Soph #4 Journal: The Stock Character
POST BEFORE FRIDAY MORNING, DEC. 20A stock character is a character type, often a stereotyped character, used repeatedly in genre fiction (like horror, sci-fi, moral tales) and of course, movies and television shows that like to use these character types. Examples include the mad scientist, the blond airhead, the femme fatale (sure, look it up if you don't know what this means), the rags-to-riches hero, and the conniving villain.
In The Devil and Tom Walker, Tom Walker exemplifies the stock character known as The Miser, one who would value money over everything. You should know the Greek tale of King Midas, a miser who learned, as many do, that wealth isn't everything. Go to this link to read the Midas tale. Tom Walker's wife is the stock shrew, the nagging wife who browbeats her husband.
You've read enough (and seen enough tv and movies) to recognize stock characters, so tell me ...who is your favorite "stock" character?
Define the stock character type you choose and then give me some details about your specific character that proves that he or she is, indeed, stock. Of course, tell me why you enjoy your character. Choose a character from books, movies, short stories, and television shows. As always, respond with a minimum of 200 words.
I've provided an example for you, namely Ebenezer Scrooge.
Ebenezer Scrooge is a miserly misanthrope (he's a miser--all about money--and he's a misanthrope--a "hater of mankind") in the Charles Dickens' classic, A Christmas Carol. His love of money and disdain for Christmas characterizes the original Scrooge. Note that the wordscrooge to denote characters like him is now regularly used in our vernacular. Scrooge overworks and underpays his loyal employee, Mr. Bob Cratchit. Cratchit, a good and holy family man, has bills to pay and a crippled son (Tiny Tim) to take care of, but he faces his trying responsibilities with Christian fortitude. He even refuses to admit to his poor family that Mr. Scrooge is a bad man. You might say that Cratchit is a stock character himself, the "poor but happy" fatherly figure whose diligence and Christian piety keep his family in food and clothes.
Back to Mr. Scrooge, who grudgingly allows poor Bob to stay home on Christmas Day, but orders him to arrive earlier the next. He greets holiday well wishers, like his kind nephew, with a "Bah, humbug" that of course, is now universally recognized as the reply of the Christmas Scrooge. Suddenly, however, his world is turned inside-out when he is visited by the ghost of Jacob Marley, his former business partner and a scrooge like himself. The forlorn ghost, who now does penance by walking the earth in heavy chains, money boxes, and keys, warns Scrooge to mend his ways, lest he suffer the same fate.
Scrooge is shaken, but falls asleep. During the rest of the well-known story, he is visited by three Christmas ghosts. He then undergoes a miraculous change. The new Christmas-loving Scrooge sends a huge turkey to the Cratchit home, raises Bob's salary, and becomes a surrogate grandfather to Tiny Tim.
This Christmas tale is a story of faith, redemption, and the goodness that lies within us all. These qualities were once buried in Ebenezer Scrooge, but were unearthed in the joyful end of the novel.
posted by JTF @ 9:28 AM
67 comments
67 Comments:
A stock character is defined as a fictional character based on a typical stereotype that exhibits repetitive characteristics. One stereotypical figure in literature is a competitive underdog. Rocky Balboa falls perfectly into this category of a stock character. Rocky, a movie character played by Sylvester Stallone, endures multiple challenges during his career as a boxer. He starts from nothing and perspires to prove his competence as a man and a fighter. Throughout the Rocky series, Balboa is viewed as a stereotypical underdog, the one that is underestimated greatly. However, Balboa proves that he can balance his struggles in life to prove himself. He comes from a low area in Philadelphia and desires to win over the respect of his family, fans, and friends. Despite losing jobs and his wife from cancer, he doesn't submit to giving up which is what I like about him. After he retired his career as a boxer, he returns to running his Italian restaurant. Out of the blue, he is challenged to a match by Mason Nixon, who is looking to redeem himself. Balboa accepts Mason Nixon's challenge to go back to the ring. Everyone knows the former champ is a long shot now, but Rocky doesn't sit behind any restraints. Even though his opponent is stronger and in high favor of winning, Rocky puts up a thrilling fight. He proves that he has what it takes to look beyond the fact that he is the underdog and competes like a champion. Rocky is a figure of hope and is a great representative of a stock character.
