especially significant was his sketch of the “pseudoplutus,” which connected the Character with the type-personages of Plautus and Terence. Erasmus also painted vivid sketches in his Moriae Encomium (Praise of Folly) (1509).

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Flourishing of ideas

At this point, the Character genre was on it way to being recollected, as evidenced by the many editions of Theophrastus published between the years 1527 and 1599. During these years, several additional sources, too, suggested the coming reemergence of the Character. Thomas Wilson’s Arte of Rhetorique (1553) made use of the term descriptio in sketching the pinch-penny. Richard Sherry’s Treatise of the Figures of Grammer and Rhetorike (1555) revisted the terms characterismus and effictio in imitating Erasmus. George Pettie’s translation of Guazzo’s Civile Conversation (1586) included what may have been the first post-Ciceronian attempt to enumerate the divisions of society. Pettie’s divisions included "young men and old, gentlemen and yeomen, princes and private persons, learned and unlearned, citizens and strangers, religious and secular, men and women.” George Puttenham’s Arte of English Poesie (1589) also took a part in the nomenclature trend. Puttenham used the term prosopogrphia describing sketches of real people and set it apart from the previously coined term prosopopoeia, which Puttenham took to describe the personification of abstractions. Other significant titles of the period include Fraterinty of Vocabondes (1561) by Awdeley, Caveat or Warening, for Commen Corsetors (1567) by Harman, The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia (1587) by Sir Philip Sidney, Pierce Penilesse (1592) by Nashe, and Wits Miserie (1596) by Lodge.

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New genres

The real impetus to establish a new genre came only in 1592 and 1599, when Isaac Casaubon publish the Greek text together with Latin translations, an elaborate commentary, and a ‘Prolegomena’ discussing literary connections. Casaubon coined the terms “Characters Ethici” and “Notationes Morum” and set the concept of the Character whirring with Renaissance spirit. Following Casaubon, Ben Jonson produced several works highly influenced by the Character. Cynthia’s Revels (1600) is said to contain the first genuine English Characters. Every Man Out of His Humour (1600) and Volpone (1606) also follow the Theophrastan model.

Shakespeare, too, contributed to the genre of Character, although not quite as straightforwardly as Jonson. Shakespeare was known for his remarkable ability to write a broad range of characters. Although he was interested in writing realistic character, in exploring various types, he, of course, hit on several stocks. Shakespeare especially employed the fool character in many of his plays: Feste in Twelfth Night, or What You Will, Lavatch and Parolles in All's Well That Ends Well, and Puck in A Midsummer Nights Dream, Launcelot Gobbo in The Merchant of Venice, Touchstone in As You Like It. Because of his ability to writer realistic, complex, multidimensional characters, Shakespeare rarely wrote true stock characters. However, he often settled on rounded characters, stock types with individualized twists.

The genre continued to climb with Joseph Hall’s Characters of Virtues and Vices (1608). Hall is thought to be responsible for the unquestioned emergence of the Character as a distinctive and acknowledged literary form. At last coining the term “character,” Hall present nine virtuous and fifteen vicious types, all moral or psychological, based on Christian ideals. Among these types are the wise man, the honest man, the faithful man, the valiant man, the humble man, the patient, the truly noble, the good magistrate, the busy-body, the superstitious, the malcontent, the flatterer, the covetous, the vain-glorious, the hypocrite, the profane, the unconstant, the slothful, the ambitious, the envious, the unthrift, and the distrustful. Especially of note is Hall’s sketch of “the good magistrate,” for it is said to bridge the gap between innumerable analytic and satiric pictures of feudal Estates written before Hall and the numerous Characters of social and professional classes written after Hall.

Around the time of Hall, a new stock-based form was developing in England. The puppet tradition known as Punch and Judy, involved a trickster on strings. Although the lazy, gluttenous Punch, resembles Bucco and Maccus from the Atellan Farce, such a stock character is present in all stock pools. Such forms came easily with the new awareness of character building up in England.

