essay on fictional character

Writing a Character Analysis Essay | Step-by-Step Guide

I’m also going to give you a ton of examples.

This post is split into four parts for easy navigation:

• What is a Character Analysis Essay?
• What is the best Format to Use?
• 11 Character Analysis Example Ideas
• Template, Checklist and Outline for Your own Piece

In this post, I’m going to explain to you clearly and in a step-by-step way how to conduct a character analysis.

1. What is a Character Analysis Essay?

Let’s get you started with some really simple details about what a character analysis is:

• A Quick Definition: A character analysis essay zooms-in on a character in a book, movie or even real life. It provides what we sometimes call a ‘sketch’ of a character.
• The Purpose of a Character Analysis: The purpose of a character analysis is to reveal interesting details about the character that might contain a broader moral message about the human condition. For example, Atticus Finch is not just a lawyer in To Kill a Mockingbird. Rather, he provides us with a moral message about the importance of doing what you believe is right even though you know you will likely fail.

2. What is the best Character Analysis Essay Format?

Character analysis essays do not have just one format.

However, let me offer some advice that might act as a character analysis essay outline or ‘checklist’ of possible things you could discuss:

1. Start with the Simple Details.

You can start a character analysis by providing a simple, clear description of who your character is. Look at some basic identity traits such as:

• Race (if relevant)
• Social class (if relevant)
• Protagonist or Antagonist? A protagonist is the character who is our central character in the plot; the antagonist is often the protagonist’s opponent or challenger.
• Major or minor character?

2. What are the character’s distinctive personality features?

Your character might have some really clearly identifiable character traits. It’s best to highlight in your character analysis the exact traits that this character possesses. Some common character traits include:

I recommend you take a moment to write down what you think the top 3 to 5 words are that you’d use to explain your character’s personality traits. These will be important to discuss throughout your character analysis.

Sometimes a character may start out with some personality traits, but change over the course of the text. This is quite common; and one clear example of this is Lady Macbeth she deteriorates from a cutthroat power player to a guilt ridden shell of a person roaming the halls of the castle. This dramatic character change is something that makes her very interesting, and is worthy of discussion!

3. What are the character’s key relationships?

Does your character have a close relationship with a certain person in the storyline?

You might want to discuss the character’s relationships as a part of your character analysis. These relationships may reveal some key personality traits of your character.

For example, in Shakespeare’s play Hamlet, Horatio is the loyal offsider to Hamlet. Through his actions in staying by Hamlet through thick and thin, we learn that he is a deeply loyal character.

Examining the character’s relationships with their friends and foes therefore is very useful for digging deeper into who this character actually is, and what personality traits they have when they are put to the test within the narrative.

4. What are the character’s motivations?

Another thing you might want to examine are the character’s motivations . What do they desire most in the world? Some common motivations for characters in stories are:

• A simple life
• To serve others

This list really could be endless, but I hope the above examples give you a bit of an idea of the sorts of traits to look out for. By mentioning and examining the motivations of the character, we will come closer and closer to learning exactly what moral message this character might be able to tell us.

5. What are the character’s key conflicts?

Stories tend to have a beginning, a complication, and a resolution.

The complication involves conflicts and challenges that need to be overcome. For Edmund in Narnia, it’s cowardice. For Romeo and Juliet, it’s the conflict between love and family loyalty. Here’s some other common conflicts for characters:

• Whether to stay loyal to a friend;
• To overcome obstacles to love;
• To seek a way out of a challenging situation;
• To escape war or poverty;
• To persevere through imprisonment;
• To overcome personal fear

Again, this list is endless.

Knowing the character’s core conflict gets us even closer to knowing the moral that the character is trying to teach us.

For example, in Romeo and Juliet, the challenge of Romeo and Juliet being together despite their families’ objections teaches us something. Personally, I believe it teaches us the importance of letting go of old grudges in order to let love bloom.

This moral lesson was taught to us through conflict: namely, the conflict that Romeo and Juliet were right in the center of.

6. What are the character’s epiphanies?

Sometimes a character has an epiphany. This often happens towards the end of the story and helps the character overcome the challenge or conflict that we discussed in the point above.

Here’s an example of an epiphany:

• In the Lion King, Simba runs away from his tribe to live in exile. After a chance encounter with his childhood friend Nala, he has an epiphany that he has a duty to his tribe. This leads him back home to fight Scar and return freedom to Pride Rock.

Not all characters have an epiphany. But, if they do, I strongly encourage you to write about it in your character analysis.

7. Examine the moral message the character teaches us.

Finally, conclude by examining the moral message behind the character. Nearly every character has something to teach the reader. Authors put a lot of thought into creating complex characters with whom we can relate. We relate to the character and say “wow, they taught me a lesson about something!”

The lesson might be something like:

• Money doesn’t buy happiness;
• Loyalty to family comes above all else;
• Love gives life meaning;
• Honesty is always the best policy

This is the core of your character analysis essay. If you can pick out exactly what moral message the character teaches you, you’ll be well on your way to writing a strong character analysis.

Below I’m going to give you some examples to help you out. I know it can be hard to really get your head around a character, so sometimes the best thing is to look at some samples!

3. Here’s 13 Example Character Analysis Essay Ideas.

Most times when we create a character analysis, we’re exploring the deeper moral stories / aspects of humanity. Here’s some example ideas. I’ve tried to outline in less than a paragraph exactly what your key point will be about each character:

• Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird: A character who teaches us a lesson about standing up for what’s right, even if you know you’re likely to lose.
• Huckleberry Finn from Huckleberry Finn: A character who reveals our inner desire for freedom from the elements of society that constrain us.
• Dudley from Harry Potter: A character whose personality tells us a cautionary tale of the perils of middle-class narcissism, parents’ desire to wrap their children in cotton wool, and the lack of discipline we perceive in contemporary childhoods.
• Jack from Lord of the Flies: A character who represents the innate desire for power that seems to lurk not too far from the surface of the human condition. When social structures are stripped away, he quickly reverts to violence and superstition to assert control over his peers.
• Lady Macbeth from Macbeth: Lady Macbeth teaches us a valuable lesson about the perils of contravening our own morality. She starts out a cutthroat killer but is increasingly consumed by the guilt of her own actions. While we may be able to escape full punishment from outside forces, it is the inner guilt that might eat us away to our last.
• The Boy who Cried Wolf: The boy who cried wolf is a character whose fatal flaw is his desire for attention and adulation. His repeated attempts at gaining the attention of others leads the townspeople to no longer take him seriously, which causes him harm when he actually needs the villagers to take him seriously to save his life. He teaches us the virtue of honest and humility.
• Nick Carraway from the Great Gatsby: Nick shows us all the inner conflict between the trappings of wealth, glamor and spectacle; and the desire for simplicity, honesty and community. He is drawn by the dazzling world of East Egg, New York, but by the end of the novel sees live in East Egg as shallow and lacking the moral depth of his former life in small town Minnesota.
• Alice from Alice in Wonderland: In many ways, Alice represents the child within all of us. She is a character of goodwill to all and who looks upon the world (or, rather, Wonderland) with awe. Travelling with a cadre of flawed characters, she learns with them the importance of seeking strength from within.
• The Nurse in Romeo and Juliet: Like many Shakespearian characters, the nurse’s role is both as loyal confidante to a central character and comic relief. Shakespeare uses minor characters to regale his crowd and sustain viewer interest between scenes.
• Lucy in The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe: Lucy represents a surprising character whose youthfulness and small stature make her an underrated character by all around her. Nonetheless, she possesses within the bravery and loyalty necessary to carry out the quest for Aslan. Lucy represents the goodness in children and, by extension, all of mankind.
• Anne in Anne of Green Gables: Anne occupies the typical literary role of young girls in many classical novels: she represents innocence and wonder, and her contraventions of rules are seen through a prism of childhood innocence. This frames Anne not as a deviant but as a precious soul.
• Simba from The Lion King: Simba’s story follows his struggle with growing up, embracing his destiny and duty to his family, or fleeing towards freedom and a ‘no worries’ lifestyle. Simba flees Pride Rock and goes through an existential crisis with his existentialist friends Timon and Pumba. When he runs into an old childhood friend, he realizes how shallow his new carefree life has become and reflects upon his obligation to his community back home.
• Woody from Toy Story: Woody starts out Andy’s favorite toy, but when Andy gets a new flashier toy, Woody’s status amongst the toys falls apart. Woody’s key character challenge is to learn to be humble and inclusive living within the group. By the end of the movie, Woody realizes his duty to love and serve Andy is more important than his own status within the group.

4. Here’s an Example Template for your own Character Analysis Essay

Feel free to use this brainstorming template to get you started with your character analysis essay. I recommend filling out as many of these key points as you can, but remember sometimes you might have to skip some of these points if they’re not relevant to your character.

Once you’ve brainstormed the ideas in Table 1, follow the character analysis essay outline in Table 2 to stay on track for your character analysis essay. Do remember though that each assignment will be different and you should adjust it based on your teacher’s requirements.

Here’s Table 1, which is a brainstorming template for your character analysis essay:

And here’s Table 2, which is an example character analysis essay outline. This is for a 1500 word character analysis essay. Change the word count according to how long your essay should be:

Read Also: 39 Better Ways to Write ‘In Conclusion’ in an Essay

Character analyses can be really tough. You need to know your character really well. You might even need to re-read (or watch) your book or movie a few times over to get to know the character really well.

I recommend when you re-read or re-watch the text before you write your character analysis, have the checklist I provided above handy and take notes. Then, use the essay outline I provided above to put all of those notes together into a clear and thorough final character analysis essay.

Chris Drew (PhD)

Dr. Chris Drew is the founder of the Helpful Professor. He holds a PhD in education and has published over 20 articles in scholarly journals. He is the former editor of the Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education. [Image Descriptor: Photo of Chris]

• Chris Drew (PhD) https://helpfulprofessor.com/author/chris-drew-phd/ 5 Top Tips for Succeeding at University
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How to Write a Character Analysis Essay

A character analysis essay is a challenging type of essay students usually write for literature or English courses. In this article, we will explain the definition of character analysis and how to approach it. We will also touch on how to analyze characters and guide you through writing character analysis essays.

Typically, this kind of writing requires students to describe the character in the story's context. This can be fulfilled by analyzing the relationship between the character in question and other personas. Although, sometimes, giving your personal opinion and analysis of a specific character is also appropriate.

Let's explain the specifics of how to do a character analysis by getting straight to defining what is a character analysis. Our term paper writers will have you covered with a thorough guide!

What Is a Character Analysis Essay?

The character analysis definition explains the in-depth personality traits and analyzes characteristics of a certain hero. Mostly, the characters are from literature, but sometimes other art forms, such as cinematography. In a character analysis essay, your main job is to tell the reader who the character is and what role they play in the story. Therefore, despite your personal opinion and preferences, it is really important to use your critical thinking skills and be objective toward the character you are analyzing. A character analysis essay usually involves the character's relationship with others, their behavior, manner of speaking, how they look, and many other characteristics.

Although it's not a section about your job experience or education on a resume, sometimes it is appropriate to give your personal opinion and analysis of a particular character.

What Is the Purpose of a Character Analysis Essay

More than fulfilling a requirement, this type of essay mainly helps the reader understand the character and their world. One of the essential purposes of a character analysis essay is to look at the anatomy of a character in the story and dissect who they are. We must be able to study how the character was shaped and then learn from their life. 

A good example of a character for a character analysis essay is Daisy Buchanan from 'The Great Gatsby.' The essay starts off by explaining who Daisy is and how she relates to the main character, Jay Gatsby. Depending on your audience, you need to decide how much of the plot should be included. If the entire class writes an essay on Daisy Buchanan, it is logical to assume everyone has read the book. Although, if you know for certain that your audience has little to no knowledge of who she is, it is crucial to include as much background information as possible. 

After that, you must explain the character through certain situations involving her and what she said or did. Make sure to explain to the reader why you included certain episodes and how they have showcased the character. Finally, summarize everything by clearly stating the character's purpose and role in the story. 

We also highly recommend reading how to write a hook for an essay .

Still Need Help with Your Character Analysis Essay?

Different types of characters.

To make it clear how a reader learns about a character in the story, you should note that several characters are based on their behaviors, traits, and roles within a story. We have gathered some of them, along with vivid examples from famous literature and cinema pieces:

Types of Characters

• Major : These are the main characters; they run the story. Regularly, there are only one or two major characters. Major characters are usually of two types: the protagonist – the good guy, and the antagonist: the bad guy or the villain. 
• Protagonist (s) (heroes): The main character around whom most of the plot revolves. 

For example, Othello from Shakespeare's play, Frodo from The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, Harry Potter from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, and Elizabeth Bennet from 'Pride and Prejudice' by Jane Austen.

• Antagonist (s): This is the person that is in opposition to the protagonist. This is usually the villain, but it could also be a natural power, set of circumstances, majestic being, etc. 

For example, Darth Vader from the Star Wars series by George Lucas, King Joffrey from Game of Thrones, or the Wicked Queen from 'Snow White and Seven Dwarfs.'

