Musings on character types
Nov. 19th, 2012 11:24 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
luzulaI watched the Captain America movie a while ago, and it got me thinking about the kinds of character types I'm drawn to. I seem to be captivated by people who are idealistic and brave and try to do the right thing. They are often part of some institution that they believe in, but that institution often fails or betrays them, and then they struggle with that.
Obviously Benton Fraser is my prime example here. But Nate Fick, my favorite character in Generation Kill, is another example, and Steve Rogers seems to push the same sort of button for me, although not as strongly. For a more obscure example, Longstreet in The Killer Angels totally hit that button for me, too.
So, these are all men, and all in military or police organizations--I guess that's a place where these issues often arise, but I'd love to find other examples. The first female character who comes to mind is Elizabeth Moon's Paksenarrion, who really fits into that pattern, although her story has other appeals to me as well. She's in a military organization, too. Perhaps Utena Tenjou? Hmm, not really--she's more of an outside challenger than part of an institution, although she is brave and tries to do the right thing.
But one example that really clicked for me when I realized that it fit this same pattern is Shevek in Le Guin's The Dispossessed. He is partly rejected by the anarchist society he comes from, even though he deeply believes in its principles. God, I love that book.
So, do you have any examples of this type of character that you think I'd enjoy?
Obviously Benton Fraser is my prime example here. But Nate Fick, my favorite character in Generation Kill, is another example, and Steve Rogers seems to push the same sort of button for me, although not as strongly. For a more obscure example, Longstreet in The Killer Angels totally hit that button for me, too.
So, these are all men, and all in military or police organizations--I guess that's a place where these issues often arise, but I'd love to find other examples. The first female character who comes to mind is Elizabeth Moon's Paksenarrion, who really fits into that pattern, although her story has other appeals to me as well. She's in a military organization, too. Perhaps Utena Tenjou? Hmm, not really--she's more of an outside challenger than part of an institution, although she is brave and tries to do the right thing.
But one example that really clicked for me when I realized that it fit this same pattern is Shevek in Le Guin's The Dispossessed. He is partly rejected by the anarchist society he comes from, even though he deeply believes in its principles. God, I love that book.
So, do you have any examples of this type of character that you think I'd enjoy?
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
(no subject)
Date: 2012-11-19 11:48 pm (UTC)Rupert Giles in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Very much the archetypal Good Man, the one who cares deeply and does the right thing, or tries to, even when it's hardest, even when it's not recognized or rewarded, sometimes at odds with the organization (Watchers council) to which he belongs and reports.
I'll have to think on female characters. Possibly Torin Kerr, infantry sergeant, in Tanya Huff's Confederation sci-fi series (the ones with "Valor" in the title). I love the series for many reasons; Huff is a good writer rather than a great one, but she's an excellent storyteller. Will ponder to see if I can come up with others.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-11-20 07:47 pm (UTC)I tried the first book of that Tanya Huff series after you recced it to me a while ago, but it didn't really grip me--I can't put my finger on why. Maybe it's that the aliens didn't feel like actual aliens somehow? Like, there was this lizard species that had the same military organization as humans down to the division between commissioned and non-commissioned officers. I suppose I like my aliens a little more alien? Or maybe it was something else--it's not like I always want my science fiction super serious and realistic or anything. But for whatever reason, they didn't stick with me.