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The pinnacle

The Character genre finally reaches its pinnacle with Sir Thomas Overbury’s A Wife: Witty Characters Written by Himselfe and Other Learned Gentlemen His Friends (1614). The most famous of the 17th-century Character-books, Overbury included 83 types in his fullest edition. Of these, 32 are speculated to have been written by John Webster, with others by Thomas Dekker and John Donne. In addition to the Theophrastan moral types, the Overburian characters include complex social types, including national representatives, women, and representatives of institutions. According to Overbury, his Character sketches are “pictures (reall or personall) quaintlie drawne in various colours, all of them heightened by one shadowing.” His Characters include A Good Woman, A Virtuous Widow, A Worthy Commander in the Wars, A Nobel and Retired House-keeper, A Very Very Woman, A Fair and Happy Milkmaid, A Mere Common Lawyer, A Mere Scholar, A Mere Pettifogger, An Arrant Horse-Courser, An Excellent Actor, An Almanac-maker, An Improvident Young Gallant, A Revered Judge, Fantastic Inns of Court Man, A Drunken Dutchman Resident in England, Cleargy Hypocrites, Clerke Hypocrites, A Sailor, A Whore, A Jesuit, and several prison types.

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Other Character books

Although the Character sketch is said to have peaked with Overbury, A Wife was by no means the last character book. On the contrary, as the character sketch had become vogue, countless books continued to catalogue character prototypes. Some noteworthy works include John Stephens’ Satyrical Essayes Characters (1615) including 50 types, and John Earle’s Microcosmography (1628) including 76 types. Eloquentiae Sacre et Humanae Parallela Libri XVI (1619) by Nicholas Caussin, includes many “epidictici characters,” moral and social types, and abstractions suggesting the origin of the types. Caussin alleges that “Garrulus” descends from Theophrastus and Horace; “Avarus, et Tenax” comes from Theophrastus and Plautus; and “Avarus Dives” is from Carthaginian saint Cyprianus. By 1665, the Character genre was so clearly defined that Ralph Johnson in his Scholar's Guide from the Accidence to the University, could outline the “Rules for Making a Character.” In 1688, the Character first extended beyond England and into the mainland of Europe. Jean de La Bruyere’s Les Caracteres, ou les Moeurs de ce Siecle was to become the first work of social criticism in French literature. La Bruyere systematically organized his types under the categories Of Works of the Mind, Of Personal merit, Of Women, Of the Affections, Of Society and Conversation, Of the Gifts of Fortune, Of the Town, Of the Court, Of the Great, Of the Sovereign and the State, Of Mankind, Of Opinions, Of Fashion, Of Certain Customs, Of the Pulpit, Of Free-Thinkers

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Extemporal comedy

Perhaps by chance, this seems to have coincided with the beginnings of the extemporal comedy or commedia dell'arte. Most likely having descended from the Atellan Farce and the Greek and Roman mime, commedia began with four stock characters, first known as magnifichi (magnificent ones) and zanni (slaves), later receiving the names Pantalone, Dottore, Arlechino, and Scapino/Brighella. In 1667, in a comedy by Ravenscroft, appeared the character of Harlequin. Succeeding La Bruyere, Novelty; or Every Act a Play (1697) came to include Harlequin, Pantalone, Columbine, and Clown. Commedia flourished into a form that would mark the height of the stock character. Like in the Greek Old Comedy, stock costumes are important in assisting the audience in identifying the familiar type. The use of masks in Commedia helped the clear physical portrayed of the character. Masks also served to exaggerate the characters, aiding Commedia in its sense of satire. At no other point in theater history has a form so perfectly typifying the Character genre arisen.

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Examples of stock characters

