Characterization #2 - Archetypes and Cliches

Archetypes are 'a basic model from which copies are made'. This is taken from a handout my AP Literature teacher gave us and even though it's for literature, I think it can also apply to other forms of writing as well.
These are some basic archetypes that a character could fall into. If they do, that is 100% fine. It's not cliche to have a character fall into a archetype. Every story needs a hero and a villain.

Archetypes:
Hero: Main character of mysterious and usually noble birth. Leaves his/her community to bring something honorable back to it. Encounters physical and emotional obstacles and change.
Ex: Harry Potter

Mother figure: If she's a surrogate or birth mother, she takes care of and provides guidance to children. If it's a step-mother, she provides obstacles to the child.
Ex: Fairy Godmother

Mentor/Great Teacher: Protects, advises, and helps main character to succeed on their own.
Ex: Dumbledore

The Innocent: child or young adult with little experience in the world. Naive.
Ex: Little Red Riding Hood

The Underdog: Unlikely victor
Ex: Hercules before he becomes all strong and mighty

Double/Doppelganger: A character who physically resembles the protagonist, but has the opposite personality and psychological characteristics.
Ex: an evil twin

Helping Animals: Nature helps out a main character in animal form. Often appears in dreams.
Ex: Snow White and Cinderella

Sacrificial Redeemer: A character with a strong sense of morality who dies willingly for their beliefs.
Ex: Harry Potter (sort of)

Scapegoat: A character who dies unwillingly for others' beliefs.
Ex: people in Harry Potter who get killed by Death Eaters/Voldemort (sort of)

Enchantress/Temptress: A woman (if the hero is male) who uses magic and/or sex to distract him from his quest or goal
Ex: Circe

Giant: represents and old and magical connection to the strength and power of the earth.

Villain: opposes the hero
Ex: Voldemort

Trickster: A male that tries to deceive or distract the hero.
Ex: Malfoy

Outcast: A member of society that is shunned. Often becomes a sacrificial or Christ-figure

Star-Crossed lovers: Lovers that will ultimately meet tragic ends due to fate.
Ex: Romeo and Juliet


Most likely you're not going to have a character that fits all of these roles and not every character will fit an archetype. That's fine too.
The only thing to be really wary of is that you don't turn your archetypal character, (or really any character) into a big cliche.
How many love stories have you read where there's a jock or some other kind of attractive amazing guy that has this bitchy girlfriend that he doesn't really love and then he meets the quiet girl that would never dream of getting the amazing jock guy and then they end up falling in love and living happily ever after? That's a cliche.
I had a super good list of these bookmarked at one point but now I'm not sure if it's still there...
I'm going to talk more about cliches in a plot lesson eventually because it applies to plot too.


Homework:
1.Do your characters fit into an archetype? If so what one(s}?
2. Write a brief character bio of a disgustingly cliche character. (You can do more than one if you really want to. :))

I'll grade the bios in terms of stars. Four stars is the most.

Oh god I'm horrid with chiches.

Well...Kay is a jock, sort of. But he doesn't fall in love with a shy girl, he falls for Shelly, who is an innocent up until her rape. Marie is an agressive goth type who falls in love with Robert, a tough guy from the south who looks as if he could kill you and has a voice that would melt women into popcycles. Michael is a bit eccentric, he paints. Forrest, a very serious, mature woman, finds her other half within him. They're all kind of protagonists of their own parts of the story.

I'm lame. I know.


Ashley Anderson. She's street smart and book smart but only middle class on the popularity chain. She wants so bad to be a part of the popular girls, so she does things for them and eventually the Queen Bee notices her and let's her in. Queen Bee's boyfriend dumps her for Ashley and they are shunned from the group but it's okay because they have eachother and don't need popularity anymore.

Well I don't have much time at the moment so I'll do the assignment later but here is a test to find out if your characters are mary-sues :) it's really good

Mary-Sue Litmus test

missmack123 wrote:

Ashley Anderson. She's street smart and book smart but only middle class on the popularity chain. She wants so bad to be a part of the popular girls, so she does things for them and eventually the Queen Bee notices her and let's her in. Queen Bee's boyfriend dumps her for Ashley and they are shunned from the group but it's okay because they have eachother and don't need popularity anymore.

Haha :) This made me laugh it was so cliche. :)

I'M glad I got a chuckle.

I love that Mary sue tester btw. I did it on Marie, my happy-agressive goth. She got a 26 :'(