Character theory (Media)

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This article refers to the use of the term character theory in the study of media, for the mathematical definition see Character theory

A Character theory is the context of media, such a print or electronic media texts or productions such as films and plays, is useful for analysing and understanding media in which people take on the role of an actor or social actor. Character theories are popular with academics teaching and researching media and film studies as they are useful for appreciating the structure of different types of media and the roles of the characters, fictional or otherwise that are portrayed in them.

Contents 1 Goffman's Character theory 2 Propp's Character theory 3 Campbell, Fletcher and Greenhill's Character theory 4 References

[edit] Goffman's Character theory

Erving Goffman's (1959) character theory suggests that there are four main types of broad character in a media text or production;

1. The protagonist (leading character)
2. The deuteragonist (secondary character)
3. The bit player (minor character whose specific background the audience is not aware of
4. The fool (a character that uses humor to convey messages)

[edit] Propp's Character theory

Vladimir Propp (1969) developed a character theory for studying media texts and productions, which indicates that there were 8 broad character types in the 100 tales he analysed, which could be applied to other media:

1. The villain (struggles against the hero)
2. The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object)
3. The (magical) helper (helps the hero in the quest)
4. The princess (person the hero marries, often sought for during the narrative)
5. Her father
6. The dispatcher (character who makes the lack known and sends the hero off)
7. The hero or victim/seeker hero, reacts to the donor, weds the princess

[edit] Campbell, Fletcher and Greenhill's Character theory

John Campbell, Gorden Fletcher, and Anita Greenhill developed a character theory for analysing virtual communities, based on tribal typologies. In the communities they investigated they identified three character types:

1. The Big Man (offer a form of order and stability to the community by absorbing many conflictual situations personally)
2. The Sorcerer (will not engage in reciprocity with others in the community)
3. The Trickster (generally a comical yet complex figure that is found in most of the world's culture)

[edit] References

• Goffman, E. (1959). The presentation of self in everyday life. Garden City, NY: Doubleday
• Propp, V.I.A. (1969). Morphology of the Folk Tale. Texas: University of Texas Press.
• Campbell, J., Fletcher, G. & Greenhil, A. (2002). Tribalism, Conflict and Shape-shifting Identities in Online Communities. In the Proceedings of the 13th Australasia Conference on Information Systems, Melbourne Australia, 7-9 December 2002