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Heroes

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Villains

  • The femme fatale, the vamp, La belle dame sans merci, the Black Widow; the beautiful, seductive, but evil woman who leads the hero to his doom.
  • The Gang members, this may be a single character representing the whole, or a group of members (also causing the stormtrooper effect). Usually, the sterotype includes Asian (and mainly Hong Kong or any Cantonese speaking Asian) Triads, Russian Army, Japanese big corporate companies, Middle East guerilla troopers, etc.
  • The Henchman, a major villain's frequently incompetent stooge. (Heroes have sidekicks; villains have henchmen.)
  • The mad scientist, the insane man of science who either accidentally or intentionally "meddles with the forces of nature" and causes the trouble that the hero must correct. Well-known examples are Doctor Frankenstein and Dr. Moreau. The 20th century mad scientist is based in large part on Nikola Tesla or rather Thomas Edison's portrayal of him to the media, but sometimes based on Albert Einstein. Professor Hubert Farnsworth from Futurama is a parody of a mad scientist, dabbling in cloning, doomsday devices, and is always searching for human organs. Another well known stereotype for a mad scientist would be Doctor Emmett Brown from the Back to the Future series. Perhaps the earliest example in cinema is Rotwang, the inventor from the film Metropolis.
  • The Miser, a wealthy, greedy man who lives miserably in order to save and increase his treasure. Though grumpy, he's not necessarily a villain. Dickens' Ebenezer Scrooge is an obvious example. Also Montgomery Burns from The Simpsons.
  • The Pied Piper The living embodiment of an exaggeration of your parents' worst fears for you. The stranger with candy. The witch in the gingerbread house. The obvious villain that the children don't notice.
  • The School Bully, who is loud, aggressive, mean and is highly skilled at wedgies, but sometimes has an effeminate streak which he covers up with his bullying. Examples include Nelson Muntz, and Eric Cartman from South Park.
  • The Wicked Step-Mother is the surprisingly vicious and controlling woman in a hierarchically-dominant relationship with a younger girl, often an ingenue or Cinderella. She is often a gold digger.
  • The Wicked Witch or Evil Wizard. Uses magic or other supernatural powers to lead the hero or heroin astray. May try to pass themselves of as a benevolent character to start with. Examples include the Wicked Witch of the West, Saruman, Lord Voldemort and others. Often but not always overlaps with Dark Lord, subservient and sidekick evil witches and wizards not uncommon, e.g. the witch in Robin Hood Prince of Thieves. Represents both the Jungian Shadow (psychology) and the darker side of the Anima.
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Either

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Transient

  • The Angst-ridden Youth, a young male character, usually handsome and virile, but conflicted, sullen, and at odds with the establishment. Epitomized by James Dean and Holden Caulfield. Anakin Skywalker is such a character before transforming to Dark Lord as Darth Vader, as is Harry Potter.
  • The Avenger, a hot-blooded young man who has had a loved one (usually a fiancée) cruelly murdered and/or raped and seeks his revenge outside the law. (Batman, Laertes in Hamlet and Hamlet himself, as well as Amsterdam from the film Gangs of New York, are examples of Avengers.) Eric from the film The Crow is another example. He can often be the son of a Rake.
  • The Outlaw, sometimes a cold-blooded desperado, but also often a gallant highwayman or a dashing thief after the manner of Robin Hood.
  • The Wunderkind or Les Enfant Terrible, a child or teenage prodigy exhibiting skills- often lethal- beyond imagination. River Tam in Firefly as well as Ed from the anime Cowboy Bebop, and Edward Elric in Fullmetal Alchemist are good examples.
  • The Tough guy usually uses his attitude and no-nonsense skills, including physical persuasion and intimidation, to get what he wants. A typical tough guy would be an Italian-American gangster with significant capacity to deal out and take punishment, such as multiple characters on The Sopranos.
  • The Trickster. Often supernatural or mysterious. No visible objectives or motivation but provides impetus to the plot and acts as a catalyst for events. May later become a clear cut good guy or villain. examples include Loki, Amaguq, Reynard or the fox, púca and Q from Star Trek.Represents both the Jungian Shadow (psychology) and the basic fear of and joyous love of chaos.
  • The Vigilante, an anti-hero of sorts, who must serve justice, usually for the wrong causes or outside the law, usually killing at will or at random and showing no mercy. (Examples: the Punisher, Rorschach from Watchmen, Casey Jones from Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.)
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Neutral

