Communities

Writing
Writing
Codidact Meta
Codidact Meta
The Great Outdoors
The Great Outdoors
Photography & Video
Photography & Video
Scientific Speculation
Scientific Speculation
Cooking
Cooking
Electrical Engineering
Electrical Engineering
Judaism
Judaism
Languages & Linguistics
Languages & Linguistics
Software Development
Software Development
Mathematics
Mathematics
Christianity
Christianity
Code Golf
Code Golf
Music
Music
Physics
Physics
Linux Systems
Linux Systems
Power Users
Power Users
Tabletop RPGs
Tabletop RPGs
Community Proposals
Community Proposals
tag:snake search within a tag
answers:0 unanswered questions
user:xxxx search by author id
score:0.5 posts with 0.5+ score
"snake oil" exact phrase
votes:4 posts with 4+ votes
created:<1w created < 1 week ago
post_type:xxxx type of post
Search help
Notifications
Mark all as read See all your notifications »
Q&A

Post History

50%
+0 −0
Q&A What, exactly, is a character study?

A character study is a character portrayal, it shows the life and concerns of one (or a few) characters, why they do what they do, so you get to know them. They can be entertaining, immersing the r...

posted 6y ago by Amadeus‭  ·  last activity 5y ago by System‭

Answer
#4: Attribution notice removed by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-19T22:13:31Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/38309
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#3: Attribution notice added by user avatar System‭ · 2019-12-08T09:37:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
Source: https://writers.stackexchange.com/a/38309
License name: CC BY-SA 3.0
License URL: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/
#2: Initial revision by (deleted user) · 2019-12-08T09:37:24Z (almost 5 years ago)
A character study is a character portrayal, it shows the life and concerns of one (or a few) characters, why they do what they do, so you get to know them. They can be entertaining, immersing the reader in their world.

There is no overarching goal for these characters that they strive to achieve; but it is fun to watch them, sympathize with them, rejoice with them, grieve with them. They find lovers, navigate hardships and setbacks, but you don't get the sense that they are aiming to achieve any life goal. Typically they don't have a villain to defeat. You have a "slice of life" novel.

Of course, the character you study does have to be interesting, they can't be leading an entirely boring life, because you need to take us through ups and downs, triumphs and failures, grief and joy, often sexual liasons, affairs, or the loss of virginity. This can mean a headstrong or impulsive character, or a fearless character.

Besides "Remains of the Day", I would say "Little Women" (Louisa May Alcott) is a character study, of four sisters. It is out of copyright, you should be able to get it for free somewhere.

#1: Imported from external source by user avatar System‭ · 2018-08-14T00:58:40Z (over 6 years ago)
Original score: 2