Welcome Guest 

Register

Forum Home » Tolkien Related Discussion » Fanfiction & Poetry » Characters you admire...
Author Topic:
pv
Council Member
Posts: 523
Send Message
Avatar
Post Characters you admire...
on: February 07, 2005 02:13
We already have a thread about the kind of characters we don't admire - Mary Sues, etc. So I thought it might be inspiring to fan fiction writers if we talked about characters in books, plays or movies (or fan fiction!) that we do admire.

Do you admire rebellious women or conventional women? Rugged men or sensitive men? What's the most interesting relationship you've come across in fiction? A parent-child relationship? A man-woman relationship? A case of sibling rivalry? Did you ever meet a villain you truly sympathised with?
Or a hero you couldn't stand?



[Edited on 8/2/2005 by pv]
http://monstersandcritics.wordpress.com/
Faramirs_first_kiss
Mearhwine Namsmið
Posts: 390
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 07, 2005 10:02
Fantastic idea, pv! But then, this one's much harder to answer, since there's no definition of a good character, other than someone who's realistic and has some sort of motivation for everything he or she does. There are certain characters that I admire a lot, but to try and avoid this thread turning into praising characters from specific boosk or RPs, I'll try and pick out the traits that appeal to me most.

History. I love characters with good histories, and sometimes good futures too. I love to know what the generation before any character's is like, and I think some sort of family history is brilliant, especially in LotR where there's so much family loyalty. This sort of characterisation doesn't grow on trees, though, and generally has to develop over time.

A shadow. Not a shadow in his past, or a shadow that he sits in in the corner of every inn he enters, but a shadow on his personality. I don't know a single person who doesn't have at least one part of their personality that is less desirable, be it worrying to the point of distraction, mood swings between giddiness and abject depression or just being shy. Provided it's written accurately, you've almost automatically got a believable character. While most of my characters' good points seem to be quite random, most of their flaws are based on mine, or on those of people I know well, because I know what those flaws do to the way people act.

Wow, this is harder than it looks, since the range of characters I admire is so huge. There are fighting men who are incredibly fond of their wives and children, intelligent nobles of both sexes, shy, retiring, even beaten women... and that's just in one family! It comes down to writing talent in the end.
pv
Council Member
Posts: 523
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 12, 2005 02:46
I admire them, too! But are there any non-Tolkien characters you admire a lot? For most writers, it's more inspiring to think of actual characters we like, rather than abstract qualities. A friend of mine has a list of fictional men she's in love with! I don't remember her whole list, but I do know that it included Fitzwilliam Darcy (Pride & Prejudice) and Gilbert Blythe (Anne of Green Gables) and John McEnroe (don't ask me how he got onto that list!)
http://monstersandcritics.wordpress.com/
Faramirs_first_kiss
Mearhwine Namsmið
Posts: 390
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 13, 2005 05:16
Well, in that case, just about any of Terry Pratchett's characters. He's very intelligent and amusing, but he has the most obscure sense of humour in the world. And he gets away with it. His characters are all larger than life, but at the same time very real, almost like characatures. My favourites are Rincewind (the cowardly wizard with no magical aptitude whatsoever), Vetinari (the patrician of Ankh-Morpork with the silver tongue and multitudes of other shiny, silver, unpleasant things), Vimes (the down to earth leader of the city watch who ends up married to the richest woman in the city and bombarded with ranks and titles he doesn't want) and all the wizards (not your traditional wizards...). Oh, and Death. Yup, the talking skeleton. He's fantastic.

Other characters I admire are the characters from Catherine Fisher's Relic Master series. They're so realistic, very gritty. They're definitely ordinary people to whom extraordinary things happen. Galen, a grumpy man, a harsh taskmaster, a man who used to be powerful but has lost all that and tries to hide it. Raffi, his apprentice, a teenage boy with fears and apprehensions just like everyone else. Charys, the hunter who gets to close to her quarry and ends up with severely conflicting emotions.

Characters in Frances Mary Hendry's 'Quest for a Queen' trilogy and Rhiannon Lassiter's 'Hex' books are also ones to look out for.
j_mercuryuk
Council Member
Posts: 662
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 13, 2005 07:52
the relationships i find most attractive are family and friendship relationships, mainly family. couples are all very nice, but it's just kinda. . . i don't know. i still love reading sbout them, just not the lust filled ones, some people don't seem to see that for a relationship to be filled with love its not often filled with lust. they are two different things.
Family relationships just seem so much more, well, realistic when written about. it's a special and unique bond, that i presonaly believe (as long as nothing goes wrong), is stronger then any other type. You don't choose your family, but you do your friends and lovers.

As for the type of charaters, i don't like plain normal charaters. i like them to have some complexity or something that makes them different. But unlike MS, i want them to be resonably reaalistic. if they're are too unrealistic then i can't read it.

I like elves the best, partly, i think this is the reason any way, because they are old so they can have so much more about them then what first meets the eye.

but i surpose most importantly, just a well written charater.

if i think of any thing else i'll put it down.

