Description of the female character. Description of the appearance of the characters

Hello girls, how do you feel about tall and narrow-shouldered guys, were you able to meet such guys, I ask for a reason because nature itself awarded a narrow skeleton, although he himself is 193 cm tall and 102 kg is not a fat man, but his shoulders are narrow due to this figure does not look very courageous.

It is important for me that the guy has broad shoulders. This is the most important criterion for evaluating a male figure for me. Let him be short, let him be plump, but with a wide shoulder girdle. Here is my opinion..

Today I just looked at a tall guy (2 meters, probably tall), skinny, narrow hips, thin legs)))) Age, probably under 30. And so I thought that he does not look like a man, but rather like a boy overgrown. Of course, I wouldn't be attracted to that.

well, not only the shoulders are important))) the face is sympathetic if then why not, in general the main thing is not to have a repulsive appearance, and charisma)) you can be a jerk, but at the same time behave like a man. well, be a man

The proportions of the shoulders relative to the hips are important. 102 kg and not a fat man? Where does everything go if there are no shoulders? Musculature at least developed? Is there relief?

I do not perceive thin and / or very small stature. And about the shoulders .. The main thing is that there should not already be a pelvis.

what nonsense?

women are excited first of all by the brain of a man, if you are cheerful and funny, smart, then it doesn’t matter)

Well, yes, tongue-tied tongue will repel me more! Read books, author, since your shoulders are narrow!)

I've always dated skinny guys.

appearance is not important, I liked all sorts (but not in appearance, but in various mental qualities). but if we talk only about appearance, then I really like broad-shouldered ones.

My type! Where are you from?

Well, skinny guys are just not very good. I wouldn’t date someone like that, it’s not mine for sure. Like men under 150-200 kg

well, I'm with thin ones, rather .. and now I like it too thin and tall (but not very tall), with a narrow bone. but very smart. I don't know what it's all about

I can't when a guy's belly hangs down. immediately pushes away and "not worth it." for me, it’s better to let it be completely thin .. although the measure is better in everything, of course 🙂

Thin, in moderation and tall is very good. :-) I'm talking about those who look really skinny, it's not attractive at all)

Well, that is a given. but it seems to me that they can be pumped up quite easily in six months - I don’t see a problem here)

Broad shoulders, thin waist, if I may say so about a man)) - that's what attracts me. For this, I can even forgive him for the slight curvature of the legs)) and short stature.

You are tall, that's good. Swing, with muscles, the shoulders will look wider.

I work out in the gym, my muscles grow little by little, but I won’t make my backbone wider, as they say, what is given by nature

Outwardly, I absolutely don’t like the guy’s narrow shoulders, my height is also too tall for me, I don’t like to feel like a dwarf when I’m next to my man - in general, outwardly you are not my type. If you can conquer and charm a girl with something else, then why not - you can meet.

if the face is pleasant and there is no huge round belly, then he might like it.

in the hall I have been plowing up a sweat for 2 years

I'm quoting from another forum.

the width of the backbone is set genetically and cannot be changed.

it is also impossible to expand the shoulders separately without a general set of MM, the deltas are small muscles and only pumping them will not have the desired effect.

But you can increase the overall muscle mass of the entire torso and the volume of the chest.

these are heavy basic exercises for the general set of MM.

For the chest - the so-called. breathing squats 20 reps superset with breathing pullover

well, swimming, rowing, running, cycling - everything that makes you breathe actively and develops lung capacity.

Dear ladies, I am 75 years old, and I can say relatively recently discovered what a real rich sex life is in its entirety. When I was young, I didn't even think about participating in an orgy with several girls, when they sit on my face and whip my ass with a whip, tie me up, and so on.

This gives an incredible charge of vivacity and positive, life in all its bright fullness.

I want to ask the beautiful half of the younger generation, are you interested in such things and how open are you to new experiences and new impressions? Erotic plan..

Does the thought of a relationship with a rather elderly man cause you sly, quivering emotions?

I also like to punish young girls with a palm or a strap on the pope. I have a daughter-in-law, but so far I do not dare to make any encroachments in her direction or hint. I only allow myself frivolous jokes. In general, I'm afraid to offend my son and cause a scandal.

But I believe that we come into this world to consume vivid sensory impressions and life is most likely one. so I don't want to deny myself forgivable desires.

How do you dear young ladies look at this?

My photo http://i.ytimg.com/vi/XeH2_TG-W78/0.jpg

I was already at a fairly mature age when I began to practice spanking in my sexual life, although as a child, when I received a belt from my mother, I noticed an inexplicable craving and ambivalent feelings associated with the topic of spanking. This does not mean that I finished on my mother's knees or on the couch right during the punishment, it was quite painful and insulting. but there was such a strange passionate aftertaste. I masturbated touching the marks from the belt on my buttocks and fell asleep sweetly.

But despite this, I did not include spanking in my sex life during my youth. this is a big omission. But now there are more conditions for this, I am very glad that at least something has changed in the public attitude towards this topic

My thirty-year-old girlfriend and I often go to the countryside, to my cozy country house. And to be honest, the economic part of this whole thing interests me to a lesser extent than itself. "The cultural program". The garden is almost in a wild desolation, it even gives some special charm to our cozy shelter.

We grow cherries and a friend really appreciates the cherry rods on her ass, we spend time in an atmosphere of intimate solitude, have sex.

We love to play various role-playing scenarios, she bares her ass and puts a pillow under her stomach.

I whip her with a rod on her bulging ass, beautiful thin stripes remain on the skin and she screams sweetly and fervently. Then I gently lubricate her buttocks with cream. Sometimes after spanking we have anal sex.

Amazing sensual lady!

It is ugly when very broad shoulders and a very small head. Looks like a mutant. And so, of course, a sports figure attracts more.)

If a guy is self-confident, self-sufficient, with a great sense of humor, an ironic outlook on life, who knows how to delight you or make you laugh with one phrase, who has something God bless them, with their shoulders.

102 kg with a narrow bone, even at 193 cm tall, is something a bit too much. Or do you only have narrow shoulders?

Appearances are deceptive. It doesn't matter if it's beautiful or scary. as long as a person is good and loves

in general, I don’t pay attention to appearance, the main thing is that it’s not greedy and it doesn’t stink from a guy, don’t understand what

what kind of women are unpretentious))

Source:
Guy's appearance
Hello girls, how do you feel about tall and narrow-shouldered guys, were you able to meet such guys, I ask for a reason because nature itself awarded a narrow skeleton, although he himself is 193 cm tall and 102 kg is not a fat man, but his shoulders are narrow
http://www.woman.ru/relations/men/thread/4335012/

Description of the guy's appearance

Just forget about it.

It's not for every story that we really need to know what a character looks like. If you're writing a two-page miniature where the main character wins the lottery due to a lucky break, do we really need to know what color her blouse was?

It is the same in large works: why describe the appearance of a character who will last no more than a few pages? So that later, when shooting a film based on your book, the fifth archer in the seventh row would not be forgotten to make red curls?

If this is how you want to describe the appearance, but all the descriptions follow our "favorite" template, just make real questionnaires out of them for each character and place them at the end of the book, or before the beginning. This is how, for example, classical playwrights (remember Gogol) acted, bringing out a list of characters and their descriptions before the play.

The questionnaire may look like:

Well, or whatever you want to specify. You can even height / weight with numbers. Whatever, and you will already have your own chip that will distinguish your work from other works. Plus, the text won't be loaded with action-stopping descriptions.

Yes, it is desirable to form the hero as much as possible in the head of the reader in one or two pages. But it doesn't have to be done in one massive paragraph. It's like trying to shove a bowl of soup at a person in one fell swoop. So you can choke.

No, let's better feed it to the reader on a spoon. First sweep one detail, then a second, then a third, all without interrupting the action. So at least there will be hope that the reader will not miss all this and will be aware of the character's appearance. Efforts will not go to waste.

Now seriously.

But, if you have already been at this stage, try to take a step further - come up with a special manner for the hero. At first, generally give up all the attributes of the classic "questionnaire" description of appearance. Describe the characters with anything but their hair, eyes, height, weight, skin color and clothing. You can think of a hoarse voice for them - also a button accordion, but nothing. An eternal smile on your face or, conversely, an offended expression is even better.