• Minor : These characters help tell the major character's tale by letting them interact and reveal their personalities, situations, and/or stories. They are commonly static (unchanging). The minor characters in The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien would be the whole Fellowship of the ring. In their own way, each member of the Fellowship helps Frodo get the ring to Mordor; without them, the protagonist would not be a protagonist and would not be able to succeed. In the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling, minor characters are Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger. They consistently help Harry Potter on his quests against Voldemort, and, like Frodo, he wouldn't have succeeded without them.

On top of being categorized as a protagonist, antagonist, or minor character, a character can also be dynamic, static, or foil.

• Dynamic (changing): Very often, the main character is dynamic.

An example would also be Harry Potter from the book series by J.K. Rowling. Throughout the series, we see Harry Potter noticing his likeness to Voldemort. Nevertheless, Harry resists these traits because, unlike Voldemort, he is a good person and resists any desire to become a dark wizard.

• Static (unchanging): Someone who does not change throughout the story is static.

A good example of a static character is Atticus Finch from “How to Kill a Mockingbird” by Harper Lee. His character and views do not change throughout the book. He is firm and steady in his beliefs despite controversial circumstances. 

• Foils : These characters' job is to draw attention to the main character(s) to enhance the protagonist's role.

‍ A great example of a foil charact e r is Dr. Watson from the Sherlock Holmes series by Arthur Conan Doyle.

How to Analyze a Character 

While preparing to analyze your character, make sure to read the story carefully.

• Pay attention to the situations where the character is involved, their dialogues, and their role in the plot.
• Make sure you include information about what your character achieves on a big scale and how they influence other characters.
• Despite the categories above, try thinking outside the box and explore your character from around.
• Avoid general statements and being too basic. Instead, focus on exploring the complexities and details of your character(s).

How to Write a Character Analysis Essay?

To learn how to write a character analysis essay and gather a more profound sense of truly understanding these characters, one must completely immerse themself in the story or literary piece.

• Take note of the setting, climax, and other important academic parts.
• You must be able to feel and see through the characters. Observe how analysis essay writer shaped these characters into life.
• Notice how little or how vast the character identities were described.
• Look at the characters' morals and behaviors and how they have affected situations and other characters throughout the story.
• Finally, observe the characters whom you find interesting. 

Meanwhile, if you need help writing a paper, leave us a message ' write my paper .'

How Do You Start a Character Analysis Essay

When writing a character analysis essay, first, you have to choose a character you'd like to write about. Sometimes a character will be readily assigned to you. It's wise to consider characters who play a dynamic role in the story. This will captivate the reader as there will be much information about these personas.

Read the Story

You might think that if you already have read the book, there is no need to do so again; however, now that you know the character you would like to focus on, reading it again will have plenty of benefits. It will give you an opportunity to be more precise while reading the scenes that relate directly to your character and are important for his/her analysis. While reading the book, pay attention to every tiny detail to make sure you grasp the whole array of your character's traits. 

Consider the following things:

• What specific descriptions does the author provide for each character?

For example, when J.K. Rowling describes Harry Potter for the first time, she describes his clothes as old and oversized, his hair untidy, and his glasses as broken. It might seem just like a simple description, but she expresses compassion and pity for an orphan neglected by his only relatives. 

• What kinds of relationships does your character have with others?

Think about how Harry builds up his friendships with others. First, he and Ron do not like Hermione because she acts like a know-it-all, but when she gets stuck in the dungeons with a horrendous troll, he rushes to save her regardless. 

• How do the actions of the character move the plot forward?

In 'The Philosopher's Stone,' Harry is very observant of any events taking place at school. He analyzes people's actions, which builds up the plot around the stone and its importance for the magical world.

Get help with your character analysis from our experts.

Choose a Dynamic Character

Choosing a dynamic character is a great idea. This does not necessarily have to be the protagonist, but a character that undergoes many changes has grown throughout the story and is not boring and/or static. This gives you a perfect advantage to fully show the character and make your paper entertaining and engaging for the reader. If you choose a character that is not very dynamic, your essay might seem monotonous because your character will not end up doing much and will not be very involved in the story.

While you are reading, it is useful to take notes or highlight/underline any of the critical elements of the story. This will add depth to your character description(s). By providing vivid and specific examples, you connect your reader to the character, and the character comes alive in their eyes. Review your notes and formulate the main idea about your character when you're finished reading with your character in mind.

Make an initial draft while taking note of the character analysis essay outline provided by your instructor. You may follow the recommended character analysis essay format if you have not been provided with a sample.

Choose a Main Idea

While reading the story, make sure you keep track of your notes. It is a good idea to look at them, choose the ones that are the most representative of your character and find patterns. This will be your thesis. Then, you must support this idea with examples and situations involving your character. 

If your character were Jem Finch from 'To Kill a Mockingbird' by Harper Lee, the main idea would be how his personal character is shaped through racial conflicts, social inequalities, and internal struggles between public opinion, his own views, and what is actually right. Essaypro offers you history essay help. Leave us a notice if you need to proofread, edit, or write your essay.

Character Analysis Questions

Now that you have jotted down some main concepts about your character, here is a list of questions that can help you fill in the blanks you might still have:

• Where do the events involving your character take place?
• What are the relationships between your character and other significant characters?
• What is the primary change your character has gone through throughout the story?
• What is your character's background?
• What is your character's occupation?
• What kind of emotions does your character go through?
• What are your character's values?
• What is your character's value?
• Does your character have friends?
• Is there a lesson your character has learned by the end of the story?
• Does the character achieve the goals he/she has set for himself/herself?

Make a Character Analysis Essay Outline

When you're unsure how to write a character synopsis, remember that creating a literary analysis outline is one of the most critical steps. A well-constructed character analysis outline will keep your thoughts and ideas organized.

Character Analysis Essay Introduction:

Make the introduction to your paper brief and meaningful. It should hold together your entire essay and spark your audience's interest. Write a short description of the character in question. Don't forget to include a character analysis thesis statement which should make a case for the character's relevance within the narrative context.

Character Analysis Essay Body:

Subdivide your body paragraphs into different ideas or areas regarding the character. Look at your professor's rubric and ensure you'll be able to tackle all the requirements. You should also be provided with questions to be answered to formulate your analysis better. The body should answer the following questions:

• What is the character's physical appearance, personality, and background?
• What are the conflicts the character experiences, and how did he/she overcome them?
• What can we learn from this character?
• What is the meaning behind the character's actions? What motivates him/her?
• What does the character do? How does he/she treat others? Is he/she fair or unjust?
• What does the character say? What is his/her choice of words? Does he/she have a rich vocabulary?
• How does the character describe themself? How do others describe him/her?
• What words do you associate with the character? Perhaps a word like 'hope,' 'bravery,' or maybe even 'freedom'?