The stock character is a character that represents a stereotypical image and is universally known. For example, the classic varsity jacket wearing jock that is seen in all of the movies with a high school atmosphere or setting is a prominent stock character. This character is always the seemingly perfect high school football player that is always sporting his varsity jacket and holding a football in one hand. This character is always seen mingling with a posse of sporty cronies. The typical “jock” is displayed with a negative connotation and is usually portrayed as being to enthralled with sports or just plain unkind. A specific stock character of a jock that comes to mind is the football player in the movie 17 Again. This character is the bully who is always giving kids a hard time and seems to have more time for playing football and terrorizing kids than he does in class. This representation of the “jock” is very unrealistic as you can see just by pulling up to the St. Marks parking lot. You do not see a group of jocks wearing matching jackets and having a catch, or bullying a kid, in fact you cannot tell them apart, as there are no super definitive cliques like Hollywood try’s to make evident. Although this stock character is unrealistic, it is crucial to the entertainment of the classic high school movie.
A stock character is one that is stereotypical to almost any story. A good example of a stock character would be a hero. In most stories theres a good guy who’s always trying to save the world from a nuclear holocaust or rescue the damsel in distress or what have you. This character is always looked up to and admired. So many books, movies, and television shows are based upon the character who is the hero. On of my personal favorites is Indiana Jones (and not just because of the last name). This character is a classic hero who is known all around the world. He’s a great example of a stock character who’s a hero because he basically just does what all heros do. He defeats the bad guy and gets the girl. even if he storyline is different for each hero, they all end up doing the same thing in the end. Heros have always inspired others to do what’s right and that’s why they’re my favorite stock character. Everyone has grown up watching or reading or listening to stories about heros. Unlike some stock characters, heros are always doing the right thing. That’s why they’re the most important out of all of the others.
A stock character is one that is very stereotypical and usually quite common. There are many of forms of these ranging from the typical jock to the nerd who always gets picked on. A great example to me is the superhero Batman. He is the classic hero that battles villains and saves the day. Someone like this is always looked up to by young people and is somewhat of a role model. Children always dream of becoming superheroes when they grow up. I believe he is even greater of a stock character because he has no superpowers or anything of that sort but he still always wins. Batman shows many fine characteristics that everyone should notice. He is so determined and motivated to save his city from anyone or anything that tries to harm it. No matter what challenges he may face, there is nothing that can ever stop him. I think he is just a prime example of a stock character in his comic books and movies. He gives all people a perfect model of a common superhero and shows hope for everyone. This is why I believe Batman is a complete stock character.
Sherlock and Dr. Watson, Batman and Robin, Woody and Slinky, and Shrek and Donkey are just a few combinations of sidekicks and heroes from some well-known movies. My favorite stock character is the character that is generally classified as the sidekick. The sidekick usually leads the main character down the right path and always has the main characters back. The sidekick is like someone’s best friend in reality. This is definitely a stock character because every movie or book has a “helping hand” character for the hero, meaning a sidekick. My examples in the beginning also show that you can pick out “the sidekick and the hero” easily in any movie or book. This is my favorite stock character because of how often I see a “sidekick” in real life. A hero is a vague term, you don’t know if it was an underdog hero, or a straight from the ghetto kind of hero or an accidental hero; you have to be specific. You don’t need to be specific with a sidekick, which is why I like them. People automatically know that a sidekick is the hero’s right hand and is their conscience in bad situations.
