Cliché Characters: Stereotypes in Written Form

16Feb08

This is the first post in the Writing Series (a better title is coming forth I promise). To learn more about the series see this post.

When I first started to really get into FicitonPress, over a year ago (although two years after I signed up for it) I participated in a forum discussion about cliché characters. Soon I grew bored with it, because the comments coming in were starting to become unrelated and repetitive. As a writer and an avid reader I feel this topic is an important one to discuss, so important that it shall be the first.

You can find tons of forums still going on about cliché stories and characters, everyone has some kind of opinion on the matter. There’s a time and a place for cliché characters, but my golden rule is if I can avoid then cliché’s are a no-no. But that’s easier said then done, I can admit that freely. There are many different things you need to contend with when handling cliché characters: what is a cliché character, where do cliché characters come from, identifying cliché characters, negating clichés, when and where to use clichés, and understanding the power behind a cliché character.

What is a cliché character?

A cliché character is any character in your writing that has several characteristics in common with typical characters that have shown up over the years in books, movies, music, and society in general. For example the willow thin, blue eyed, blonde girl next door or the dark haired mysterious bad boy. Cliché is not just limited to physicality, you could have a physically unique character but they can become a cliché by how they talk or act. The one that comes to mind instantly is the smart-mouth African-American female, who is the best friend of the main character. Why is she a cliché? Because it’s almost a rule to have these types of characters. Right now I bet you five dollars you can think of at least five (if not more) books you’ve read, TV shows you’ve seen, movies you’ve watched that had this set up.

Where do cliché characters come from?

Stereotypes. Cliché characters are a nod to stereotypes that society has. Taking our previous example the smart mouth best friend, there is a stereotype that all African-American females have a sarcastic attitude and are ready to fight any and every body at a drop of an hat. Which I can safely say is so not true. Stereotypes play a major role in our world. Although there is a group of people who believe that stereotypes don’t exist, I would have to disagree whole heartedly. I know that statement is going to cause some rumbles, but let me explain it. I don’t mean that people are stereotypes, although you can certainly find people who try to become one (Emo, Goths, Sun-Valley, Gangsters, etc). What I mean is that the idea of stereotypes exist, meaning that people place others in stereotypical groups all the time. That’s why we have the labels previously stated. Clichés are basically an exaggerated viewpoint of an stereotype.

Identifying cliché characters and negating them.

Everyone is going to come up with a cliché character sooner or later. Here are some quick ways to identify if you’re dealing with a cliché character. First look at their physical details, I’m not saying that having a blonde blue eyed character is bad, but if that’s how they are described then you might just be dealing with a cliché, get creative with the shade of blue, and why blonde? A blue-eyed brunette might be interesting to see, perhaps they aren’t willow thin but a size 18/20. Second look at their actions, does your blue-eyed blonde simper a lot? Is your brunette a grade obsessed nerd? What about your dark haired male a rule breaking motorcycle riding newcomer? The best way to identify a cliché is to take apart all your characters, and the best way to negate a cliché character is to base a single character or several real life examples, for example you main character can be made up of your mom, your sister, your brother’s current girlfriend, your best friend, and a girl you knew in third grade. Trust me after merging so many different people into one single person, you should have an unique, if not somewhat disturbed, character.

When and where to use cliché characters.

Like I said there’s a time and a place for clichés. If you are doing a social commentary fictional writing or a satire, then you’re going to need a cliché or two. If you embraced your cliché character say in a comical way then it’s alright. Clichés aren’t necessarily a bad thing. The ultimate challenge for you could be to build a wondrous story surrounded around a cliché character. You could also use a cliché character in the form of a one-time support character, for example a uptight snotty secretary. Throwing in a cliché here and there is easy when you need a quick character to help move your story along, that way you don’t waste precious creative power on unnecessary characters. There are great generators online that can give you quick description of a cliché character, site #1 and site #2 are good examples of one. (Here’s an anti-cliché one anti-mary sue)

Understand the power of a cliché character

Clichés exist for a reason. Somewhere out there, there really is a willow thin blue-eyed blonde who simpers and gets distressed at a drop of a hat. And I’m sure someone knows a dark-haired bad boy who hates following the rules. Finding that your character is a cliché, isn’t the end of the world, if you like your character keep it. Your story and your characters are your personal idea, but at the same time don’t let your whole story become a cliché. Then you aren’t necessarily being creative just copying what’s been done before. A cliché character is a great way to get a certain point across or to create a setting, or to set up a plot.

Don’t get discouraged if your first few characters seem clichéd to you, once you continue to write they will start to speak to you. If you listen, you will start to see the nuances that make them unique and it will come through your writing. And if you have created a cliché, who says you can’t change it or better yet who says you can’t keep the character and change people’s opinions of them? To me all great stories are still work-in-progress, even after they’ve been published. Final note, keep in mind that it’s2008, a lot of things have been done before and a lot of combinations have been done, so at some level now a days lot of characters can seem clichéd.