"He was unpleasant to me because of his bad smell and corpulent appearance."

“This guy did nothing but wave his arms and reinforce his words with simple gestures.”

(Harry Potter fans will remember that Hagrid actively gesticulated when talking. But I found out about this for some reason, in the fifth book.)

Everything depends on you.

Write down the entire appearance of the character on a separate sheet. And now, take a pencil and come up with at least five synonyms for each word, phrase. These can be metaphors, and epithets, exaggerations - it does not have to be accurate. Just dig into your head everything that this description reminds you of.

"She had golden hair"

Replace step by step:

"She was blonde"

"Her hair looked like a cardinal's golden treasury"

"Her hair was like the sun"

An example from the description of the character of one of the role-playing:

“Eyewitnesses said that a red hedgehog settled on her head. The girl herself sincerely believed that it was hair.

Turn your descriptions into a feast of language, and your reader won't be able to forget them, even if they want to. Some people, by the way, read beautifully written texts with particular pleasure, just because of the style. They just enjoy the syllable. Why not please such readers?

One more trick. Instead of sticking the annoying verb “to be” in the past tense everywhere, it’s better to come up with some kind of action.

The same miserable hair can: be (bad), lie on the shoulders (already better), flow over the shoulders, flutter in the wind, climb into the faces of passengers in the subway, can stick out, hang down, get confused, intertwined and so on.

“Across the girl’s shoulders flowed golden hair like a cardinal’s treasures” - also not good, by the way. So find your style.

“She spun around, and the golden wave of her hair flashed right before my eyes.”

Hello dear readers!

Today I would like to discuss with you a little about how beautifully, competently, and literary to describe your character. Of course, the problem of how best to present the hero to the reader was faced by all beginners and already quite experienced authors. In this article, I will share my experience with you and try to give you some tips.

Basics

For every literary and near literary work, of course, the images of heroes are very important. And each author, of course, has his own style and preferences - his own characteristic handwriting. Literary critics can easily distinguish the description of a character given, for example, by Leo Tolstoy from the description of a character in Gogol's work (what is there: it is even possible to distinguish a description of a feast). Why am I saying this? Moreover, the authors gradually develop a unique style, but one way or another, all the greats started small, from the basics, from simple techniques for creating an image, which they then supplemented with their individual features.

Here is my first and most important piece of advice. Read classic literature. Pay attention to how the authors present the hero, what words they use for this. Believe me, the classics of literature are the largest and most voluminous storehouse of knowledge, if only you can read it thoughtfully. I created my own style (this applies not only to the description of the character), noticing for myself some tricks of great writers. You can, of course, rummage around the Internet for tips on writing, but your own experience, your own developments are more important. No one else will tell you which is better - and if they do, then you are unlikely to be able to use these techniques to the fullest, taking the maximum benefit from them, but, of course, you can focus on them, keeping them in mind.

If by this introduction I have not already turned you away from reading my article, let's get to the point.

To begin with, let's define what the whole image of the character is made of. The literary image of the hero includes in the first place:

Portrait (description of appearance)

Inner speech (thoughts)

deeds

The attitude of other characters to this hero and vice versa

These are the main components of any image in the work. Now we are interested in the first thing - a portrait, and we will continue to talk about it.

But first it must be noted that there is a so-called image system. The characters in the book (in fanfiction) fulfill their roles and have their purpose. And depending on what role the hero plays, the authors create descriptions in a special way. In the system of images, characters are distinguished (from largest to smallest):

The main ones - they have full-fledged independent characteristics, take part in all (or almost all) main events of the plot.

Secondary ones - like the main ones, have full-fledged independent characteristics, actively participate in the development of the plot, but not in all of its events.

Episodic - appear in several (or one) episodes, they are practically not endowed with independent characteristics.

Off-stage - do not appear in any of the episodes, but they are mentioned by other heroes of the work.

So, I repeat that the gradation of "importance" goes from top to bottom - that is, the images of the main characters should be given the most attention, the images of secondary ones - a little less, the images of episodic ones should be outlined with a few strokes. I hope that these categories do not need additional comments. However, I will still explain separately what off-stage characters are. Usually they serve to form some plot events and / or to express the author's attitude to certain issues. I will explain on an abstract, invented by me, example.

Imagine the situation: the peasants of the distant village of Zapustynovka are oppressed in every possible way by the landowner Obaldeev. And the poor peasants, out of desperation, decide to turn to the great emperor for help.
“Come on, guys, let’s write a complaint to our father-emperor,” the headman says at a community meeting. - He is wise, fair, he will judge us with the villainous landowner and punish him with justice.
- Yes, the father-emperor will not leave his poor subjects in trouble! - the community members echo him.
And so the peasants of Zapustynovka filed a petition to the emperor, and two months later the gendarmes took away the landowner Obaldeev and threw him, a scoundrel, into a dark dungeon.

Thus, the author "off-screen" brings to the stage a noble and just emperor (an off-stage character), who saves the poor and humiliated in a hopeless situation. With this, the author wishes, perhaps, to gently smear himself on the reigning emperor; so that the emperor, when he saw the work of this writer, would certainly say: “Oh, what a fine fellow he is, how good he wrote me,” and he would grant his favor to the writer. Or maybe the author just needed to put the landowner Obaldeev in a dungeon, so that in this dungeon Obaldeev met a Satanist, summoned the devil, and there the pandemonium would go on.

In connection with the concept
image systems, I want to immediately point out a typical mistake made by fiwriters. Often (even too much) the author focuses exclusively on the main - sometimes the main - characters, trying to reveal it as best as possible, and at the same time completely forgets about the secondary ones, thus making the latter episodic characters. And it turns out that, although de jure there are many heroes in fan fiction, de facto the reader clearly sees only a few or even one at all. If you don’t mind, I’ll give an allegory: just imagine for a moment what would happen if exactly one bright, very bright star burned in the sky at night, and there were no others at all or they would be overshadowed by the light of that very one? I guess it would be boring. It is beautiful when there are many stars in the sky and each of them shines in its own way. Likewise in the work: all star characters should exude a certain light so that the reader does not perceive them as soulless cardboard boxes. Otherwise, fanfiction simply will not captivate readers, and its main characters will face the stigma of Mary Sue. Therefore, dear authors, make sure that all the characters received your attention to the extent that it is necessary for their role - the main, secondary or episodic.

So, having determined the main components of the image and determining what role the characters can play in the work, we will proceed directly to the issue of creating this very image.

Appearance.

Static Description- description presented as a separate episode; that is, giving a portrait in statics, the author describes his hero in one or two paragraphs, and in the process of narration adds only some small, insignificant features.

Dynamic Description- a description that is mainly formed in the process of narration from individual details.

These are two main principles, the first of which you can find in the literature of the 18th and 19th centuries, and the last is especially characteristic of works where the narration is in the first person. Before you begin the description, determine for yourself what - statics or dynamics - you take.

In addition, there is another fundamental technique for recreating appearance - the technique "in public". In this case, the author describes how other characters in the work react to the hero.

For example:

“Meanwhile, the king soon turned all his attention to Princess Catherine, whose lovely face struck him even when, near Rouen, Cardinal Ursen first presented her portrait to him.<...>King Henry asked for a day's time to read the objections of the French and make his own comments. Then he got up, offered his hand to the Queen and Princess Catherine and led them to the very tent, showing respect and tender courtesy, eloquently speaking of the impression that the daughter of the French kings made on him.

A. Dumas, Isabella of Bavaria.

This description does not contain specific details of the portrait, but the reader already imagines Catherine as a hand-written beauty. This feeling is formed due to the fact that the reader sees how Heinrich treated Catherine: he shows respect and the most tender courtesy. Add to this one paragraph given by Dumas a little earlier, and you get a full description, sufficient for an episodic character:

“The girl who lay at the queen’s feet, with her head on her knees, and whose little hands Isabella held in her hand, the child’s dark, pearl-adorned large curls protruded from under a gold-woven cap, her velvety, like Italians, eyes barely to a noticeable smile they cast such meek glances that they seemed incompatible with their blackness - this girl was a young princess.

