This document discusses characterization in fiction. It defines characterization as the presentation of fictional characters and explains that there are two methods: direct, where the narrator describes the character, and indirect, where a character's traits are revealed through their actions, speech, behavior and thoughts. It provides examples of direct and indirect characters from the short stories "Recitatif" and "Why I Live at the P.O.". Key characters from each story are then analyzed in more detail based on how they are characterized in the stories.

1. CHARACTERIZATION
By: Alisha Kies, Amy Flageolle, Megan Fisher and Deborah Racicot

2. DEFINITION:
 The presentation of a fictional personage.
 There are two ways to do this; direct and indirect.
 Direct characterization occurs when a narrator directly tells us
what a character is like.
 Indirect characterization occurs when a character’s traits are
revealed implicitly through his or her
actions, speech, behavior, thoughts and actions.

3. DIRECT VS. INDIRECT
Examples of Direct Characters
Examples of Indirect Characters
 Twyla from Recitatif
 Roberta from Recitatif
 Penny and Primrose from
 Stella-Rondo, Mama, Papa
The Thing in the Forrest
Daddy, Uncle Rondo, and Shirley
 Sister from Why I live at the
T from Why I live at the P.O.
P.O.

4. Characters from Why I live at the P.O.
By Eudora Welty

5. SISTER
 Flat, Static Character.
 She doesn’t grow or change through
the story.
 Unreliable narrator-her prior
judgment of each character is
revealed in how she presents them.
 She also speaks differently, like she’s
talking aside to you as if you’re
there.

6. MAMA
 Unable to Accept Reality
 Eggs on the sibling rivalry
between Sister and Stella-Rondo.
 Believes whatever she is told
instead of finding out the truth
for herself.

7. STELLA-RONDO
 “Steals” Mr. Whitaker from
Sister.
 Runs back home from her
unhappy marriage.
 The favorite daughter, and
younger than Sister by 12
months.

8. UNCLE RONDO
 Mentally unstable.
 Very mean-spirited, vengeful.
 Throws firecrackers into Sister’s
room early in the morning.
 Wears Stella-Rondo’s nightgown
around.

9. PAPA DADDY
 Patriarch of the family.
 Got Sister her job through his
“connections”.
 Has been growing his beard
since he was a teenager.

10. CHARACTERS FROM
RECITATIF
BY TONI MORRISON

11. TWYLA: THE BEGINNING
 She narrates the story.
 She grows and changes
through the story.
 When the story begins, she is
8 years old.

12. TWYLA: IN THE MIDDLE
 Working at Howard Johnson’s
as a waitress.
 Recognizes Roberta and is
glad to see her.
 Doesn’t understand why she’s
being snubbed.

13. TWYLA AS A MOM
 Married to a fireman.
 Has one son.
 Loves her
stable, comfortable, family life.
 Protests against Roberta’s protest.

14. TWYLA DURING THE
PROTEST
 Is mad that Roberta is protesting
integration. Takes it personally.
 Thinks they can’t disagree and still
be friends.
 Gets personal with her protest
signs.
 Doesn’t mind that her son will be
bussed, she says “I mean, I didn’t
know!”

15. TWYLA; THE LAST TIME
 Decides to run out and get a
Christmas Tree at the last
minute.
 Runs into Roberta; doesn’t
want to talk to her, but does
accept her apology.

16. ROBERTA IN THE
BEGINNING
 She is 8 years old when we
meet her at St. Bonny’s.
 She is there before Twyla.
 They become inseparable.

17. ROBERTA AT THE HOJO
 Comes in on the Greyhound, on
her way to see Jimi Hendrix.
 She is a customer at the
restaurant and Twyla serves her.
 She is dismissive of Twyla.

18. ROBERTA
 Married to a rich
widower, has 4 step-children.
 Shopping at the high end
grocery store.
 She approaches Twyla and
asks her to go to coffee.

19. ROBERTA DURING THE
PROTEST
 Protesting her son’s school being
integrated.
 Tells Twyla not to take it personally.
 Tells Twyla that you’re the same person
who kicked a black lady while she was on
the ground and you call me a bigot.

20. ROBERTA AT THE DINER
 She is drunk when she sees
Twyla.
 Apologizes for saying Twyla
kicked Maggie.
 Wonders what really
happened in the orchard.

21. SUMMATION
 Characters are who tell us the story. You can’t have a story
without characters, even if sometimes the characters aren’t
people.
 Characters give insight to the story through their voices.
 We learn a lot of what an author is trying to convey from the
characters.
 Characters stick with you after you finish the story.
 Not all narrators are characters within the story.

22. Works Cited
M O R R I S O N, T O N I . R E C I TA T I F. T H E N O RT O N
I N T R O D U C T I O N T O L I T E R A T U R E . 1 1 TH E D. N E W
Y O R K C I T Y : N O R T O N & C O M P A N Y, 2 0 1 3 . 2 0 0 - 2 1 4 .
P R I N T.
W E L T Y, E U D O R A . W H Y I L I V E A T T H E P . O . T H E
N O R T O N I N T R O D U C T I O N T O L I T E R A T U R E . 1 1 TH E D.
N E W Y O R K C I T Y : N O R T O N & C O M P A N Y, 2 0 1 3 . 6 5 9 6 6 8 . P R I N T.