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Up front Essay
Writing Characters With Grit H. McGlothlin
These few lines are a great example of compelling character writing. These lines say something valuable and meaningful about the Narrator. More importantly, it's said in a voice that demands attention and rings true on a level so full of human grit it's as organic as sweat or semen. This character's voice, in a matter of forty-eight words, resonates for the audience like pounding footsteps on pavement. The truth of a character should be like a glaring light to the readers eyes, something that stings the reader but is impossible to turn away from. However, recognizing and accomplishing great character writing are two entirely different things. Let's pull the wings off the insect and dissect it, shall we? The first place to start when trying to establish a unique character is summarizing their most defining characteristic. A well-written character has many traits but there should be one that molds all others. Is he a cynic? Optimist? A nihilist? Pessimist? Christian? Satanist? A necrophiliac?! This trait, the defining trait of the character, will shape every word the character chooses, every gesture they make, every stance they take both physically and mentally. All great characters are multi-layered and should have many pronounced attributes but there should be one that all others either stem from or work against.
"I had it all . Even the glass dishes with tiny bubbles and imperfections, proof that they were crafted by the honest, simple, hard-working, indigenous peoples of . . . wherever." 2. The character uses specific language which reflects this world view, shaping every thought he has and the way he presents it. Even the reference to his boss wearing a "cornflower blue" necktie on Mondays is an expression of his loathing; that he lives in a world where even a person's wardrobe, down to the last shade of blue, is compartmentalized. 3. The Narrator also uses specific language when referring to other characters. He consistently refers to Marla Singer as "Marla Singer"; not just "Marla". His loathing of her is so total that using her full name is an extension of this. Complete. Whole.
4. This character has a psychological build as unique to him as any
living, breathing, person. Why does the Narrator despise Marla Singer
so entirely when she does not represent, in any way, the world upon
which he has turned his back? With a cigarette constantly clinging to
her lips and a second-hand dress drooping from her lanky frame, she
genuinely lacks the falsehood and unflinching denial that the Narrator
is rebelling against:
"Marla's philosophy of life was that she might die at any moment. The
tragedy, she said, was that she didn't."--Fight Club
Isn't she, to some degree, exactly what the Narrator wishes to uphold and
to realize? This is where "sub- traits" or "conflicting traits" come
strongly into play. While, throughout this story, the Narrator seems to
loath everything outside of himself-- he also loathes himself. Marla
Singer represents something deeper to our character: she is a
manifestation of his self-loathing. The two having met as a result of
the same sad obsession with sitting in on self-help groups for people with
terminal and life-altering illnesses, both feeding off the pain of others
in order to release their own pain, both pretending to be truly afflicted
while in reality nothing could be further from the truth. Marla is, in
essence, a reflection of the Narrators' worst qualities: neediness, loneliness, misery.
5. This character evolves throughout the story. He seeks an escape and
he finds it, frees himself of all that he loathes. He walks away from the
world at large and as he does so, his language, his posture, and his
behavior reflects this as well:
"After a night in fight club, everything in the real world gets the volume
turned down. Nothing can piss you off. Your word is law, and if other
people break that law or question you, even that doesn't piss you off." --Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
He walks with his head held high and a beat to his step that mimics the
beat to his words. He challenges the authorities which once ruled his
ordinary life.
6. Finally, this may be the most important aspect of it all:
This is not some random character living some random story. This is not
some ordinary man overcoming extraordinary circumstances. This is a
character whose task is to overcome himself, to choose between his most
sinister desires and what he knows is "right". The story is twisted,
and compelling, always, but it revolves around the character. The Narrator's personality shapes the events that unfold
and he, in turn, is shaped by them. Integration is key.
This Narrator creates an alter ego in order to escape what he considers
to be his own flaws. He is deconstructed and resurrected all within his own
psyche. He is his own nemesis:
"May I never be complete. May I never be content. May I never be perfect.
Deliver me, Tyler, from being perfect and complete." --Chuck Palahniuk, Fight Club
Your character has to live and breathe inside your imagination before he
can make his way inside the reader's mind. If you don't know him inside
and out, no one else ever will.
This Narrator tells us, "I met God across his
long walnut desk with his diplomas hanging on the wall behind him, and
God asks me, 'Why?' Why did I cause so much pain? Didn't I realize that
each of us is a sacred, unique snowflake of special unique specialness?
Can't I see how we're all manifestations of love? I look at God behind
his desk, taking notes on a pad, but God's got this all wrong. We are
not special. We are not crap or trash, either. We just are. We just
are, and what happens just happens. And God says, 'No, that's not
right.' Yeah. Well. Whatever. You can't teach God anything." --Chuck
Palahniuk, Fight Club
What would your character say if he were speaking with "God"?
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