Character Analysis Essay Conclusion:

It's time to master the secrets of how to write character analysis essay conclusions. Your ending should also hold your ideas together and shape a final analysis statement. Mention things about the character's conflicts that we could experience in real life. Additionally, you can write about how a character should've reacted to a certain situation.

Character Analysis Essay Example

Read our blogs ‘Character Analysis of Jem Finch', 'The Great Gatsby Book Through Daisy Buchanan Character,' 'Analysis of Characters in Beowulf,' or simply use these character analysis essay examples to reference your paper. You might also be interested in a synthesis essay example .

Now that you know what is character analysis, it might be time to choose a character to write about. If you find yourself in a situation where you need to type ' do my homework for me ,' you should contact our writers. You also get a free plagiarism report, formatting, and citing when  buying an essay from us!

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Model Essay on Identity

An Essay by Eileen for Option #1 of the Common Application

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Eileen's application essay on being a wallflower works beautifully for two of the 2020-21 Common Application essay prompts. It could clearly fit under the popular Option #7, "topic of your choice." But it also works nicely with Option #1 : "Some students have a background, identity, interest, or talent that is so meaningful they believe their application would be incomplete without it. If this sounds like you, then please share your story." Eileen's essay, as you'll see, is very much about her identity, for being a wallflower is an essential part of who she is.

Eileen applied to four New York colleges that vary widely in size, mission and personality: Alfred University, Cornell University, SUNY Geneseo and the University of Buffalo. At the end of this article, you'll find the results of her college search.

Wallflower I wasn't unfamiliar with the word. It was something I remembered hearing since I was able to grasp the fine art of polysyllabic language. Of course, in my experience, it had always been subtly laced with negativity. They told me that it wasn't something I was supposed to be. They told me to socialize more — okay, maybe they had a point there — but to open up to strangers I didn't know from Adam? Apparently, yes, that was exactly what I was to do. I had to 'put myself out there,' or something. They told me I couldn't be a wallflower. Wallflower was unnatural. Wallflower was wrong. So my impressionable younger self tried her best not to see the inherent beauty in the word. I wasn't supposed to see it; no one else did. I was terrified to recognize its rightness. And that was where Charlie came in.

Before I get any further, I feel obligated to mention that Charlie is not real. I question whether that makes a difference — it shouldn't, really. Fictional, factual, or seven-dimensional, his influence in my life is indisputable. But, to give credit where credit is overwhelmingly due, he comes from the brilliant mind of Stephen Chbosky, from the universe of his novel, The Perks of Being a Wallflower . In a series of anonymous letters to an unknown friend, Charlie tells his story of life, love, and high school: of skirting the fringes of life and of learning to make the leap. And from the first sentences, I was drawn to Charlie. I understood him. I was him. He was me. I felt acutely his fears of entering high school, his just-barely-perceptible separation from the rest of the student body, because these fears were mine as well.

What I didn't have, the singular distinction between this character and myself, was his vision. Even from the very beginning, Charlie's innocence and naiveté gave him an unparalleled ability to see beauty in everything and to acknowledge it without hesitation, exactly as I'd longed to allow myself to do. I had been scared to be the only one to value being a wallflower. But with Charlie came the promise that I wasn't alone. When I saw that he could see what I wanted to see, I suddenly found that I could see it, too. He showed me that the true beauty in being a wallflower was the ability to acknowledge freely that beauty, to embrace it for everything it was while still managing to 'put myself out there' on a level I hadn't thought myself capable. Charlie taught me not conformity, but the honest, open expression of myself, free from the vise-like fear of being judged by my peers. He told me that sometimes, they were wrong. Sometimes, it was okay to be a wallflower. Wallflower was beautiful. Wallflower was right.

And for that, Charlie, I am forever in your debt.

Discussion of Eileen's Admissions Essay

The minute we read her title, we know that Eileen has chosen an unusual and perhaps risky topic. In truth, the topic is one of the reasons to love this essay. So many college applicants think their essay needs to focus on some monumental accomplishment. After all, to get admitted to a highly selective college one needs to have single-handedly rebuilt a hurricane-ravaged island or weaned a major city from fossil fuels, right?

Obviously not. Eileen tends to be quiet, thoughtful, and observant. These are not bad traits. Not all college applicants need to have the type of exuberant personality that can psych up a gymnasium full of students. Eileen knows who she is and who she is not. Her essay focuses on an important character in fiction who helped her be comfortable with her own personality and inclinations. Eileen is a wallflower, and she is proud of it.

Eileen's essay readily acknowledges the negative connotations bound up in the term "wallflower," but she uses the essay to turn those negatives into positives. By the essay's end, the reader feels that this "wallflower" could fill an important role within a campus community. A healthy campus has all types of students including those who are reserved.

Eileen may be a wallflower, but she clearly has a sprightly mind. The essay takes its subject matter seriously, but it also has no shortage of wit and humor. Eileen takes a self-deprecating jab at herself for needing to socialize more, and she plays with the idea of what is "real" in her second paragraph. Her language is often informal and conversational.

At the same time, Eileen is never flip or dismissive in her essay. She takes the essay prompt seriously, and she convincingly shows that fictional Charlie had a profound influence on her life. Eileen strikes that difficult balance between playfulness and seriousness. The result is an essay that is substantive but also a pleasure to read.

The Writing

Eileen has accomplished an impressive task by covering her topic so well in under 500 words. There is no slow warm-up or broad introduction at the start of the essay. Her first sentence, in fact, relies on the essay's title to make sense. Eileen jumps into her topic immediately, and immediately the reader is drawn in with her.

The variety of the prose also helps keep the reader engaged as Eileen makes frequent shifts between complex and simple sentences. We move from a phrase like "the fine art of polysyllabic language" to a deceptively simple string of three-word sentences: "I understood him. I was him. He was me." The reader recognizes that Eileen has an excellent ear for the language, and the essay's pacing and rhetorical shifts work well.

If there is one criticism to offer, it's that the language is a little abstract at times. Eileen focuses on "beauty" in her third paragraph, but the exact nature of that beauty is not clearly defined. At other times the use of imprecise language is actually effective — the essay opens and closes with reference to a mysterious "they." The pronoun has no antecedent, but Eileen is abusing grammar deliberately here. "They" is everyone who is not her. "They" are the people who don't value a wallflower. "They" are the force against which Eileen has struggled.

Final Thoughts

While "I'm a wallflower" may be a conversation stopper at a social event, Eileen's essay is remarkably successful. By the time we finish the essay, we can't help but admire Eileen's honesty, self-awareness, sense of humor, and writing ability.

The essay has accomplished its most important task — we have a strong sense of who Eileen is, and she seems like the type of person who would be an asset to our campus community. Remember what is at stake here — the admissions officers are looking for students who will be part of their community. Do we want Eileen to be part of our community? Absolutely.