[Edited on 13/2/2005 by j_mercuryuk]
purplefluffychainsaw
CoE Volunteer
Posts: 536
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 19, 2005 03:23
I have a certian love for cynical, sarcastic caracters: Silk from Eddings, Vimes and Lipwig from PTerry (Actually, most characters from PTerry), Laenan from Catherine Webb... But I also have a liking for "odd" characters; mainly because I tend to relate with them far more then I should. Examples: Gimli, Beldin from Eddings, Agnes from PTerry. I also like twins, and characters that bring out maternal instincts in me: Betira and Belkira from Eddings, Elladan and Elrohir, Elrond and Elros; Rincewind, Ponder, Imp and Twoflower from PTerry, Frodo, Boromir, Estel and Legolas (And I blame the 'Sues for the elf).

Relationships. Uhh... I don't normally read much stuff with romance in. Talking in fanfiction terms because I don't know the fiction versions of this: I like fluff. Stuff that makes me go, "aww, how cwuuute!" That tends to be slashy stuff, but every now and again I come across some straight fluff that I enjoy. I don't really like family relationships, and I tend to skip over them. Really good friend realationships (Sam and Frodo, Beleg and Turin) I enjoy as well.

A friend of mine has a list of fictional men she's in love with!


**Grins and snickers** I wrote a list of all the people I had a crush on the other day... And 9/10 of them were fictonal. Oh dear...


[Edited on 19/2/2005 by purplefluffychainsaw]
j_mercuryuk
Council Member
Posts: 662
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: February 20, 2005 10:55
you're not the only one. i can name more fictional charaters i'm in 'love' with then really people.
Imin
Council Member
Posts: 2
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: May 06, 2007 08:14
To be honest with you, I admire strong characters (moraly strong ofcourse). Characters that have a large perspective on life and are able to understand the meaning of life itself. Wisdom, determination and a golden heart is my personal recipie for a good caracter. If you add a litle fantasy and magic to it, it's perfect! That's probably because it's how I'd like to be (exept for the last part I think). And now, you all have the answer to the question "Why is Elrond my favorite caracter?" from among those of Middle-Earth. Other favorites of mine include Albus Dumbledore (full name Albus Percival Wulfrik Brian Dumbledore--and yes, I know it's a long one) from the "Harry Potter" series and Medivh (the prophet in Warcraft 3--this one's a game caracter).

Thanks for reading and good luck!


[Edited on 6/5/2007 by Imin]
pitya
Council Member
Posts: 591
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: May 07, 2007 06:50
i can't really say exactly what makes a good character, because, like some have said, it depends on what the reader enjoys. however, i think an overall strong character would be a believable one. this is why it frustrates me when one is in an rp with a perfectly likeable character who can do no wrong. everyone has something that people won't like about them, or that they wish to hide. to quote, "everyone has loved something, feared something, and lost something". and more often than not, it goes unsaid. you may put puzzle pieces together along the way and get a general idea of what their life has been like, or the deeper thoughts they are having. after getting several reviews online and talking with my readers and others, it seems a majority of people like discovering the characters for themselves, like getting to know an actual person. when you walk up to someone, you don't automatically get an internal monologue about their life up to that point, or that they don't like the style of hair you are wearing(unless they are an incredibly blunt person). you learn it through what they say and what they do.

as far as characters i admire, i think it goes along the same lines. Raistlin Majere from the Dragonlance series, because you get to know him and never quite understand why he becomes a black robe and attempts to destroy the gods. granted you have clues and many of it is fairly self-explanatory, but the mystery is still there. another is sauron himself--he was once a pupil of Aule's, before he sided with Morgoth, and even he had a personality and was sympathizable.

in all honesty, i don't really enjoy most female characters out there because they end up in some sort of romantic relationship, which isn't my cup of tea. as a disclaimer, it's not because i don't like women. but tolkien even said it--most men and women can't remain in a friendship for long without some sort of tension developing. that's not what i'm interested in in a plot. male-male friendships interest me more, like Beleg and Turin, or Raistlin and Dalamar, and even brothers like Elladan and Elrohir and Raistlin and Caramon. There are so many different dynamics possible...

that's my two cents.

[Edited on 8/5/2007 by pitya]
Rulea
Council Member
Posts: 738
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: May 24, 2007 03:33
I admire rebellious women and rugged men. I also admire characters who stand up for what is it right and fight for what they belive in.
Image
Shadowfax_Pip
Nessa Realm Leader
Posts: 966
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: June 14, 2007 08:49
I don't like "rebellious" women, per se...I do like women that are willing to do what it takes when they have a certain situation thrust upon them. It doesn't have to be of epic proportions to be a good story. Take Jane Eyre (one of my FAVORITE stories EVER) for example.

My fav guys would have to be ones that have a dry wit. The book Aragorn (not so much the film), Erik from Phantom, Rheince from the Squire's Tales, and people like that. To be honest, I like people in literature and stuff better than real people. They're easier to get along with and they don't talk back :dizzy:
Frodo~the~Second
Council Member
Posts: 208
Send Message
Avatar
Post RE: Characters you admire...
on: July 09, 2011 06:35
Sam. Frodo. Aragorn. Arwen. Gandalf.



~Frodo (the Second)
Members Online
Print Friendly, PDF & Email