In general, an episodic character may not have any description at all. Sometimes it is enough to emphasize some eye-catching detail of appearance. For example:

“When Mark approached the chambers of his beloved, he heard strange voices. In the corridor not far from the doors that led to the cherished room, two men were standing. One of them had a hump on his back, which seemed to crush the owner to the ground with its weight; the other, on the contrary, was stately, tall, and handsome in every way. The hunchback constantly had to lift his head to see the interlocutor, and this obviously annoyed him.
- And what, pray tell, are you going to do? asked the hunchback.
“I don’t know, I haven’t decided yet,” his tall interlocutor answered cheekily.
Mark shuddered: a feeling of disgust seized him at the sight of these gentlemen. He decided to get out of here as soon as possible and, clinging to the wall, slipped unnoticed to Leia's chambers.

The hunchback and the tall man are episodic characters. But a cursory indication of their distinctive features made it possible to make a brief description a little more interesting. In addition, speaking of the "feeling of disgust" that gripped Mark, we provide opportunities not only for the mental, but also for the emotional perception of the characters.

Now about when to use one or another type of description. It is better to use a static description of the character's appearance if you are writing maxi or at least midi fanfiction, that is, it can be very roughly compared to a novel. Simply put, if there are a lot of characters in fanfiction, it is better to immediately describe their appearance and briefly outline their character traits, then adding only minor elements. Otherwise, if you weave in the details of appearance gradually, it will be difficult for the reader to perceive the characters as a whole. The images will simply blur in the imaginations of readers, which, of course, will interfere with the perception of the work as a whole.

Also, I would advise you to refrain from voluminous static description in first-person fanfiction (this does not mean that it cannot be used, just do not overdo it). And please, forget, forget about this form of description:

"Hello. My name is Masha. I have blue eyes and green hair. Other girls envy me because I have long and beautiful legs. The chest, however, failed - only the fifth size, and the boys of my city like girls with breasts not less than the tenth size. In general, I have a lot of shortcomings. I'm too rude and cynical. Also, I have thick fingers. This is the most terrible thing. Although many do not like the way I dress: ripped jeans and long wide T-shirts, and from shoes I prefer shoes with fifty-centimeter heels.

In the first-person narratives of any well-deserved writers, you will never, ever see the description of the narrator (that very first person, the main character) that he himself gives. As the simplest example - "The Captain's Daughter", Pushkin: nothing is known about the appearance of Pyotr Grinev, the main character. And the reason for this is simple: when the author chooses to narrate in the first person, he pursues the goal of revealing some emotional experiences that almost never have anything to do with appearance. The first person allows the author to study the thoughts and feelings of the characters more deeply, and that is why some writers leaned towards him, and, I repeat, in this case, appearance fades into the background. And when in a fanfic the narrator begins to describe himself and even from the very beginning, it looks terribly ridiculous. Of course, in a first-person narrative, a static description of another character from the perspective of the narrator is allowed, for example:

“Colonel Mirza was a terrible man; his face, slashed by God knows whose sabers, seemed to be streaked with the mysterious writings of the Koran. He had dark skin and broad cheekbones, and his slanting, gloomily burning eyes had an amazing property: they always looked at you from the portrait, no matter where you stood: right in front of him or to the side. But my comrade Selim was nothing like his ancestors. His mother, whom the old man Davidovich married in the Crimea, was not a Tatar, but a native of the Caucasus. I did not know her, but they said that she was the beauty of beauties and that Selim looked like her like two drops of water.

G. Senkevich, "Ganya"

But I repeat: forget about the static description of the narrator himself! If you really want to give a description of his appearance, then it is better to use a dynamic description, that is, gradually and unobtrusively show some individual features of his appearance. How to do it? Well, for example:

“I went up to Alexei Vasilyevich and called him.
"Hi," I said as he turned around.
- Oh, Natasha, it's you! - the man exclaimed joyfully, holding out his hand for me to shake. - I'm glad to see you.
I smiled with difficulty. My fragile hand sank into his callused hand. It turned out that we did not shake hands with each other, but he squeezed mine, so much so that the knuckles crunched. He did not notice this and, releasing my hand, immediately started a conversation on his favorite topic. And I sadly looked at my thin, so neat fingers - they turned disgustingly red, as if I had dipped them in boiling water. How awkward Alexei Vasilyevich is after all!

“His words were terribly hurtful, but I did not show my feelings. Only one single tear rolled down his cheek and, falling, drowned in black hair braided in a braid.

I can’t suggest more - it’s just a matter of your imagination and fantasy. You can insert small descriptions of the details of the narrator's appearance where it seems appropriate to you.

I would like to draw your attention to one thing in particular. A favorite among many authors when describing in the first person is the so-called technique "mirrors-photos": the description of the hero is given when he looks at some mirror surface or at a photograph. Yes, this is really convenient: you can “embed” a static description of the narrator into a first-person narration. But, believe me, in my time as a moderator, I saw so many "works" where this "brilliant" technique was used on the very first pages, that it already began to ripple in my eyes. The "mirror" description, alas, is no longer original - it has become a cliché. Therefore, I would advise you to look for other ways of depicting appearance. This, of course, does not mean that you should not use the "mirror" description at all - everything is up to you.

Now let's talk more specifically about the general methods of describing appearance.

Let's start with long descriptions. The style of Walter Scott is very indicative in this respect. Take a look:

“The cavalcade consisted of ten people; the two who rode in front seemed to be important persons, and the rest were their servants. The class and rank of one of these persons was not difficult to establish: it was, undoubtedly, a clergyman of high rank. He was wearing the clothes of a Franciscan monk, sewn from fine matter, which was contrary to the charter of this order; a hooded cloak of the finest Flemish cloth, flowing in beautiful wide folds, enveloped his stately, if somewhat plump, figure.
His face spoke as little of humility as his clothes of contempt for worldly luxury. His features would have been pleasing if his eyes had not gleamed from under their overhanging eyelids with that crafty epicurean light that reveals a cautious voluptuary. However, his profession and position taught him to control himself so that, if desired, he could give solemnity to his face, although by nature it expressed complacency and condescension. Contrary to the monastic charter, as well as the edicts of popes and church councils, his clothes were luxurious: the sleeves of the cloak of this church dignitary were lined and trimmed with expensive fur, and the mantle was fastened with a gold buckle, and all the clothes of the order were as refined and elegant as in ours. the days of the dresses of the beauties of the Quaker sect: they retain the styles and colors they are supposed to, but by the choice of materials and their combination they know how to give their dress the coquettishness characteristic of secular vanity.
The venerable prelate rode on a well-fed, ambling mule, whose harness was richly decorated, and the bridle, in the fashion of the time, hung with silver bells. There was no monastic clumsiness in the seat of the prelate; on the contrary, it was distinguished by the grace and confidence of a good rider. It seemed that no matter how pleasant the calm pace of the mule was, no matter how luxurious its decoration, the dapper monk still used such a modest vehicle only for moving along the high road.

“The companion of the spiritual person was a tall man, over forty years old, thin, strong and muscular. His athletic figure, due to constant exercise, seemed to consist of nothing but bones, muscles and tendons; it was clear that he had endured many severe trials and was ready to endure just as many more. He wore a red fur-trimmed cap of the kind that the French call "mortier" because its shape resembles a mortar turned upside down. On his face was clearly expressed the desire to arouse in everyone he met a feeling of timid reverence and fear. His very expressive, nervous face with large and sharp features, tanned under the rays of the tropical sun to negro blackness, in calm moments seemed to doze off after an explosion of violent passions, but the puffed-out veins on his forehead and the twitching of his upper lip showed that every minute the storm could again break out. In the look of his bold, dark, penetrating eyes, one could read a whole story about the dangers tested and overcome. He looked as if he wanted to provoke resistance to his desires - only in order to sweep the enemy out of the way, showing his will and courage. A deep scar above his eyebrows gave even more severity to his face and an ominous expression in one eye, which was slightly grazed by the same blow and squinted a little.
This rider, like his companion, was dressed in a long monastic cloak, but the red color of this cloak showed that the rider did not belong to any of the four main monastic orders. A white cloth cross of a special shape was sewn on the right shoulder. Under the cloak, incompatible with the monastic dignity, chain mail with sleeves and gloves made of small metal rings was visible; it was extremely skillfully made, and fitted as snugly and resiliently to the body as our jerseys, knitted from soft wool. As far as the folds of the cloak were allowed to be seen, his hips were protected by the same chain mail; the knees were covered with thin steel plates, and the calves were covered with metal mail stockings. A large double-edged dagger was tucked behind his belt - the only weapon he had with him.