The Results of Eileen's College Search

Eileen wanted to be in Western New York State, so she applied to four colleges:  Alfred University ,  Cornell University ,  SUNY Geneseo  and the  University of Buffalo . All schools are selective, although they vary greatly in personality. Buffalo is a large  public university , SUNY Geneseo is a public liberal arts college, Cornell is a large  private university  and member of the Ivy League, and Alfred is a small private university.

Eileen's essay is clearly strong, as were her test scores and high school record. Because of this winning combination, Eileen's college search was highly successful. As the table below shows, she was accepted at every school to which she applied. Her final decision was not an easy one. She was tempted by the prestige that comes with attending an Ivy League institution, but she ultimately opted for Alfred University because of both the generous financial aid package and the personal attention that comes with a smaller school.

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In Their Own Words: Why do we care about literary characters?

Listen to the essay, as read by Blakey Vermeule, the Albert Guérard Professor in Literature in the School of Humanities & Sciences.

For as long as I can remember, I’ve relied on fictional characters to help me steer through the social world. I never had an imaginary friend growing up, but I was always jealous of kids who did. I suspect a lot of those kids turned out to be fiction writers and poets.

Now after half a lifetime teaching literature, I walk around inside a vast pantheon of fictional people. I draw on their experiences – occasionally, a fictional character saves me from having to learn something the long, hard way. Big 19th-century novels are the best. To be a literary character – especially in a big 19th-century novel – is to be a sentient, suffering creature in a plight.

Novels are the ultimate experience machines. They help you learn a lot about your fellow creatures, what we go through, how highly sensitive we are, and what makes us tick. You really can’t put anything over on George Eliot, Flaubert, or Leo Tolstoy. They’ve seen it all and then some.

I am fascinated by why humans relate to fictional characters. We use fictional characters to extend our minds out into the world and to break the world down to a manageable size. The practice is ancient and universal. My guess is that fictional characters are a tool of cooperation, groupishness. When you and your friend share stories, fictional-character talk can save a lot of time.

For example, my buddy once described his colleague as “Gilderoy Lockhart” – and I knew exactly what he meant – vain, rhetorically gifted, empty, a show pony. Fictional characters can also be, dare I say it, a source of moral self-knowledge. When I was chair of my department, once in a while I started to feel as though I was turning into Dolores Umbridge. I like to think I was able to stop myself and correct the course. So thank you, Harry Potter.

“We use fictional characters to extend our minds out into the world and to break the world down to a manageable size. The practice is ancient and universal.”

Let me propose a definition. It is a bit quixotic but bear with me. A literary character is anybody beyond your circle of ken in whom you take a rooting interest. Living people count – I imagine we all have a rooting interest in Donald Trump. But so do fictional creations sprung wholly formed from the heads of their creators. We think about them in similar ways, using the same building blocks of storytelling.

Think about the extent to which you are rooting for or against Elon Musk, or Elizabeth Holmes, or Meghan Markle, or any of the many heroes and villains who populate Twitter. There’s of course a crucial difference between wholly fictional creations and real people – more on that below.

From heroes and villains, humans create archetypes, familiar characters who mediate our experience of the world around us. For most of our history, archetypes were collective and their authorship was anonymous. The internet has made it so again. The era of single, identifiable authorship may turn out to be a historical blip.

Archetypes sell. When George Lucas let the world in on his secret that Joseph Campbell’s ideas infused Star Wars , Hollywood discovered the hero’s journey. For decades, the hero’s journey has powered the money engine. Because it works.

You can’t go wrong with a good old-fashioned hero’s journey, complete with helpers, magic tools, a trip to the underworld, and finally some measure of social acceptance. But why does it work? Why do humans think in archetypes? What features of human cognition are involved?

I’ve been puzzling over these questions since I was in high school. I went to a religious high school, and I rebelled by taking the religious questions more seriously than I was supposed to. I loved science, especially Darwin, and I reasoned myself into atheism. I just couldn’t understand why very smart people seemed to believe in such strange, violent, often disconnected stories. I started paying very close attention to what people do believe. I was especially fascinated by stories that some people believe to be true which others find obviously not true. I found a lifelong intellectual obsession.

My intellectual obsession has long since given way to wonder. I’ve come to see how story-besotted we are as one of the beautiful, mysterious – indeed mystical – things about us. “Believe” is the wrong word to describe what people are doing with stories – a better word might be “become motivated by.” We are creatures who, uniquely, become motivated by stories and thus powerfully extend our cognition. Many aspects of our minds are involved. In fact, our minds seem to thirst after fictional characters. But why? I wrote an entire book on the subject over a decade ago, and I’m still puzzled and fascinated by this question.

Blakey Vermeule, the Albert Guérard Professor in Literature (Image credit: L.A. Cicero)

Especially fascinating are the cases of flesh and blood people who wander into archetypal space. Politicians morph into archetypes because they summon up vast historical, economic, and political forces.

Hillary Clinton is a good example. Hillary Clinton is the establishment face of second-wave feminism, both its beneficiary and its luminary. But she is also, after a decades-long campaign by Rupert Murdoch and other right-wing press barons, an evil queen who taxes the people to line her own coffers – a latter-day Eleanor of Provence, the original target of “Lock her up!” who collected revenue on London’s bridges from her seat in France.

Barack Obama took to making jokes about the archetypal energies swirling around his 2008 campaign: “Contrary to the rumors you have heard, I was not born in a manger. I was actually born on Krypton and sent here by my father, Jor-El, to save the planet Earth.”

Michael Corleone and Tony Soprano became beloved cultural icons despite being ruthless killers, and they prepared the way for Donald Trump, who put his own spin on the eccentric mob boss who makes it big in Hollywood. Elon Musk is a strange tech wizard with beneficent or malign intentions, depending on which Twitter team you are on. To some people, Anthony Fauci channeled the wise grandfather whose counsel could heal us; to others, he came to represent the heavy hand of the state in a foppish velvet glove. And so on.

The internet makes it easy for humans to wander into archetypal space. Unfortunately, it also makes it easy for archetypal space to catch ordinary mortals in its net. It is getting harder and harder to be an ordinary person in an ordinary muddle; now we have to stand for something or represent something. Humans aren’t used to being able to take their feelings about fictional characters out on real people, but now we can easily.

All day long, we create and digest tiny narratives about one another through tweets, posts, fleeting stories. So perhaps my question has evolved from why we care about literary characters to something more ethically pointed: How do we live with quasi-fictional characters whose lives we know very little about but who are hard to escape and whose micro-myths increasingly shape our politics, culture, and our lives?

Blakey Vermeule  is the Albert Guérard Professor in Literature in the School of Humanities & Sciences .

