Understanding characters in a book you read is an essential part of enjoying the story. As a reader, you come to love or hate well-written characters when you get to know them. Characters you are ambivalent about are typically not well-written. Readers learn about characters in the books they read by drawing conclusions based on the actions and words of the characters. If the author has done his job, making these inferences about characters should not be difficult.
Instructions
1. Write notes about the characters if you're reading a book that has many different characters. You may not be able to make a lot of inferences in the beginning. Keeping notes about each character can help you keep them apart in your mind and will help you remember things you've learned about them as you progress through the story and gather more information about them.
2. Examine the words characters use and the way they use them. This might allow you to make inferences about a character's educational background and upbringing. Examine their actions. This might allow you to make inferences about whether or not a character is strong or weak, honest or dishonest. Example: "Mickey looked inside the wallet he'd found on the ground. He came across the thick stack of bills and ran his fingers over them, whistling his appreciation, then he looked around to make sure he was alone." A reader may be able to infer that Mickey is less than honest and a bit opportunistic from this passage. Although it hasn't been said, Mickey's actions suggest he is considering taking the money.
3. Write down everything you know about a character at the beginning of the book and everything you know about that character by the end of the book. Ask yourself if the character has changed. Ask yourself what the character may have learned during the course of the story and how that makes the character different. Use everything you've learned about the character to write a short profile about each character's traits. An exercise like this can help you better understand the characters in the books you read.
