Character Analysis
(This lesson is designed to coincide with study of Ch. 9, EoW.) 

Background: "He is sooooooo uptight!" "He loves to be the bad guy." "She has her head on straight!" What do these sentences mean? How do we come to such conclusions? 

Many us love to play the role of "amateur psychologist;" in fact, such behavior is a part of our everyday speech, even though we're not always aware of what we say. For this assignment, you will analyze a character's appearance and personality and come to a conclusion based on the evidence you gather.  

Objective: Students are to compose a character analysis. Students are required to hand in an outline, rough draft, and final draft. 

Skills Needed:

• A thorough understanding of characterization
• The ability to structure an essay
• A combination of creativity & critical insight

Usage: Since this is a "formal" writing piece, please remember to avoid the use of pronouns such as I, me, and you, unless of course the words appear in a quote from the book.

Character Analysis: (click here for a graphic organizer)
When you analyze a character in a story, you try to find out what makes that character "tick." In everyday life, you do this all the time. You pick up clues about the people around you by noticing what they do and say. To pick up clues about a character in a story, you do the same thing. Use "SEAT" as a tool to help you when you analyze your character.

Speech
Effects
Actions and Appearances
Thoughts

Use the above chart as a guideline for your work. As always, you can use this writing rubric to help you along the way. In particular, I expect that you show me that you are talented, creative, ambitious, and, above all, a splendid writer. 

"Man is like an iceberg--the more important part is hidden under the water."
--Fernando Arrabal, Spanish-born Frenchhh pplaywright