In Their Own Words is a collaboration between the Stanford Public Humanities Initiative  and Stanford University Communications.

If you’re a Stanford faculty member (in any discipline or school) who is interested in writing an essay for this series, please reach out to Natalie Jabbar at [email protected] .

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Your chance of acceptance, your chancing factors, extracurriculars, can my college essay be about a fictional character.

Hey guys, I have an idea for my college essay. I want to write about how a particular fictional character has had a major impact on my life and influenced my perspective and beliefs. Do you think this is a good idea, or should I choose a more conventional essay topic? I'd love to hear your thoughts and experiences. Thanks for the help!

Hey there! It's perfectly fine to write about a fictional character in your college essay, as long as you effectively convey how the character has had a significant impact on your life or shaped your identity. Colleges really appreciate unique essay topics that showcase your creativity and reflect who you are as an individual.

For instance, my child wrote about their favorite book character who overcame adversity, and they tied it into their own personal growth and development. The key is to make sure your essay still focuses on you and your experiences, rather than solely discussing the character itself. Ultimately, the essay should reveal something about your personality, values, or dreams. If you think this topic can effectively do that, then go for it! Wishing you the best of luck with your college application process!

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Fictional Characters Analysis: Newman’s Approach Essay

Newman’s view on fictional characters, silko’s world from newman’s lens, works cited.

Ira Newman provides interesting insights into the analysis of fictional characters, which has a significant value for analysis of people’s behavior in the real world. Newman first analyzes the way fictional characters should be seen. The author states that “each fictional character inhabits a fictional world of its own” and, hence, the character should be analyzed in terms of peculiarities of this world (Newman 73). The author focuses on Hamlet and his environment, and it is clear that the character can be understood through a deeper analysis of the fictional world he is placed in.

The example of Hamlet has enabled the author to come to an interesting conclusion. It is stressed that critics still “do identify… the character by means of the specific events that occur to him” (Newman 75). Thus, the stories should be considered from a wider perspective, and events that remain beyond the story can and should also be analyzed or, at least, hypothesized and taken into account. The author’s major finding is the “feedback loop” that characterizes fictional worlds, and the critic stresses that real people’s behavior can be considered with the help of tools used for the analysis of fictional characters, as they are a certain kind of representations of the real world (Newman 80). In other words, fictional characters can be related to people living in the real world and vice versa. Fictional stories can help us understand the trends that have occurred in society.

Tayo’s World

It is possible to find another illustration of the effectiveness of Newman’s approach. Hence, Silko’s novel Ceremony and its protagonist are best analyzed in terms of the world created by the author, and the story can be applied when considering a real-world setting.

First, it is necessary to analyze the world created by Silko. Tayo lives in quite a complex environment as he is exposed to two cultures. More so, he has to endure the horrors of the World War II that change him dramatically and cause a lot of psychological pain as he has bad dreams hearing “suffocating damp voices that drifted out in the jungle steam” (Silko 5). He has to find himself in the new reality, in the post-war reality. He has a family that can support him, but he fails to find comfort among his close ones.

Spirituality plays an important role in the story, and the protagonist finds his reconciliation with the environment through completing the ceremony he created. Importantly, Tayo learns that he, as well as his people, “must have power from everywhere,” and he can even get the power “from the whites” (Silko 139). The quest for this power is the major line in the story. Tayo successfully creates and completes his ceremony and becomes fully integrated into his new environment.

Of course, Newman’s approach helps understand this as the critic can analyze major milestones of the protagonist’s life and major peculiarities of the world he lives in. Tayo is a part of the environment, and he is shaped by his world. People around him bring meaning to his new life. Spirituality is key for fitting into the complex world where cultural diversity may get different forms.

The Real World and Tayo’s Effect

Newman suggests that every story (or rather its analysis) can help people see the real world better. Silko’s novel can also be applied, and it is even possible to talk about Tayo’s effect. Thus, the contemporary world is not very different from the environment described by Silko. There are still various military conflicts, and many veterans return with numerous psychological traumas. Of course, US diversity has increased, and people have to find their ways in a culturally diverse society. Tayo’s experiences can be seen as a sum total of experiences of real people who survived military conflicts. It is clear that people are haunted by images of the war, and they need a guideline to find their place in a peaceful society. Spirituality is an answer for many people. Tayo’s effect is choosing the spiritual path. Many veterans find their path with the help of religious beliefs of the community they live in. Hence, it is possible to identify a milestone in human life. Spirituality is what makes people find the meaning and be happy or, at least, satisfied with what they have.

In conclusion, it is possible to note that Newman’s approach to the analysis of both fictional and real worlds is effective and can be widely used. Newman stresses that fictional characters should be analyzed in terms of the environment they are put in. Real-world people’s behavior should also be considered in terms of the world around them, and analysis of fictional characters can help understand choices real people make and trends occurring in the world. Thus, Silko’s story is an illustration of the use of Newman’s approach. Through analysis of the protagonist of the story, it is possible to understand the experiences and concerns of those who survived military conflicts. It also enables philosophers to see that spirituality is one of the major milestones in people’s lives.

Newman, Ira. “Virtual People: Fictional Characters through the Frames of Reality.” The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 67.1 (2009): 73-82. Print.

Silko, Leslie Marmon. Ceremony . New York: Penguin, 2006. Print.

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Essays on Fictional Character

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Good Comparison And Contrast Between J. Alfred Prufrock And Nick Adams Essay Example

Introduction

Fictional Characters (Essay Sample)

TOPIC: What is Amie Thomasson’s account of fictional characters, and what is distinctive about her methodology? Put her account to the test: come up with one or two seeming counterexamples, and consider on her behalf how she might respond to these.

Only one reference and it should be from:

Book (reference from this book and chapter specifically): Metaphysics, An Anthology, edited by Jaegwon Kim, Daniel Z. Korman, and Ernest Sosa (Pg. 59)

INSTRUCTIONS:

The paper should be a philosophy paper and it should clearly be reflected in the structure and content of the paper, at each step. The paper should portray that you have a deep understanding of the topic you are doing. It should also portray excellent grammar skills!

Format requirements:

Adhere to the page count requirements for the paper.  

Use 11 or 12 point Times Roman or Times New Roman font, with 1” margins.

Double space your paper.

Give your paper an informative title; put your name, the course title, and the date below the title.

Use page numbers.

Put page references in parentheses in the text, not in footnotes—and avoid the dreaded ‘ibid.’s Put your bibliography in a separate ‘References’ section at the end of your paper.

This paper should be written in such a way that an intelligent person who is unfamiliar with the topic at hand will be able to follow your discussion.  Your mother or father, or one of your non philosophical friends, should be able to read your paper and understand what is going on.