“Cedric was surprised and dissatisfied that his pupil appeared in public on such an occasion, nevertheless he hurried to meet her and, taking her by the hand, with respectful solemnity led her to the chair intended for the mistress of the house on a dais, on the right hand of her seat. . Everyone stood up when she appeared. Returning this courtesy with a silent bow, she walked gracefully to her place at the table.<...>Rowena was beautifully built and tall, but not so tall, however, that it was conspicuous. The color of her skin was dazzling white, and the noble outlines of her head and face were such that they excluded the thought of colorlessness, which often accompanies the beauty of too white blondes. Clear blue eyes, covered with long eyelashes, looked out from under thin chestnut eyebrows that gave expressiveness to her forehead. It seemed that these eyes were capable of both inflaming and appeasing, both commanding and pleading. The meek expression suited her face the most. However, the habit of universal worship and power over others gave this Saxon girl a special majesty, complementing what nature itself gave her. Thick hair of a light blond shade, curled in graceful curls, was decorated with precious stones and fell freely over the shoulders, which at that time was a sign of noble birth. Around her neck was a golden chain with a small golden ark hanging from it. Bracelets glittered on her bare hands. Over her sea-water silk dress was thrown another, long and spacious, falling to the ground, with very wide sleeves that reached only to the elbows. This crimson dress, woven from the finest wool, was attached to a light silk veil with a gold pattern. This veil, if desired, could be thrown over the face and chest, in the Spanish way, or thrown over the shoulders.
When Rowena noticed the eyes of the templar fixed on her with lights lit in them like sparks on coals, she lowered the veil over her face with dignity as a sign that such a gaze was unpleasant to her. Cedric saw her movement and guessed its cause.

Ivanhoe

Here's a completely complete static description - it's really realistic and very unbiased. Notice what words and phrases Walter Scott uses, how he intertwines appearance with character. Each feature of his face testifies to a character trait: “In the look of his bold, dark, penetrating eyes, one could read a whole story about the dangers experienced and overcome ... A deep scar above the eyebrows gave even more severity to his face and an ominous expression to one eye, which was slightly hurt by the same blow and mowed down a little. And this is already enough for the reader to be wary, to think that the person presented to him is harsh, cruel, fearless. “The features of his face would be pleasant if his eyes did not shine from under the impending eyelids with that crafty epicurean light that reveals a cautious voluptuary,” - after such a description, the reader is already distrustful of the hero (due to the union “if”), maybe be even a slight dislike. “Her skin color was distinguished by dazzling whiteness, and the noble outlines of her head and face were such that they excluded the idea of ​​colorlessness, which often accompanies the beauty of too white-skinned blondes,” and from this description we can conclude that Rowena is an outstanding, bright personality with a memorable appearance .

What conclusion can we draw? When describing the appearance, you can supplement it with a direct explanation of what the character of the hero is. If you point out character traits when describing appearance, the hero will be more understandable to an inexperienced reader, his image will be brighter and more contrasting. In addition, you can describe how the character was treated by others, or how it made others feel when they first saw it.

Now let's look at the description of the characters in the same "Ivanhoe", in which several other techniques were used.

“Two people brought this picture to life; they belonged, judging by their dress and appearance, to the number of commoners who inhabited in those distant times the forest region of West Yorkshire. The eldest of them was a gloomy and ferocious-looking man. His clothes consisted of one leather jacket, sewn from the tanned skin of some animal, fur side up; from time to time, the fur was so worn out that it was impossible to determine from the few remaining scraps which animal it belonged to. This primitive robe covered its owner from the neck to the knees and replaced all parts of ordinary clothing for him. The collar was so wide that the jacket was put on over the head, like our shirts or old chain mail. To make the jacket fit snugly to the body, it was pulled over by a wide leather belt with a copper clasp. A bag was hung from the belt on one side, and a ram's horn with a pipe on the other. A long wide knife with a horn handle protruded from his belt; such knives were made right there, in the neighborhood, and were already known then under the name of Sheffield. On his feet this man had sandal-like shoes with bearskin straps, and thinner and narrower straps wrapped around the calves, leaving the knees bare, as is customary among the Scots. His head was not protected by anything, except for thick matted hair, faded from the sun and taking on a dark red, rusty hue and sharply different from the light blond, rather even amber color, large beard. We can only note one very curious feature in his appearance, but it is so remarkable that it cannot be ignored: it was a copper ring like a dog collar, tightly soldered around his neck. It was wide enough so as not to interfere with breathing, but at the same time so narrow that it was impossible to remove it only by sawing it in half.<...>Near the swineherd (for such was Gurth's occupation) on one of the fallen stones of the druids sat a man who looked ten years younger than the first. His attire resembled the clothes of a swineherd, but was distinguished by some quirkiness and was sewn from the best material. His jacket was dyed bright purple, and it was painted with some colorful and ugly patterns. Over the jacket was thrown over an exorbitantly wide and very short cloak of crimson cloth, fairly soiled, trimmed with a bright yellow border. It could be freely thrown from one shoulder to another or completely wrapped in it, and then it fell in bizarre folds, draping his figure. On the hands of this man were silver bracelets, and around his neck was a silver collar with the inscription: "Wamba, son of the Mindless, slave of Cedric of Rotherwood." He wore the same shoes as his comrade, but the plaited belt was replaced by something like gaiters, of which one was red and the other yellow. Attached to his cap were bells no larger than those that are tied to hunting falcons; each time he turned his head, they rang, and since he did not remain still for almost a single minute, they rang almost continuously. The hard leather band of this cap was carved along the upper edge with teeth and a through pattern, which gave it a resemblance to a peer's crown; on the inside, a long bag was sewn to the band, the tip of which hung over one shoulder, like an old-fashioned nightcap, a triangular sieve, or the headdress of a modern hussar. From the hat with bells, and its very shape, as well as from the silly and at the same time cunning expression of Wamba's face, one could guess that he was one of those domestic clowns or jesters that rich people kept for fun in their homes, so that both to pass the time, of necessity spent within four walls.
Like his comrade, he carried a bag on his belt, but he did not have a horn or a knife, since it was probably assumed that he belonged to that category of human beings to whom it is dangerous to put a piercing or cutting weapon into their hands. Instead of all this, he had a wooden sword, like the one with which the harlequin on the modern stage performs his tricks.
The facial expressions and behavior of these people were no less different than their clothing. The face of a slave or serf was gloomy and sad; judging by his despondent appearance, one might have thought that his gloom made him indifferent to everything, but the fire that sometimes lit up in his eyes spoke of the consciousness of his oppression hidden in him and of the desire for resistance. The appearance of Wamba, on the contrary, denounced the diffuse curiosity inherent in people of this kind, extreme restlessness and mobility, as well as complete satisfaction with their position and their appearance.

If you read carefully, you probably noticed that the authors pay much more attention to the description of clothes. Of course, with the help of it, he conveys the atmosphere of the era he depicts, but the clothes also allow the reader to form an opinion about the characters. Gurt, a swineherd, dressed in a frayed leather jacket, with copper buckles on his belt, with straps on sandals made of bearskin, is represented by clothing as a stern dork, and Wamba, in a multi-colored outfit and in a hat with bells, is frivolous and stupid.

