The Difference Between Different Types of Characters

[SeekeroftheTruth]

Hello, this is SeekeroftheTruth.

I’m looking at one of the character questions in Story Embers free book, the Character Questionairre. I noticed that the question asks about what role a character plays, and the different types of characters: Main character, protagonist, antagonist, main villain, supporting character, villain and ally? What’s the difference between each type of character?

Sincerely, Seeker of the Truth

[Gracie J.]

@seekerofthetruth Main characters and protagonists are pretty much the same thing–the hero/heroine of the story. Lucy, Edmund, Susan, and Peter are the protagonists (or main characters) of The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe. The antagonist is only slightly different than the villain–they are the character that inhibits the protagonist from achieving their goal. Edmund’s betrayal/siding with the White Witch makes him an antagonist for part of the book. On the other hand, the White Witch is the main villain. Supporting characters would be Beaver and Faun, for instance, as they are secondary characters (not main, but still important) who “support” the story and plot, hence the name. A character like Prince Caspian would be considered an ally, since he helps the Pevensies.

Does that help any?

the resident romance ghost; last seen within the pages of a gothic novel

[Linyang Zhang]

@seekerofthetruth Hey there,

Main character/protagonist: Generally when writing stories you’ll write from this character’s viewpoint. There are exceptions, of course, like Gatsby from The Great Gatsby and Ahab from Moby Dick. But generally the protagonist of the story would be the narrator. Examples would be Percy Jackson from Percy Jackson and the Olympians, Oliver Twist from Oliver Twist, and Dorian Gray from The Picture of Dorian Gray.

Antagonist: The person who works against your protagonist. May or may not be bad, depending on whether or not your protagonist is bad, or what motives they have. An antagonist can actually be any sort of conflict against your protagonist.

Main villain: The big bad guy. Darth Vader from Star Wars, Voldemort from Harry Potter, Thanos from Infinity War (I actually haven’t watched it but fingers crossed that he is). Generally synonymous with antagonist.

Supporting character: Characters who aren’t as main as your main character but not as minor as a minor character. For example, Samwise Gamgee from Lord of the Rings.

Villain: An antagonist, doesn’t have to be the main villain. Like a supporting character for the villain, if you will. Like the Nazgul from Lord of the Rings.

Ally: Characters who help your protagonist. Can be anyone, really, as long as they help your main character.

Hope this clears things up; maybe someone else can explain it better than me.

Lately, it's been on my brain
Would you mind letting me know
If hours don't turn into days

[SeekeroftheTruth]

Yes, your letters are helpful. I’m actually glad that I got to read the differences and similarities of the characters.

Sincerely, SeekeroftheTruth

[Author]

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