-          divide the paper into sections with subheadings.

-          Start off with a short introduction (usually just a single paragraph(, where you say in a concise and general way what problem or issue you will be addressing, and HOW you will be addressing it.

-          Please read the readings on Amie Thomasson’s fictional character thoroughly so when the professor reads the paper, she will know I’ve grasp a detailed understanding of Amie Thomasson’s work.

-          For papers like this, there is generally no need to have a concluding section at the end of your paper. If you do have such a section, don’t just repeat what you’ve already said; add value to the discussion by, e.g., flagging some consequences of your discussion, or indicating how further investigation into the topic might proceed.

Be just as clear about what you are doing inside each section. Help your reader at each step of the way. Don’t be (too) afraid to state the obvious. Clarity is one of the main virtues of philosophical writing. For example, if you are presenting an argument (your own or some other author’s) be explicit about the content and structure of the argument. What are the premises? Why might someone believe the premises? What is the conclusion, and how does it follow from the premises? If the argument is an instance of a specific argument type—modus tollens, reductio ad absurdum, etc.—say so at some useful point.

Argumentation

Reasoned argument, of course, is the heart and soul of philosophy. There’s nothing mysterious about this. Arguing in a reasoned fashion is just what you are doing when, for example, you provide a counterexample to some account, or note that a given thesis has a certain (good or bad) consequence.

There are certain terms and expressions philosophers use to let their readers know where they are in a given stage of an argument. These include:

1.  Quantifiers: all, any, every, most, some, none, a, an, the

2.  Qualifiers: but, however, still, on the other hand

3.  Necessary and/or sufficient conditions (e.g., “free will is necessary for moral responsibil- ity”)

4.  Disjunction: either P or Q; neither P nor Q

5.  Existence: is, are

6.  Negation: not

7.  Inference: therefore, thus, hence, so, because, since, follows, implies, infer, consequence

8.  Additional inference: moreover, furthermore

9.  Qualified inference: and, but, however, despite, notwithstanding, nevertheless, even, though, still

• Possibility/probability: possibly, necessarily, can, must, may, might, ought, should
• Truth/falsity: true, false, probable, certain
• Soundness and validity: sound, unsound, valid, invalid, fallacious, supported
• Reasonableness: logical, illogical, reasonable, unreasonable, rational, irrational
• Argument constituents: assumption, premise, belief, claim, proposition
• Arguments: argument, reason, reasoning, evidence, proof 
Make sure you understand and help yourself to these terms in your paper. Your reader will thank you.

Some remarks on style:

-          Write clearly and straightforwardly. Avoid ambiguity. Avoid pretentions or overly formal prose.

-          Using “I” is perfectly normal. Ultimately, this philosophy paper is supposed to be an investigation into WHAT YOU THINK about a given position, problem, argument, etc.

-          Strive for a neutral tone. Generally speaking, try to avoid expressions of overt enthusiasm or hostility. In nearly all cases, they are distracting and besides the point.

-          Make sure there is proper grammar throughout!

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Fictional Character in a Management Position

Michael Pope is the director of the sales department in an airline that was launched three years ago. He has been tasked to lead the company’s marketing team in meeting the defined targets, converting prospective customers quickly, and keeping the approval rankings high. Michael has been instrumental in facilitating robust relationships and interactions among the sales team. When the company was being launched, he illuminated the department’s objectives and ensured that all members of the groups were individually and collectively connected to the aspirations. Pope also expressed the department’s high expectations and illustrated how the team’s efforts have been integral in ensuring the organization’s profitability despite being a new entity operating in a highly competitive industry. He encouraged the members to continuously suggest and share ways through which the department can support the sales function. For instance, Michael revealed that the organization was about to launch a loyalty program as a strategy of reaching new audiences and converting them into customers.

Due to his insights, innovative suggestions, and extensive knowledge of the airline industry, Michael earned respect and admiration of his team. Considering the rapidly rising competition in the industry, he underscores the indispensability of continuous organization renewal during the monthly departmental meetings. Consequently, Pope has encouraged the team to be creative, take risks, experiment, and solve problems innovatively to ensure that no potential customer is lost to the competitors. For instance, Michael narrated how he influenced a customer’s flying decision by empowering them with accurate information about the airline, onboard, and auxiliary services. Michael reiterated the essence of innovativeness in the industry, disclosing that he was promoted to his current position after suggesting the need to develop and integrate social media payment solutions on the airline’s platforms. The new payment option grew rapidly and became one of the customers’ favorite due to its convenience and ease of use. While the sales department has clearly defined objectives, the departmental head has provided sufficient autonomy to staff to determine the best way to perform their duties and deliver the desired outcomes.

Description of the Leader’s Personality

Michael Pope articulately envisioned the future of the organization and communicated an achievable vision and mission of the department to the employees. He continuously engaged with the departmental staff to identify their needs and worked collaboratively to address such issues. During their departmental meetings, Pope demonstrated his openness to new thinking and innovative ideas by asking the employees to continuously explore opportunities for performing their jobs differently. In this regard, he shifted the views of the employees, broadened their vision, and persuaded them to explore new horizons beyond their comfort zones. Moreover, he illustrated his tolerance for intelligent risks and underscored that, as the industry became intensely competitive, the only organizations that would survive were those whose employees took risks in approaching issues unconventionally.

Additionally, Michael was willing to accept responsibility for all the outcomes emanating from the employees’ venturing into areas previously unexplored in the airline industry. Michael recognized that this was an indispensable component in inspiring confidence and encouraged the team to develop and shape new ideas in executing their jobs and promoting sales. From this perspective, he established an expectation that everyone in the team, including the departmental head, would generate new ideas and that such thoughts would be recognized even when they are not paradigm-shifting.

Developing the Character Traits

Michael Pope developed his leadership traits by recognizing his role as a driver of positive change by inspiring people. To achieve this, he kept his ego under control and put the best interests of the team and organization before such personal attributes as his status in the company. Additionally, he nurtured self-management and recognized that to be successful in their undertakings, they should be self-motivated and energized. In his career, Michael also learned to overcome risk-taking fears after evaluating them regarding their reward, potential obstacles, and how they would contribute to the realization of the organization’s objectives. In this regard, he became increasingly aware of how complacency and self-satisfaction stifle progress and growth.

Further, Michael has progressively fostered his ability to make difficult decisions, particularly in departing away from the conventional and tried-and-true approaches adopted by the organization. Consequently, he reckoned that some resolutions could cannibalize the existing business and potentially disrupt operations. Conversely, Michael recognized that in a highly competitive industry, the failure to depart from the status quo would not spur organizational growth. To achieve this, he had to nurture openness to new ideas and inspire the generation of unconventional insights. This led the departmental head to become more willing to undergo changes and easily embraced ideas which sought to adjust the current situation. Moreover, he learned to articulate the collective consciousness of the airline and noted the essence of a shared vision for the growth of the business and the employees. As a result, he recognized that to lead effectively, he had to set an inspiring, realistic, and achievable vision and take proactive approaches to develop innovative solutions.