The second technique, which allows you to more clearly describe the appearance, is it is the opposition of images to each other. I think it is not necessary to explain especially here, the opposition of the swineherd and the jester is clearly visible in the passage. The author himself emphasizes this: "The facial expression and behavior of these people was no less different than their clothes." (You can find a similar example of opposition below - read the passage about Count Neversky)

“That was the daughter of Henry II, that was the pearl of the French crown, that was Marguerite of Valois, whom Charles IX, who had special tenderness for her, usually called “sister Margot”.
No one received such an enthusiastic reception as deservedly as the Queen of Navarre. Margarita was barely twenty years old, and already all the poets sang her praise; some compared her with Aurora, others with Kythera. She was unrivaled in beauty even here, in a court where Catherine de Medici tried to select the most beautiful women she could find for the role of her sirens. She had black hair, an amazing complexion, a sensual expression of eyes with long eyelashes, a finely defined scarlet mouth, a slender neck, a luxurious flexible waist and small, childish legs in satin shoes. The French were proud that this amazing flower grew on their native soil, and foreigners, having visited France, returned to their homeland blinded by the beauty of Marguerite, if they managed to see her, and amazed by her education, if they managed to talk to her. And in fact, Margarita was not only the most beautiful, but also the most educated woman of her time.

A. Dumas, "Queen Margot"

“However, the first impression she made on the crowd, perhaps, did not fully confirm the rumor about her exceptional beauty, which preceded the appearance of Isabella in the capital. For this beauty was unaccustomed: it was all about the sharp contrast that was her blond, shimmering with gold hair, and pitch-black eyebrows and eyelashes - signs of two opposite races, northern and southern, which, united in this woman, endowed her heart with the ardor of a young Italian woman, and the forehead was noted with the proud arrogance of a German princess.
As for everything else in her appearance, the sculptor could not have wished for more proportionate proportions for the model of the bathing Diana. The oval of her face was distinguished by that perfection, which two centuries later began to be called the name of the great Raphael. The narrow dress with tight sleeves worn in those days emphasized the grace of her figure and the impeccable beauty of her hands; one of them, which she, perhaps more out of coquetry than absent-mindedness, hung over the door of the stretcher, stood out against the background of the upholstery, like an alabaster bas-relief on gold. Otherwise, the figure of the queen was hidden; but at one glance at this graceful, airy creature, it was not difficult to guess that the legs of a fabulous fairy should carry it along the earth. The strange feeling that seized almost everyone at her appearance disappeared very soon, and then the ardent and tender look of her eyes acquired that bewitching power that Milton and other poets who created after him attribute to the unique, fatal beauty of their fallen angels.

“In a square room that forms the first floor of the tower in which it is located, on a wide bed in the Gothic style with carved columns, a beautiful woman, although not of her first youth, sleeps; a faint light falls on her, barely breaking through the heavy curtains woven with gold flowers and hiding from the eyes narrow windows made of multi-colored glass. However, the twilight reigning in the room seems more like a tribute to coquetry than just an accident.
Indeed, the twilight still softens the roundness of the forms, gives a matte sheen to the smooth skin of the hand that has fallen from the bed, emphasizes the grace of the head leaning on the bare shoulder, and imparts charm to the flowing hair scattered over the pillow and falling along the dangling arm not only to the fingertips, but right down to the floor.
Let us add a name to our description, and the reader will easily recognize Queen Isabella in the painted portrait, on whose face the years of pleasure left a less deep mark than the years of sorrow on the forehead of her husband.
After a moment, the beauty's lips parted and smacked, as if in a kiss; her big black eyes opened...

A. Dumas, "Isabella of Bavaria"

Dumas is a very cunning and skillful writer. Perhaps, if you read these passages more closely, you will guess, without my prompting, one of the favorite tricks of the French novelist, which is really very good. But first notice the differences in the descriptions of Dumas and Scott. In the second they are dry, calm, unbiased, in Dumas they are so saturated with the emotions of the author, which are transmitted to readers. In essence, Dumas does not describe in detail the features of the appearance of the heroines, as Walter Scott does - he simply admires their beauty without any specifics. He speaks of Isabella's "delicacy of the head" and the reader involuntarily imagines his own ideal of grace. “Otherwise, the figure of the queen was hidden; but at one glance at this graceful, airy creature, it was not difficult to guess ... ”Does the author describe her figure? No, he directly says that she was hidden, but at the same time he uses the epithets “graceful” and “airy” applicable to the queen, and the reader already involuntarily agrees: Isabella is really beautiful. The same is in the case of Queen Margot: "amazing complexion, sensual expression of eyes with long eyelashes, luxurious flexible figure." What is this amazing complexion? Is it swarthy or white as alabaster? What is a luxury camp? Is it skinny or curvy? The reader imagines all this himself - the author only hints to him where to look and how to evaluate this or that detail of appearance.

Here's the next trick for you: it is possible, even without a detailed description of individual features, to make one or another impression on the readers about the character. In this case, the main thing is to choose the right epithets. They should be saturated with emotions and feelings, such as: amazing, beautiful or, on the contrary, scary, disgusting, repulsive, and so on.

In addition, in these passages of the text there are several more interesting tricks characteristic of Dumas and sometimes used by other writers. Dumas compares his characters with the heroes of poems, paintings by various artists, with the creations of sculptors, mythical or biblical characters. Sometimes even whole scenes, as in the already mentioned "Isabella of Bavaria": Dumas describes the scene, the location of the characters and adds: “Against her, leaning on the mast and touching the hilt of the sword with one hand, and holding a velvet hat on marten fur in the other, stood a man and looked at this picture in the style of Albani (artist - approx. De Rua).” And in The Three Musketeers, for example, and in the next two books, The Musketeers Twenty Years Later and Vicomte de Bragelonne, Dumas constantly compares Porthos with Ajax, famous for his strength. This unusual form of comparison can refresh your description as well. Take note of this.

By the way, assigning a particular characteristic to a character, repeating a certain phrase throughout the story, is also a very interesting technique that allows you to "fix" a character with a character. In Tolstoy, for example, in War and Peace, these are Helen's bare shoulders and Princess Mary's radiant eyes. Dumas, as I said above, compares Porthos with Ajax.

Such a "fixation" is used, as a rule, for static characters - those whose images do not change throughout the story. For example, Tolstoy's image of Helen really did not change at all: what she was at the beginning, the same reader saw her at the end. But the image of Natasha Rostova and Pierre Bezukhov - dynamic images - changed, and therefore the author did not use certain repetitive phrases in relation to them.

But back to the passages above. Note another feature and method of description: Dumas, to emphasize the personality traits, refers to the character traits and appearance of the nationality to which the hero belongs.“... Signs of two opposite races, northern and southern, which, united in this woman, endowed her heart with the ardor of a young Italian, and marked her forehead with the proud arrogance of a German princess.” Such comparisons can also be used in the description.

In general, it is worth noting that comparison (of whatever form) is a great way to make the description more interesting. Don't be afraid to use comparisons, just make sure they don't go overboard. In my other article, I already gave an example of an unsuccessful comparison and I will give it again, because it is too obvious. One fanfiction writer once wrote:

“The tongue thrust aggressively into my mouth and with difficulty overcame my teeth (I did not want to answer him), as if they were the gates to the castle, and the tongue was a battering ram, which quickly broke the resistance and took the castle by storm.”

At first glance, the comparison may seem acceptable ... But. The ram cannot take the castle by storm. Can not. The army can. The army can. Human can. But the ram cannot. A battering ram can break resistance - yes, - ram the gates, but not take the castle by storm.

Watch what you write, dear authors, so that such absurdities are not born.

Let's look further. In creating the description, the pose of the hero can be used.“... The elegance of the head, leaning on a bare shoulder, gives charm to loose hair, scattered over the pillow and falling along the dangling arm, not only to the fingertips,” and the reader is imbued with an atmosphere of fatigue and bliss, the queen seems to him a wonderful nymph. And the way Isabella dangles her pen over the carriage door, perhaps more out of coquetry than distraction? This is also a very "speaking" pose.

Also the description of the situation in which the hero is located looks very harmonious, smoothly flowing into the description of the hero himself. Look again at the example of Isabella in the bedroom: how the author intertwines the descriptions of the room and the character himself.

There is one more "point" of descriptions that cannot be ignored - habits. Each person has his own unique habits, which are part of his character and which can tell a lot about the personality. Well, remember yourself, what habits do you and your friends have? Correlate this with the character, draw conclusions and use these conclusions in your work. For example, I have a good friend - a very nervous, impatient person, a sanguine person. And this impatience is expressed in such a habit - he constantly licks his lips during a conversation, because he can't wait to put in his five cents. And another acquaintance is very worried about her appearance, and therefore every five minutes she looks in the mirror (and she does it completely unconsciously).

