The most memorable characters in literature and film have distinctive personalities. Think of the ever-optimistic Leslie Knope from TV’s Parks and Recs or the hilariously sardonic Hades from Disney’s animated classic Hercules. If you were asked to describe these characters, you’d have plenty of ways to explain who they are and what they’re like. That’s because these characters were created by writers who understand the importance of clearly defined character traits that paint a fuller picture of who they are, making them seem real to readers and viewers. But what are character traits, and how can you use them in your own writing to make sure your characters feel like real people? Read on to find out more about this, and also see a list of character traits to help inspire you to craft your own characters.
List of character traits
First, let’s define character traits
Before we get into our character trait list, we have to understand what character traits are in the first place.
CHARACTER QUALITIES DEFINITION
What is a character trait?
Character traits are how we describe who a character is. This can include character qualities, such as personality types, as well as physical descriptions. Character traits explain how a character thinks, feels, acts, or even looks. A character trait can be negative, such as saying a character is selfish, or positive, such as saying they are brave. They can be physical, such as describing hair color, or emotional, such as describing mood.
CHARACTER TRAITS LIST
Why use character trait lists?
Writers might list character traits to help their characters seem more real to the reader. Readers enjoy stories best when they connect with the characters, and that connection happens most easily if the characters feel like they live beyond just the pages of the story, and feel like real and fully realized people.
This doesn’t mean, however, that characters can’t have magic powers, or can’t look fantastical. But even in sci-fi or fantasy stories, characters are most effective if they have traits that make them relatable or familiar.
Think of Hermione in “Harry Potter.” Yes, she was able to do incredible feats of magic that readers surely hadn’t seen anyone do in real life. However, her book smarts and ambition made her relatable. Everyone knows a bookworm, or might even be one themselves. By using character traits, we as readers understood the ways Hermione felt and acted as a person, and this made her an enduring character in our imaginations.
Below are some famous examples of character trait descriptions. Some are physical descriptions, while others explain personality, emotional state, or mood. Many of these descriptions of character traits are all of the above, using physical descriptions to lead into deeper observations of emotion or personality. These examples of character traits help the reader understand who a character is, and what purpose they serve in the story.
Character Traits Examples from Literature and Film:
- “Phyllida’s hair was where her power resided. It was expensively set into a smooth dome, like a band shell for the presentation of that long-running act, her face.” - Jeffrey Eugenides, “The Marriage Plot”
- “Vanity was the beginning and end of Sir Walter Elliot’s character: vanity of person and of situation.” - Jane Austen, “Persuasion”
- “I don’t think I ever saw Mrs. Flowers laugh, but she smiled often. A slow widening of her thin black lips to show even, small white teeth, then the slow effortless closing. When she chose to smile on me, I always wanted to thank her.” - Maya Angelou, “I Know Why The Caged Bird Sings”
Character Traits List
Crafting characters using a list of character traits
Character traits come in all shapes and sizes! Which traits will you use to describe your own characters? See below for a list of positive character traits, a list of negative character traits, and a physical character traits list. You can use this list as a starting point when you are creating your own characters. Choosing character traits can help you craft a character that feels complex as opposed to flat or one-dimensional, which helps the character seem more realistic.
A video explaining character traits in literature
List of Positive Character Traits
- Kindness
- Honesty
- Bravery
- Trustworthiness
- Reliability
- Compassion
- Empathetic
- Optimism
- Generosity
- Confidence
- Ambition
- Intelligence
- Funny
- Caring
- Polite
- Considerate
- Flexible
- Calm
- Logical
- Open-minded
- Tolerant
- Reasonable
- Unique
- Artistic
- Patient
- Gifted
- Focused
List of Negative Character Traits
- Selfishness
- Jealousy
- Rude
- Dishonest
- Disloyal
- Amoral
- Obnoxious
- Lazy
- Self-important
- Arrogant
- Cynical
- Argumentative
- Annoying
- Shallow
- Stupid
- Clingy
- Calculating
- Callous
- Condescending
- Conformist
- Crass
- Cruel
- Dull
Physical Character Traits List
- Tall
- Short
- Thin
- Muscular
- Athletic
- Lanky
- Stocky
- Strong
- Weak
- Chiseled
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How to craft dynamic characters
Characters are most effective and memorable when they are complex. Starting with character traits is one way to begin crafting a character. Another consideration is what journey, or arc, the character will go on during the course of your story, and how they might change. Read on to learn more about character arcs.