  • The absent-minded professor, an academic with important information whose focus on his learning leads him to ignore his surroundings (possibly based in part on Archimedes or Isaac Newton)
  • The California Girl, a blonde-haired, blue-eyed girl who only eats health food and loves the environment more than anything else.
  • Cinderella or The Pretty Ugly Girl, a 'Girl Next Door' type who is supposed to be somewhat plain looking, yet is actually quite attractive - the most famous examples being Cinderella (who had 'beautiful' step-sisters, but won the heart of her prince when she put on a pretty dress), Mary Ann from Gilligan's Island, and more recently Joey Potter from Dawson's Creek. Usually, the girl's mother is either completely absent or is, of course, the Wicked Step-Mother. Her father is usually distant or uninvolved with her. Often this character is contrasted with someone considered the beautiful or popular girl (the wicked step-sisters, Ginger & Jen Lindley would apply to the above three cases, respectively.)
  • The Damsel in Distress: the young, beautiful, virginal woman who must be rescued from some cruel fate by the Hero (see below), à la Penelope Pitstop or Princess Peach (or Daphne Blake). The damsel in distress is now often subverted, with the damsel being secretly formidable and waiting for the right moment to strike back.
  • The Dumb Blonde or Bimbo: often also a Damsel in Distress or Ingenue, but may be simply unintelligent but attractive. The Invisible Woman (Sue Storm in the Fantastic Four) was originally written as a Dumb Blonde, always thinking about clothes and hairstyles. Could also be just plain silly/comic relief-such as Melody Valentine in Josie and the Pussycats. Occasionally the Dumb Blonde isn't actually blonde, just dumb. Marilyn Monroe portrayed this stereotype in a number of movies and, arguably, in her life.
  • The Ingenue, a sweet, beautiful and virginal maiden, in mental or emotional rather than physical danger, usually a target of The Cad (see below). Usually a fawn-eyed innocent.
  • The Fop, a highly fashionable aristocrat. He is typically overdressed and his speech is characterized by over-use or misuse of popular phrases (often French phrases) or various forms of hypercorrection. The fop is never intelligent and always talkative. (The Hero sometimes poses as a fop to allay his enemies' suspicions: The Scarlet Pimpernel hid behind the persona of Sir Percy Blakeney. Zorro hid behind the image of the Fop, Don Diego. Batman's public persona of billionaire playboy Bruce Wayne is a fop. It should be noted that Diego was inspired by Blakeney and Wayne by Diego)
  • The Foreign Exchange Student, whose exotic appearance and/or mannerisms often serve as comic relief (especially due to culture shock). Examples: Fez from That '70s Show, Kaolla Su from Love Hina, Long Duk Dong from Sixteen Candles, Uter from The Simpsons, and Rolf from Ed, Edd, and Eddy, Shannon Elizabeth's character in American Pie.
  • The Reclusive Genius, an intelligent and antisocial character that is either related to or is a main character. He usually no longer interacts with the outside world and antagonizes the main characters for most of the story, but provides crucial support at the story's climax. Examples are Dr. Gregory House and Cid. Sherlock Holmes can be considered an example of this stock character as a hero.
  • The Ill-Fated Lovers are passionate, sensual, naïve. They love fiercely and irrationally, usually against societal or parental approval, or against the crushing inevitability of time. Examples include Romeo and Juliet (or their modern analogues, Tony and Maria), Scully and Mulder, and Zack and Kelly (from Saved by the Bell).
  • The Major (or Jolly War Veteran) is lovable, awkward, and more than a bit daft. He is usually a veteran of one of the World Wars, and frequently sings old Military songs (melancholy or dance-tune are typical). Military aphorisms and lingo pepper his speech. A comedic streak of alcoholism sometimes adds tragic charm to the Major. Examples include the Major from Soap, the Major from Fawlty Towers, Grandpa Potts from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, almost every hare in redwall, although they tend to have more active and serious military roles.
  • The Nerd, with his pocket protector, visibly-mended spectacles, and usually with a strange or old-fashioned name, is often also struck with a speech impediment. He frequently has an ardent, futile crush on the Pretty Ugly Girl but can't get her attention because she herself has a crush on The Jock or the Nice Guy. Examples include Neil Goldman from Family Guy.
  • The Nerd Girl, who differs from the Pretty Ugly Girl by being less wholesomely mainstream. She doesn't dress fashionably and may be intensely interested in some specialised area or notable for her intelligence. Deb in Napoleon Dynamite is a classic Nerd Girl (she wears her hair in an unusual way, dresses in loose, unfashionable clothing and is into photography). The Nerd Girl is often kind and goodhearted, and may be quite attractive or have the potential to be so with some "tidying up" (like Hermione Granger in Harry Potter). Like the Pretty Ugly Girl, she is implicitly (occasionally explicitly) contrasted with the beautiful but shallow popular girl (who may also be a Dumb Blonde).
  • The Nuclear Family consisting of a normal family with a simple-minded father, a reasonable mother, a troublesome son, an anxious daughter and a peculiar younger child. Famous examples would be The Simpsons, The Griffins, The Berenstain Bears, The Foxes, The Jetsons, and The Incredibles.
