Character theory (media)
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A character theory is used for understanding media, such as print or electronic media texts or productions such as films and plays. It 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. They assist in the appreciation of the structure of different types of media and the roles of the characters, fictional or otherwise that are portrayed in them. Character theories are often based on stereotypes, and the different characteristics that make them up can either be used for positive or negatives purposes[1]
Propp's narrative theory[edit]
Vladimir Propp developed a character theory[2] for studying media texts and productions, which indicates that there were 7 broad character types in the 100 tales he analysed, which could be applied to other media:
- The villain (struggles against the hero)
- The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object)
- The (magical) helper (helps the hero in the quest)
- The princess (person the hero marries, often sought for during the narrative)
- The false hero (perceived as good character in beginning but emerges as evil)
- The dispatcher (character who makes the lack known and sends the hero off)
- The hero [also known as victim/seeker/paladin/winner] reacts to the donor, usually marries the princess
Bartle's character theory[edit]
Richard Bartle's character theory was one of the earliest dedicated to the Internet, and is still used for analysing early virtual worlds today.[3] It took the following form:
- Achievers (preferred to gain "points," levels, equipment and other concrete measurements of succeeding in a game)
- Explorers (preferred to be discovering areas, creating maps and learning about hidden places)
- Socializers (preferred to be interacting with other players, and on some occasions, computer-controlled characters with personality)
- Killers (preferred to depart from the norm of being "the good guy" who comes to save the day and play on the side of evil or conquest)
Campbell, Fletcher and Greenhill's character theory[edit]
John Campbell, Gorden Fletcher, and Anita Greenhill[4][5] developed a character theory for analysing online communities, based on tribal typologies. In the communities they investigated they identified three character types:
- The Big Man (offer a form of order and stability to the community by absorbing many conflictual situations personally)
- The Sorcerer (will not engage in reciprocity with others in the community)
- The Trickster (generally a comical yet complex figure that is found in most of the world's culture)
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ↑ Hinton, P. (2000. Stereotype, Cognition and Culture. Psychology Press. ISBN 0-415-19866-6
- ↑ Propp, V.I.A. (1969). Morphology of the Folk Tale. Texas: University of Texas Press.
- ↑ Richard Bartle (1996). Hearts, Clubs, Diamonds, Spades: Players Who suit MUDs. Available online
- ↑ 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
- ↑ Campbell, J., Fletcher, G. and Greenhill, A. (2009). Conflict and Identity Shape Shifting in an Online Financial Community, Information Systems Journal, (19:5), pp. 461–478. Available online
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