Three Traits and their Significance in Successful Management

Among the significant trait possessed by the manager is charisma through which he establishes social authority. Notably, the leader relies on charisma as a persuasive charm to empower, influence, and motivate the people around him. He leverages this vital attribute to inspire the department towards the realization of organizational objectives by fostering the unity of purpose, engagement in the company, and stimulating actions and thoughts that depart from the tradition. Moreover, the leader uses this attribute to build interactions with the workforce and deepen relationships as an approach to inspire team commitment. According to Khan et al. (2020), charisma is an integral component in leadership as it arouses distinctive credibility, authority, and loyalty. Consequently, the manager utilizes this trait to unify the team towards a collective vision and bolster their devotion to the defined objectives. Therefore, this attribute also enables the manager to articulate the vision of the organization efficiently and purposely empower and develop the team to ensure they contribute meaningfully towards the attainment of the company goals.

Additionally, the manager possesses effective communication abilities through which he articulates the organization’s vision authentically, consistently, and in an inspiring manner. This trait allows the manager to obtain the attention of the team members, stimulate intellectual engagement, and foster confidence between the staff and the departmental head. Further, this skill facilitates the easy transfer and interchange of thoughts and knowledge. Bucata and Rizescu (2017) contend that a leader cannot be effective in the absence of persuasive communication abilities through which they can foster responsibility, commitment, premeditated association, provide support, and motivate the team. In this regard, effective communication enables the manager to express ideas and share information clearly and articulately.

Further, the manager practices active listening through which he obtains deep insights and perspectives from the team. Consequently, they create transparent and trustworthy relationships, which breed loyalty. For instance, the manager demonstrates genuine interest in the insights, opinions, and ideas shared by the employees through active listening, which fosters the generation of suggestions. Moreover, active listening encourages robust, meaningful, and purposeful communication between the departmental head and the employees. According to Jonsdottir and Kristinsson (2020) and Longweni and Kroon (2018) argue that effective listening ability is essential in nurturing rapport and team interconnectedness, which are critical precursors for organizational performance. In this regard, listening actively strengthens working relationships, bolsters teamwork bonds, and enhances workers’ comfort in voicing their opinions and ideas. For instance, in a highly competitive airline industry, the management should encourage employees to generate innovative suggestions that could help the organization obtain a competitive advantage over its rivals. However, workers cannot voice such proposals if the managers do not demonstrate regard or concern over the shared views. Therefore, active listening is a critical trait that enhances the effectiveness of a manager, thereby fostering improved organizational performance.

Developing the Managerial Traits

Developing active listening, effective communication, and charisma is critical to successfully lead in the modern, highly competitive business environment. The trait of active listening will be nurtured and developed through practice and experience whenever I interact and engage with other people. This will entail directing my whole focus on the speaker to facilitate total concentration on what is being said rather than passive hearing. Effective communication will be achieved through training in the local university over three months. Within the first month of training, I aspire to have mastered the basics of assertive and persuasive communication. In the subsequent sessions, I intend to enhance my public speaking abilities across different audiences before arranging for a presentation in the class. These considerations are critical in clarifying the objective, focusing the efforts, utilizing time and other resources productively, and increasing the potential for success. The trait of charisma will be developed through experience and practice with distinctive focus on exuding confidence, conveying genuine passion, being assertive, and nurturing self-conviction.

Possible Disadvantages of Possessing the Traits

Although effective communication, active listening, and charisma are integral in both personal and professional relationships, they have their distinctive drawbacks. For instance, the former is viewed as persuasion and manipulation. Consequently, it potentially influences people to make decisions they would not have been made. Additionally, leaders who utilize effective communication are often seen as weak, which may result in negative consequences, including insubordination, diminished authority, and declining performance (Arendt et al., 2019). Similarly, charisma may result in overconfidence, narcissism, extreme persuasiveness, and manipulative tendencies. Moreover, being overly enthusiastic and entertaining may lead to the emergence and development of attention-seeking habits. These occurrences adversely affect the effectiveness of a leader and impede the realization of organizational goals. Further, active listening is significantly involving and may trigger discomfort, eroding the level of openness and transparency (Kourmousi et al., 2017). Therefore, employees may feel intimidated by a manager who is listening to them with full attention and concentration, causing them to withhold information.

Utilization of the Traits in Real Life

Active listening, effective communication, and charisma have been widely across numerous facets of life. Charisma has been widely deployed in political circles by politicians to influence support and voting patterns through their persuasiveness. For instance, the former President Barrack Obama utilized his charismatic abilities to mobilize extensive funding for his campaigns and led to many people devoting themselves to his ideologies. Similarly, Obama had effective communication abilities through which he articulated his vision for America, which gave him a competitive advantage over his opponents. In this regard, he relied on his ability to clearly illustrate his thoughts and ideas as the greatest tool for gaining political support and surviving a relatively hostile political terrain. On active listening, I have observed its utilization in counseling sessions where the therapist devotes full concentration and focus on the speaker to demonstrate concern and obtain as much insights from the discussion.

Marketing the Traits

Active listening.

• Facing the speaker and maintain eye contact.
• Listen without interruptions.
• Sustain full focus and concentration by eliminating or minimizing distracting activities like scrolling the phone.
• Acknowledge the message by nodding or making appropriate indication.
• Provide feedback.

Effective Communication

• Articulate issues clearly, concretely, and concisely.
• Ensure you fully understood the subject you intend to speak about.
• Synchronize the body language with the verbal or spoken words.
• Maintain relaxation, manage emotions, and keep engaging your audience.
• Occasionally smile and nod at the members of the audience and sustain an open and inviting posture.
• Acknowledge other people and their significance in your endeavor.
• Manifest positive energy and demonstrate genuine interest in everyone.
• Cultivate a sense of humor.
• Exhibit self-confidence and seek persuasiveness and assertiveness.
• Build respect and trust with others.

Relating with the Fictional Character

I positively relate with the character as he exudes transformational leadership attributes, which are critical in the modern business environment. For instance, fostering creativity, empowering employees, and encouraging meaningful collaboration between workers and managers is essential in enhancing organizational performance and productivity. In this regard, I would be managed by him considering his approach to management and leadership, focus on improvement, and minimal emphasis on his status and position in then organization. Additionally, he is inspiring, empowering, and illustrates the possibility of employees climbing the organization hierarchy to play leadership roles.

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