78 of 83 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Journey into Mythic Models, May 19, 2004
This review is from: 45 Master Characters (Hardcover)
Victoria Schmidt was told in film school that scripts about female heroes didn't sell, and instead of meekly giving in she started doing research. She latched onto the woman's journey into the self: the tale of the descent of the goddess Innana. She connected this to such works as "The Wizard of Oz," "Titanic," and other stories and films, and decided a book was in order. Jack Heffron, editor of most of the writing books I've ever read & reviewed, said sure, but what about the male hero while you're at it? And thus this book was born.
Ms. Schmidt discusses the difference between a stereotype and an archetype. She talks a bit about individualizing characters using aspects of appearance, what the characters care about and fear, motivations, how others see the character, and so on. When providing examples of each archetype she deliberately provides a wide spectrum of possibilities so that you can see some of the variations that are possible.
My only problem here is that I can still see, having read through the book, how it would be easy to accidentally get trapped into creating stereotypes using these character archetypes. Why? Because many of our stereotypes are variations on (or simplified, judgmental versions of) these archetypes, and it's hard not to let all that history influence us. Perhaps if Ms. Schmidt had included an extra (small) section within each archetype reminding the reader to play with things, and including a few further suggestions and examples for how to do so, it would have allayed this fear.
The archetypes are quite detailed. Each has both a positive and a negative side. The author includes all sorts of information about the archetypes, from things they tend to care about, to which other archetypes they pair well with, and what their assets and flaws tend to be. Then Ms. Schmidt does more in the list of examples to break the stereotype worry than she does anywhere else. She includes examples from TV, film, literature, and history, so no matter what your reading or viewing pleasure, you should find something you can relate to.
Oddly, while the character archetypes are what sell the book, they turned out not to be the main attraction for me. There's a great section on supporting characters, for example. But best of all, roughly a full 95 pages of the book cover the feminine and masculine archetypal journeys. This is where things really take off and catch at the imagination. All in all, this book is interesting, useful, and well-detailed. If your characterizations could use a little help, this might be a fun place to start!
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34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sharpened my Characters Considerably, February 19, 2006
This review is from: 45 Master Characters (Hardcover)
Fiction is not reality. I had forgotten this when I was creating the characters in my current book. My characters were complex, but were not compelling. They were boring. They didn't interest me and would not interest a reader.
45 Master Characters fixed that problem for me.
For example, I had a character who is a woman trying to advance in a company. I had muddled ideas of whether she should be using sex to try to get ahead, how soft or tough she should be, and how she should think.
45 Master Characters helped me see that she fell into the category of the Father's Daughter. An archetype exemplified by Athena, Captain Janeway and Murphy Brown. Once I knew this I was able to see that she would not use sex to get ahead, that she would be fairly tough minded, and that she would be independent. I dropped a family from her backstory, removed any thoughts of her using sex to get ahead and generally tightened my picture of her. Ironically, my backstory included significant influence from her father, so I was already seeing glimmers of the "Father's Daughter" archetype before the book made it clear.
Schmidt gives us the positive and negative for each Archetype. For example the Father's Daughter has a negative side called The Backstabber (Katherine Parker "Sigorney Weaver" in Working Girl)
The book is an essential part of an author's reference library.
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86 of 96 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Must Read & Have for Writers Everywhere!, September 4, 2002
This review is from: 45 Master Characters (Hardcover)
This book is hands down the best investment I have made in my writing career.
In a synopsis, Schmidt uses archetypes based on the Ancient Grecian gods to form two types of characters (good and bad). For instance, take Artemis. Her archetypes would be the Amazon (good) & the Gorgon (bad). With detailed descriptions for all characters, this book is a must for either identifying a current character's archetype, or creating a character from scratch.
Also included are friends (such as: the mentor, lover, best friend, magi), rivals (joker, nemesis, pessimist, etc.), and symbols, such as shadows, lost souls, and psychics. If you want more info on these, you'll have to buy the book!
If you're like me, you want to know what the archetypes (based on Jungian philosophy) are. I've enclosed a short synopsis:
Seductive Muse (Aphrodite): think Scarlett O'Hara and Emma Bovary
Femme Fatale (villainous Aphrodite): think Cleopatra
Amazon (Artemis): think Jo March (and Rose DeWitt Bukater-Dawson)
Gorgon (villainous Artemis): think Nikita
Father's Daughter (Athena): think Queen Elizabeth I
Backstabber (villainous Athena): think Lady Macbeth
Nurturer (Demeter): think Mary Poppins, Meg March
Overcontrolling Mother (villainous Demeter): think Nurse in Romeo & Juliet
Matriarch (Hera): think Monica from Friends
Scorned Woman (villainous Hera): think Mrs. Bennett (of Pride & Prejudice)
Mystic (Hestia): think Phoebe from Friends
Betrayer (villainous Hestia): think Blanche duBois
Female Messiah (Isis): think Monica from Touched by an Angel, Lady of the Lake in Arthurian Legends
Destroyer (villainous Isis): think Erin Brokovich (movie!)
Maiden (Persephone): think Rachel from Friends, Juliet from Romeo and Juliet
Troubled Teen (Persephone): think Ophelia from Hamlet by Shakespeare
MALE ARCHETYPES
Businessman (Apollo): think Mr. Darcy from Pride & Prejudice, Jerry Maguire
Traitor (villainous Apollo): think Macon Leary
Protector (Ares): think Lancelot from Arthurian Legends, Romeo from Romeo & Juliet
Gladiator (villainous Ares): think Thor, Atretes from Francine River's `Mark of the Lion' series
Recluse (Hades): think Quasimodo, Beast from Beauty & the Beast
Warlock (villainous Hades): think Dr. Jekyll
Fool (Hermes): think Joey from Friends, Austin Powers
Derelict (villainous Hermes): think the Fool in King Lear by Shakespeare
The Woman's Man (Dionysus): think Nick Marshall in What Women Want, Will Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, Jack Dawson in Titanic
Seducer (villainous Dionysus): think John Willoughby from Sense & Sensibility by Jane Austen
Male Messiah (Osiris): think Luke Skywalker, Martin Luther King, Ghandi
Punisher (villainous Osiris): think Malcolm X
Artist (Poseidon): think Jack from Will & Grace, J.D. (Brad Pitt) in Thelma & Louise
Abuser (villainous Poseidon): think Dr. Zhivago
King (Zeus): think Ricky Ricardo (I Love Lucy), King Arthur, Julius Caesar, Tony Soprano Sr. from The Sopranos
Dictator (villainous Zeus): think Captain Kidd, King Lear
As a note, the Messiahs (both male & female) are not based on Jungian philosophy; they are rather a very much needed addition from Schmidt, whose in depth look at these archetypes was phenomenal.
I hope that you can use this book as well as I've been able to!
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