Dynamic character — English definition
Defined in 2 courses:
- A character who changes in an important way over the course of the story, usually because of what they experience. (English 6)
- A character who changes in some important way over the course of a text; a static character stays essentially the same. (English 10: Choices, Conscience & Consequences)
Where it is taught
- Character Development — Reading Literature, English 6, Grade 6
- Characterization & Structure — Close Reading & Literary Analysis, English 10: Choices, Conscience & Consequences, Grade 10
In use
A dynamic character is transformed by what they go through: they learn something, shed a fear, or rethink a belief.
Character Development
A dynamic character ends the text somehow different from how they began, while a static character holds steady — and, importantly, these are separate questions from round versus flat.
Characterization & Structure
Taught alongside
- characterization
- direct characterization
- indirect characterization
- motivation
- static character
- complex character
- foil
- in medias res
- frame narrative