  • The Rake or Cad, a man who seduces a young woman and impregnates her before leaving, often to her social or financial ruin. Often portrayed as a heavy drinker or gambler. Also known as a rake-hell. To call the character a rake calls attention to his promiscuity and wild spending of money; to call the character a cad implies a callous seducer who coldly breaks his victim's heart. See: Hogarth's A Rake's Progress.
  • Redshirt, an inconsequential character who is killed or injured soon after his or her introduction in order to indicate the dangerous circumstances faced by the main characters. The term originated in reference to the frequent use of such characters in the television series Star Trek. In the series, these characters usually wore red uniforms, signifying both their station as security personnel, and their insignificance. Where red clothing is not worn (perhaps due to uniform regulations), redshirts can be distinguished by other tell-tale clues that they are going to die e.g., playing a harmonica in a war film, being close to retirement when a cop, showing a picture of your children to anyone under any circumstances. Also see Cannon fodder.
  • The Tomboy, a female character who is "one of the guys". Usually displays superior physical or althletic prowess. Because of her attitude or activities, is often a Pretty Ugly Girl. Some Tomboys exhibit a deep-seated or transient envy of more feminine girls, usually when confronted by a boy she likes. Examples include Pepper in Good Omens and Anybodys in West Side Story.
  • The Town Drunk, serves as a figure of fun, serves as a moral example, or is used as a plot device to disrupt public gatherings. Marmeladov from Crime and Punishment is one example; another one is Huckleberry Finn's father "Pap" from The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn by Mark Twain. In the example of "Crazy Ralph" from Friday the 13th, he provided a warning.
  • The Whiz Kid, a brainy sidekick to the hero. Often, physically the weakest of the group. As a result, he can be useless in a fight, but knows his way around computers and technical stuff. Often witty in an erudite way. Typically talks using big words-such as Velma Dinkley.
  • The Womanizer, normally male persons characterized by having many love affairs with different women. Examples: Casanova, Don Juan and James Bond.
  • The Jokester, often a part of a group of adventurers. Not to be confused with the wiser fool or more dangerous trickster, the Jokester copes with the seriousness of the situation (often war) with constant good humour. Sometimes he may be crying on the inside, or his laughter might mask insecurities. Occasionally, his perpetual good humor can be annoying, but he is always loved by his teammates. Nightcrawler or Iceman of the X-Men, RC-1262 of Delta Squad in Star Wars: Republic Commando, Yorick from the comic book Y: The Last Man, Xander from Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Hawkeye Pierce of M*A*S*H are examples.
  • The Wacky neighbor, who lives close to the main character and has eccentric qualities which often serve as a convenient plot device. Example: Cosmo Kramer on Seinfeld and Wilson on Home Improvement.
  • The Warning turns up, warns characters about oncoming disaster, possibly due to experience or supernatural abilities, dies. Often found in Horror films to build tension early on, before the main characters start dieing e.g. Texas chainsaw Massacre. Not to be confused with the Haunted Hero who survives and pulls through rather that existing just as a plot device to warn people and die.
  • The Wedge, named after Star Wars character Wedge Antilles. A background character who, unlike others, survives on skill instead of luck or because the plot requires it as is often the case with the major characters. Other than this, they usually get little to no character development or backstory.
  • The Rookie, often young, bright, and eager to please. Typically fresh out of school and often at the top of his/her class. They tend to act "by the book" because it's all they know and often are disturbed by the heroes sometimes unorthodox methods. Although the hero may occasionally lose patience with them, they know that the rookie is valuable raw material with potential, ready to be shaped and molded. Examples Saavik from Star Trek, Tadashi Daiba from Captain Harlock, Alexander Goodwin Pierce from Nick Fury: Agent of S.H.I.E.L.D.
  • The Nurse: typically a woman who finds the hero (or villain) injured, and nurses him back to health. Falls in love with him, but will never have her love returned because of his love for another, or his plans of conquest.
  • The Tyranical Boss: Authoritarian, bad-tempered and inflexible, the tyrannical boss is often seen in comedies. He or she rules over the workplace with an iron fist. Superintendant Chalmers from the The Simpsons is an example, as are Bishop Brennan from Father Ted and Jack Taylor from My Boss's Daughter.
  • The Protective Father: This character seeks to protect his daughter from a young man he deems to unworthy or unsuitable. Jack Byrnes from Meet The Parents and Meet The Fockers is one example, as is Mr Johnson from Australian movie The Big Steal.
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See also

es:Personaje tipo it:Personaggio tipo hu:Szereplőtípus ja:ストックキャラクター zh:定型角色

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