By the way, here's another piece of advice that stems from the previous one: observe people, note their appearance and immediately try to characterize a person by them. This can be useful: our life is full of interesting “instances”, both in appearance and character, which can later be transferred to work. Again, let's look at a particular case. Once in a tram I saw an elderly man of amazing appearance, probably sixty-five years old; if instead of a worn finger, put on a mantle, give him a scepter and an orb - the spitting image of a medieval king from fairy tales. I watched him all the way, watched how he sits, how he looks, and subsequently he served as a prototype for the appearance of one of my heroes.

However, we digress a little, let's return to the description of habits. Here's how you can do it for example:

“This musketeer was the exact opposite of the one who addressed him, calling him Aramis. He was a young man of about twenty-two or twenty-three, with a simple-minded and somewhat sugary expression, with black eyes and flushed cheeks, covered like a peach in autumn with a velvety down. A thin mustache set off the upper lip in an impeccably regular line. He seemed to avoid lowering his arms for fear that the veins on them might swell. From time to time he pinched his earlobes to keep their delicate color and transparency. He spoke little and slowly, often bowed, laughed silently, exposing his beautiful teeth, which, like his entire appearance, he apparently carefully looked after.

A. Dumas, The Three Musketeers

Look: the image of Aramis is made up of habits. First, he avoids lowering his hands for fear that the veins on them will swell. Secondly, he pinches the earlobes. Third, he doesn't talk much. Fourth, he bows a lot. Fifth, laugh silently. Sixthly, he carefully looks after his appearance, which is also essentially a habit that, as it were, draws a line under what Dumas said earlier, generalizes “smaller” habits. Also take note.

And finally, in order to do away relatively with foreign authors, namely Dumas, here are the last two descriptions - long and short - which I personally like very much, because you can find many successful forms of character portrayal in them (taken from Isabella of Bavaria and "Three Musketeers" respectively):

“The Count of Nevers, who married Marguerite de Hainaut on April 12, 1385, was at that time no more than twenty to twenty-two years old; short in stature, but strong in build, he was very handsome: although small, light gray, like a wolf, his eyes looked hard and stern, and his long straight hair was of that blue-black color, which can only be imagined raven's wing; his shaven face, full and fresh, breathed strength and health. By the way he casually held the reins of his horse, he felt a skilled horseman: despite his youth and the fact that he had not yet been knighted, the Count of Nevers had already gotten used to battle armor, for he did not miss the opportunity to temper himself and teach to hardship and hardship. Severe to others and to himself, insensitive to thirst and hunger, cold and heat, he belonged to those hard stone natures for whom the ordinary needs of life mean absolutely nothing. Proud and arrogant with nobles, and always friendly with people of simple rank, he invariably inspired hatred of his equals and was loved by those who were below him; subject to the most violent passions, but able to hide them in his chest, and cover his chest with armor, this iron man was impenetrable to human glances, and a volcano bubbled in his soul, seemingly extinct, but eating him from the inside; when he considered that the right moment had come, he rushed irresistibly towards the goal, and woe to him who was overtaken by the roaring lava of his rage. On this day - only in order, of course, not to look like Louis of Touraine - the outfit of the Count of Nevers was emphatically simple: it consisted of a purple velvet jacket, shorter than prescribed by fashion, without decorations and embroidery, with long, slit sleeves, tied at the waist with a steel mesh belt with a shining sword on it; on the chest between the lapels one could see a blue shirt with a gold necklace instead of a collar; on his head he had a black turban, the folds of which were fastened by a pin adorned with a single diamond, but it was the same diamond that, under the name "Sancy", later became one of the greatest jewels of the French crown.

“A young man ... Let's try to sketch his portrait: imagine Don Quixote at eighteen, Don Quixote without armor, without armor and leggings, in a woolen jacket, the blue color of which has acquired a shade between red and sky blue. Elongated swarthy face; prominent cheekbones - a sign of cunning; the jaw muscles are overdeveloped, an integral feature by which one can immediately identify the Gascon, even if he does not have a beret - and the young man was in a beret, decorated with a semblance of a feather; look open and smart; the nose is hooked, but finely defined; growth is too high for a young man and insufficient for a mature man.

I suppose you see the same tricks that I indicated earlier: highlighting the characteristics of nationality, comparing with a book character, correlating appearance and character ... And if earlier you, quite possibly, had a question why I take only one writer (isn't it better give versatile examples), now I can answer it. I wanted to show you clearly that the authors have their own style and repetitive techniques with which they create the image of their character, and Dumas is an author whom I know very well.

But now let's look at our native classics. What can be learned from it?

For the most part, such giants, if you will, of the Russian classics as Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Turgenev, Goncharov, first briefly give the main characterization, and then supplement it with separate strokes. Here is how it looks like in Dostoevsky (“Crime and Punishment”) and how you can also describe the character:

“Porfiry Petrovich was at home, in a dressing gown, in very clean linen and in worn-out shoes<... >He was a man of about thirty-five, below average height, plump and even with a belly, clean-shaven, without a mustache and without sideburns, with tightly cut hair on a large round head, somehow especially convexly rounded at the back of the head.
His plump, round and slightly snub-nosed face was the color of a sick man, dark yellow, but rather cheerful and even mocking. It would even be good-natured, if it were not for the expression of the eyes, with a kind of liquid, watery sheen, covered with almost white, blinking eyelashes, as if winking at someone.
The look of these eyes somehow strangely did not harmonize with the whole figure, which even had something of a woman in itself, and gave it something much more serious than at first glance one could expect from it ... "

“... the wrinkles on his forehead smoothed out, his eyes narrowed, his facial features stretched, and he suddenly burst into nervous, prolonged laughter, agitated and swaying all over ...”

"... moving your fat legs faster..."

“... my figure is already so arranged by God himself that only comical thoughts excite others; buffon-s..."

“I, you know, a single person ...”

“This, brother, is a nice guy, you will see!”

“Small smart, smart, very smart, just some special way of thinking ...”

"He seems to be a smart man..."

"Porfiry is not at all as stupid as you think..."

Here we can see another way to describe the character - through the speech of himself or strangers. Authors can add such phrases to the speech or thoughts of the characters (by the way, this method is good for works with first-person narration):

"I swear her sky blue eyes got me excited!"

“He has such a terrible face. Fi. Girlfriend, how do you communicate with him at all?

And now let's turn to Turgenev's work "Fathers and Sons" and see another type of description. Here is how the author divided a very modest description of Bazarov into parts:

"...to a tall man, in a long hoodie with tassels..."

"He slowly ran his long fingers over his sideburns..."

“Isn’t it true what a glorious face he has?”

“Long and thin, with a broad forehead, flat top, pointed nose, large greenish eyes and drooping sandy sideburns, it was enlivened by a calm smile and expressed self-confidence and intelligence.”

And here are excerpts from Tolstoy ("War and Peace") about Princess Mary, which are similar to Dostoevsky's style:

“... an ugly, weak body and a thin face. Eyes, always sad, now looked at themselves in the mirror with particular hopelessness.<...>the eyes of the princess, large, deep and radiant (as if rays of warm light sometimes came out of them in sheaves), were so good that very often, despite the ugliness of the whole face, these eyes became more attractive than beauty ... "

"... She was so bad that none of them could think of competing with her..."

"... and she has nothing to disfigure herself - and so bad..."

“... stepping heavily, she moved to the table ...”

"... said the ungraceful, awkward princess with such an inexpressible charm of sadness ..."

"... made her ugly, sickly face even more ugly ..."

As you can see, the descriptions are fragmentary, but it is from these pieces scattered throughout the novel that the images of Bazarov and the princess are formed.

And now return with your eyes to the first passage about Princess Mary. Tolstoy especially draws the attention of readers to her eyes, in fact, without affecting other details of her appearance. Sometimes naming a couple of distinctive bright features of appearance can be better than a detailed description of everything in a row. All the examples taken from the Russian classics prove the claim that it is not necessary to give a full description of appearance in several paragraphs, which European novelists used to create a memorable image.

