Editing Character (arts) (section)

===Round vs. flat=== <!-- Characterization links here. -->
In his book ''Aspects of the Novel'', [[E. M. Forster]] defined two basic types of characters, their qualities, functions, and importance for the development of the novel: '''flat''' characters and '''round''' characters.<ref name="Hoffman">{{cite book |last=Hoffman |first=Michael J |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zxFqVTxvNA4C&pg=PA36 |title=Essentials of the theory of fiction |author2=Patrick D. Murphy |publisher=Duke University Press, 1996 |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-8223-1823-1 |edition=2 |pages=36}}</ref> Flat characters are two-dimensional, in that they are relatively uncomplicated. By contrast, round characters are complex figures with many different characteristics, that undergo development, sometimes sufficiently to surprise the reader.<ref>{{cite book|last=Forster|first=E.M.|title=Aspects of the Novel|url=https://archive.org/details/in.ernet.dli.2015.509170|year=1927}}</ref>

In psychological terms, round or complex characters may be considered to have five personality dimensions under the [[Big Five personality traits|Big Five]] model of personality.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Pelican|first=Kira-Anne|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NnabzQEACAAJ|title=The Science of Writing Characters: Using Psychology to Create Compelling Fictional Characters|date=2020|publisher=Bloomsbury Academic|isbn=978-1-5013-5722-0|language=en}}</ref> The five factors are:
* [[Extraversion and introversion|extraversion]] (outgoing/energetic vs. solitary/reserved)
* [[agreeableness]] (friendly/compassionate vs. critical/rational)
* [[openness to experience]] (inventive/curious vs. consistent/cautious)
* [[conscientiousness]] (efficient/organized vs. extravagant/careless)
* [[neuroticism]] (sensitive/nervous vs. resilient/confident)<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0146167202289008 |title=The Big Five Personality Factors and Personal Values |vauthors=Roccas, Sonia, Sagiv, Lilach, Schwartz, Shalom H, et al. |journal=Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin |pages=789–801 |volume=28 |issue=6 |date=2002 |doi=10.1177/0146167202289008|s2cid=144611052 }}</ref>

[[Stock character]]s are usually one-dimensional and thin. [[Mary Sue]]s are characters that usually appear in [[fan fiction]] which are virtually devoid of flaws,<ref name="Bennett">{{cite book|vauthors=Bennett, Lucy, Booth, Paul |title=Seeing Fans: Representations of Fandom in Media and Popular Culture|isbn =978-1501318474|publisher=[[Bloomsbury Publishing]] US|year=2016|page=160|access-date=January 19, 2017|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ydwuDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA160}}</ref> and are therefore considered flat characters.

Another type of flat character is a "walk-on", a term used by [[Seymour Chatman]] for characters that are not fully delineated and individualized; rather they are part of the background or the setting of the narrative.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Chatman|first=Seymour Benjamin|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ewrOp9uPjYUC&pg=PA139|title=Story and Discourse: Narrative Structure in Fiction and Film|date=1980|publisher=Cornell University Press|isbn=978-0-8014-9186-3|page=139}}</ref>