Before moving on, I want to ask you: take a look at the structure of this part of my article. In it, I gave you an example, and then from it I deduced any methods of description. Why am I paying attention to this? And in order to show how you yourself can analyze descriptions taken from classical literature, and take some tricks for yourself, for your style. Surely everyone who reads these lines has favorite writers - those writers whose works give you pleasure. And what is stopping you in the course of reading, which does not burden you, which does not cause disgust and a desire to quit everything, but on the contrary, makes you admire the art of writing, at least catch a glimpse of how well-known authors describe their heroes? From your favorite art books, you can extract not only pleasant, but also useful.

And, finishing the first part of the article, I want to say: Appearance and portrait are far from being the main thing in a character; just like a speech characteristic, they are only an addition to his actions, thoughts and his relationships with other characters. It is the last three components that play a decisive role in shaping the image in the mind of readers. Appearance, as a rule, clothes and speech simply introduce readers to the characters, superficially representing their character.

Instruction

Characteristics of heroes can be of two types: individual and comparative. If you need to write an individual characterization of the hero, start with a description of the historical era that the story is about. This is important, as it allows you to explain many of the actions of the hero. Describe the social position of the hero. Describe the environment in which he was brought up and in which his character was formed. For example, Eugene Onegin grew up in a secular society, which was reflected in his character, lifestyle, and attitude towards women. You know that he was bored with social life, tired of beauties from high society, empty. Therefore, he became interested in Tatyana Larina, who was so unlike them.

Describe in detail in the characterization of the hero, clothes, appearance, demeanor. Usually manners or some unusual features in the appearance of the hero are a means of revealing the character. For example, Mikhail Yuryevich Lermontov in "Hero" emphasizes the contradictions in Pechorin's appearance: a slender, thin figure and broad shoulders, which proved a strong build. This helps us understand the hero's actions, which are also contradictory and ambiguous.

The actions of the hero, of course, must be described in the characterization. For example, Pechorin shuddered at the time of the noise of the shutters, but was not afraid to walk on a wild boar. The features of the hero's speech are an important component of the hero's characteristics. So, the kindly sentimental attitude of Manilov, the hero of Nikolai Vasilyevich Gogol's work "Dead Souls", is revealed in his speech: "I would gladly give half of my entire fortune in order to have some of the virtues that you have."

When compiling a characterization of the hero, pay attention to the worldview of the character, the range of his interests. For example, Pierre Bezukhov in Leo Tolstoy's novel "War and Peace" is a person looking for his life path. The author describes his searches and mental crises. Pierre goes from being passionate about the ideas of Napoleon to realizing that the people are the driving force of history. The image of Pierre is shown in development. If you are characterizing this character, be sure to describe his search for a life path.

You can also note the attitude of the author to his hero, if this is seen in the work. For example, if you are writing a characterization of Tatiana Larina, the heroine of Pushkin's novel "Eugene Onegin", note the author's kind, sincere, caring attitude towards her. "Tatyana, dear Tatyana ...", writes A.S. Pushkin.

Comparative characterization allows us to understand the hero through comparison. For example, it is necessary to characterize Zhilin, the hero of Leo Tolstoy's work "Prisoner of the Caucasus", through comparison with another hero, Kostylin. This will allow you to more deeply comprehend the actions of the hero and reflect in the characterization. At the end of the characterization, you can write your attitude towards the hero.

Sources:

• Characteristics of a literary hero

The characteristic of the hero is a fairly common form of testing the understanding of a text or a topic as a whole. You can get such a task in classes in literature, literary and linguistic analysis, as well as in classes in foreign languages.

Instruction

You can only characterize a character that you know well. Therefore, first of all, you need to familiarize yourself in as much detail as possible with the content of the work of art for which you were given the task. You need to sort out the details and try to understand the subtext of this work. It is also impossible to characterize the hero in isolation from other heroes: they are all closely related and influence each other as the plot develops.

The characteristic of the hero sometimes does not need to be sought out in the subtext. The text contains the so-called direct characteristics: how the author speaks about his hero, how he describes him, and how other heroes speak about him. All this must be taken into account when a character is given. Your response to the hero is not just your personal impressions and conclusions.

It is more difficult to find indirect characteristics in the text and describe in a coherent text. These are the conclusions that the reader can draw enough, having familiarized himself with the actions of the hero and him. Here a deeper understanding is needed. No one will say: this one is handsome, this one is polite, and that one is rude to women. You will have to look for all this yourself and clothe it in, choosing the most suitable epithets and detailed characteristics.

It is possible to go beyond the analysis of a single work. Follow the development of the image you entrusted over the centuries: maybe films or cartoons were made based on this book, maybe the same character appeared in other literary works. Of course, this is a deeper analysis of the character, a deeper understanding of the work, and doing such work takes time and effort, but the characterization will eventually turn out to be more complete.

Related videos

The characterization of the hero implies the compilation of the most complete description of him. The task of the author of the characterization is to systematize and generalize information about the hero, to draw conclusions from it. Such work will show not only analytical abilities, but also the thinking and speech skills of the writer.

You will need

• - the work whose character you are describing;
• - critical literature about the work;
• - information about productions of this work and illustrations to it.

Instruction

Start the characterization with how readers get to know the hero in the work. In what conditions does it appear, what impression is created when meeting with it, and what artistic techniques does the author use. A good introduction would be information about the prototype of the hero, about how the author

Content:

If you're writing a story, you not only need to describe your character's appearance, but you also need to know what effect the details of their appearance have on the reader. We will tell you how to describe the appearance of a character so that it does not contradict his character traits.

Steps

Write down a description of the character's appearance

1. 1 Start with the shape of the character's face. It is very important to describe the shape of a character's face, as it gives a big impression of the character type of that person. For example, it can be a triangular face with a wide forehead and a sharp chin, or a square face with a powerful jaw, or an oval face with regular symmetrical features. Remember that people often associate certain personality traits with the appearance of characters.
2. 2 Describe the character's body. This can be not only the shape of the body, but also the shape of the head, jaw, cheekbones, etc. Usually, wide cheekbones are associated with a sense of humor and strength. A narrow chin is associated with passivity. A square chin is associated with determination. Wide-set eyes are associated with innocence, while deep-set eyes are associated with a sense of distrust and insecurity.
3. 3 Describe your character's eyes. Eyes are the mirror of the soul. Pay close attention to the description of the eyes. Many animals have large round eyes with long eyelashes. People with such eyes often inspire confidence and sympathy in the reader. Brown eyes are associated with simple nature, honesty. Blue eyes are associated with innocence, ice blue or gray eyes are associated with wisdom and insight. Light green eyes are considered exotic, as are emerald eyes.
4. 4 Describe your character's eyebrows. Eyebrows and their expression give the face a certain look, help a person express his emotions. For example, straight eyebrows Kristen Stewart give her face an expression of indifference and indifference. Marilyn Monroe's eyebrows, pointing upwards, give her face an expression of surprise and curiosity. When the inner part of the eyebrow is directed down, the face is given an expression of mystery and even harmfulness. Low-set eyebrows, such as Dexter's, create a dark and sinister impression.
5. 5 Describe your character's nose. The nose is the center of the face, so the description of the nose is extremely important. The nose indicates the character's attitude to life. A snub nose is usually found in rather playful and infantile characters. With age, a person's nose grows, so a long nose suggests that a person has wisdom. A narrow nose, such as Nicole Kidman's, gives the impression that the character has a dislike for what is happening.
6. 6 Describe the character's mouth. The mouth is involved in the formation of facial expressions. Lips become thinner with age. Full lips are associated with sensuality. Slightly parted lips indicate a relaxed person. A mouth that never closes gives the impression of constant stupefaction and amazement. A wide mouth is usually found in people with a good sense of humor, generous and sociable people. A small, narrow mouth, such as that of Dr. House, indicates that the person is secretive and uncommunicative.
7. 7 Describe the character's hair. Hair is a very important part of your appearance. A small strand of hair hanging over the forehead, reaching almost to the nose, creates an element of intrigue. This is the look usually seen on TV vampires. A balding forehead speaks of maturity and masculinity.
8. 8 Describe your character's body. The character can be tall or short, overweight or athletic. Perhaps your character is an athlete or just a good-natured fat man. For example, a long neck speaks of elegance and grace. A short and thick neck speaks of strength and endurance. Big and long fingers speak of artistic inclinations.
9. 9 Describe the character's posture, body language, and clothing style. These things speak about who this person is and what he does in life. If your character is a rebel, he should dress casually. If he is a discreet and reasonable person, most likely he dresses very neatly.
10. 10 Describe other details of appearance. Describe the color and structure of the hair, skin color. Don't say: black, brown, blond, brunette, etc. Use metaphorical synonyms, such as chocolate, honey, raven, etc. If your character has special features, piercings, tattoos, or scars, be sure to describe them and indicate where they came from and what stories are associated with them.

• It doesn't take too long to describe the character, especially on one page. Describe the main external signs, and then add more and more details to the text over time. For example, write: "She brushed her chocolate hair out of her dirty face." You don't have to just write that the character had some hair, some clothes, and such and such a nose.
• You can give your character the appearance of one of your friends or relatives.
• You can try drawing a portrait of the character before describing it.

Dynamic and voluminous characters capture the attention of readers and set the plot of the book in motion, but it is not so easy to describe the character correctly. It will take some effort to get the reader interested in your description. Get to know your character and think about how traits can affect the description. After that, use the most expressive details to describe the appearance of the character.

Steps

Get to know your character

Compose feature list, to create 3D character . You should know everything about it, so you can not do without a detailed list of characteristics. Indicate all the details from external qualities to origin, position, interests, phobias, hobbies and other details.

1. Sketch the character as a visual guide. Try to draw your character taking into account all external features. Next to it, write details like the character's background, interests, and other descriptive details.

   • This is a fairly arbitrary character creation format.
   • Multiple techniques are allowed. Sometimes it is useful to sketch the appearance and make a table of characteristics.

2. Find the right photo. In some cases, it's helpful to collect photographs of people, places, and things that inspire you. You might want to create a character based on a person you know or the look of a celebrity. Use the photo as a base or reference.

   • Collect suitable photos in albums in electronic or physical form.

3. Determine the unique features of the character. Each character has its own characteristics, according to which it cannot be confused with others. Use such distinguishing features to make it easier for the reader to imagine the image. They should dominate the basic descriptive features (for example, the scar on the character's face is more important than the thickness of the lips).

   • For example, a character might have a heart-shaped mole, a missing tooth, or a noticeable limp.
   • Thanks to these features, the character acquires the features of a real person. In addition, they can quickly describe secondary characters.

4. Make a list of specific traits of the character. It is not necessary to use all the features in the work, but working with a ready-made list is much more convenient. Next, you can use the best descriptive phrases in the plot. Here are some examples:

   • A diamond tattoo below his lash line distracted from his greenish-blue eyes.
   • As she moved, her legs swayed like stilts.
   • When the wind gusts, her hair enveloped her face like flames.

5. Do not use stamps and clichés. This applies both to the approach to the description and the choice of suitable words.

   • For example, a common cliché when getting to know a character is the so-called "mirror method", when the character looks at his own reflection. Don't use this trick!
   • Examples of descriptive clichés are "blood and milk", "cold as ice", or "blind as a mole".

Use external features in the description

1. Think about the possible movements of the character. The nature of the movements and actions of the character will help to tell the reader a lot. This is an important part of the description! Use movement to introduce the reader to some of the features of the character.

   • For example, if a person is dragging their feet, they look and move differently than a character with a quick or leisurely gait.
   • Perhaps he is constantly fussing or texting often, shifting from foot to foot during a conversation, or walking with his head down so as not to attract attention. Use these moves.

2. Specify the type of hairstyle. People often choose the hairstyle that best highlights their personality. The cut, hair color, and styling will give the reader a better understanding of the character.

   • For example, a pink mohawk can be a hallmark of a rebel, and a flat salon styling will show that your character is more of an important and revered person.
   • Also, the hairstyle can reflect different facets of the personality. For example, the main character might be a successful CEO with a neat mid-length hairstyle, but also have a hidden pink streak or short hair length on one side of her face, allowing her to quickly transition from a business shark to a rebel and a daredevil.

3. Reflect the character's personality in clothing. Also, people find expression in clothes, so do not forget about this aspect. What does the reader need to know about the character in order to fully understand the plot? It's also a great way to describe secondary characters. Here are some examples:

   • An important person may wear a business suit.
   • The artist's clothes may be stained with paint.
   • A leather jacket can become an attribute of a rock star.
   • The supporting character can be an athlete and wear a tracksuit.

Write a description

1. Determine the required number of descriptive phrases. Don't overwhelm readers with too many descriptions, but help them form a complete picture of the character. Consider your target audience and the genre of the work. This will help you choose between a detailed, comprehensive description of the character and the minimum necessary amount of such details.

   • For example, representatives of classical genres do without detailed descriptions. They can provide as much information as needed to get an idea of ​​the character's appearance. For example: "A sharp voice came from somewhere in the shaggy beard of a man."
   • On the other hand, genre writers often go into detail. For example, in the fantasy or science fiction genre, you can find a full description of a character who is an elf or a cyborg, not a person: “Half of the head was hidden under a metal plate, and wires were visible from under the jaw actuator. In the right eye socket was an ordinary blue eye, but on the left there was a kind of photographic lens. A long, pointed nose points down to thin, robotic lips."

2. Focus on distinctive features instead of minor details. Provide only the information that the reader needs, because all the details will not fit. A good description allows the reader to recognize the character, and not just their appearance. Here are some examples:

   • “The black roots of the hair stood out sharply against the background of light blond curls,” the reader will understand that the character dyes his hair, but does not always adhere to the chosen style.
   • “He was wearing a shirt with the logo of a pizzeria that closed three years ago. She hung on a lanky and skinny figure as if on a hanger, "- the character wears old clothes that do not fit and cannot afford new things.

3. Use figurative language to create a captivating description. Use metaphors, similes, hyperbole, and personification to make it easier for the reader to imagine characters and events. Strive to approach the task creatively, and not just list the main external features.

   • For example, instead of the phrase: "Xenia had long brown hair and brown eyes," it would be better to write: "Xenia's face was enveloped in thick dark curls, behind which amber eyes were hidden."
   • Metaphors and comparisons allow you to compare seemingly dissimilar things, but when comparing, the words “like” or “as if” are used, which makes the comparison more obvious.
   • Personification endows animals and various objects with human features. For example, "her eyes hid from his questions."

4. Don't use purple prose, which involves a lot of description. This term refers to a prose text that contains many descriptions and ornate words, but does not bring anything new to the plot. This is frustrating for readers, so only use a description if it helps advance the plot. Describe only the most necessary aspects and talk less unnecessarily.

   • Try to use as few words as possible in the description.
   • For example, you could write, "She dyed her hair inky to make her look more like an artist." No need to go into over-explanation: “Her black hair set off her pale skin like an oil slick on the surface of the ocean. Every time she looked in the mirror, she noticed a romantic poet who was born in a different era. This helped her, if not to appear, then at least feel like a creator.”

5. Use synecdoche to describe a character in one line. Synecdoche is a literary device that uses one aspect or part to describe the whole (person, place or thing). In such a case, a detailed description is not required. Focus on one, the most outstanding feature. This is a convenient way to quickly and convincingly characterize a character without further ado.

   • Synecdoche will be a great choice for secondary characters!
   • Choose prominent features that make it easy to identify the character, such as a pink mohawk, a pointed chin, a hunched back, a gait, a unique smell. This feature can be both positive and negative. Describe the whole character in this quality.
   • For example: "When a pink mohawk passed by the window, I understood that the neighbor had already returned home."

6. Use sensual details to bring the character to life. Do not use only physical characteristics. Appeal to all five senses of the reader! Of course, you can limit yourself to a smaller amount, but use this technique.

   • Describe the smell of the character to use the sense of smell. For example: "Katerina Rosenbaum always smelled like freshly baked cookies."
   • Describe a character's rough welt or silky skin to engage the sense of touch.
   • Compare the character's voice to the chirping of birds or the rumble of an engine to use your hearing.
   • Talk about clothes and hairstyle to use your eyesight.
   • Also try to use your sense of taste. For example, describe the kiss of the characters.