In any kind of story, you are likely to find many different examples of stock characters. Stock characters can range from the hero, the bully, the nerd, the dumb blond, the jocks, and the villain. Although I would have to say my favorite stock character is the underdog. My favorite underdog story would have to be Michael Oher from the The Blind Side. The Blind Side is based off of a true story about Michael Oher and the difficulties he overcame throughout his life. Michael grew up in Memphis, Tennessee and bounced around from home to home mainly due to his mother’s drug addiction. He applied to Wingate Christian School after his friend applied there. After applying at Wingate, Michael met a boy, SJ, and his parents decided to adopt Michael. Leigh Anne and Sean Tuohy took Michael under their wings and helped him improve his grades. After his grades improved, Michael became eligible to play football and he soon became a superstar. Michael received many offers from Division I schools and accepted a scholarship to play at the University of Mississippi. After playing football at Mississippi, he was drafted in the first round (23rd pick overall) in 2009 by the Baltimore Ravens. Through his hard work and dedication, Michael Oher was able to succeed not only on the football field, but also in the classroom which ultimately led him to earn a full scholarship to the University of Mississippi. Oher is now a starting offensive lineman for the Baltimore Ravens and went from a homeless and uneducated boy to a Super Bowl Champion.
The stock character I chose to define was the so-called “town drunk.” This character is intoxicated more often than not. Usually they are male and a little unkempt. However, the stock character of the rich mother-in-law drunk is used quite often in modern romantic comedies. These characters rely on usually one or a few very close companions to keep them in check. The plot of the work they’re part of does not usually center on them. Often they will pop into scenes (under the influence) to offer a word of comical advice, reminisce on their “wild” night at the pub, or just cause trouble. They offer a lot of comic relief through their drunken antics and sayings.
My favorite town drunk is Sir Tony Belch, from Shakespeare’s popular play Twelfth Night. In a production I saw and most of his character descriptions, Tony has long hair, stubble, and wears the same dirty clothes throughout the show because he is simply too lazy or busy getting drunk, to change. Every scene he is in, he is either drunk or hungover, but manages to offer genuine, helpful advice to almost half of the characters in the show. Sir Tony provides most of the comic relief in this already comedic play. He devises a plan to thwart the efforts of Malvolio, a cocky male suitor who continues to bother his niece, Olivia. His plan is hilarious and Malvolio makes a fool of himself. Tony brings a whole new level of humor to the show.
Tony Belch and many other town drunks, such as Haymitch Abernathy in the Hunger Games series, are often the funniest characters in their works and I really enjoy comedy. These drunks usually are the most honest and genuine people since the alcohol they so often consume, limits their inhibitions. The town drunk never has malicious intentions, they just want to have a little fun. I think their lack of seriousness is why I enjoy them so much.
In order to be defined as a stock character, the person must be a stereotyped character frequently used in movies, and television shows. An example of a stereotypical character would be the main character from Legally Blonde, Elle Woods. Elle is the prettiest of her sorority, Miss June in her campus calendar, a Hawaiian Tropic girl, and a natural blonde. Elle has it all and is stereotyped as a blonde airhead. In the movie, all Elle wants is to marry the boy of her dreams, but she is underestimated because she is “too blonde”. When the boy packs up for Harvard and enters a new girl into his life, Elle gets to Harvard as fast as she can. She proves to everyone that she is more than just a poolside hottie and a shopper, and gets her degree in law school. Elle suffered all throughout her life, and she stood up for all the blondes who also suffer humiliation everyday. This movie realistically shows the life of a ditzy blonde. Blonde girls are always stereotyped as dumb or silly and get made fun of it because of it. Although there are some girls with blonde hair who like to act giddy and dumb, it does not make any girls with blonde hair a airhead. The movie, Legally Blonde, represents the perfect character of the blonde airhead and how the world stereotypes them.
A stock character is an unoriginal character that is often a stereotype of some race, religion, etc. One stereotypical type of character is the "Jewish Mother". This is an example of a stock character that is a stereotype of a religion. This character is typically a nagging or overbearing mother or wife. A good example is Ms. Wolowitz, from The Big Bang Theory. She constantly nags her son Howard with annoying, nasal screeches. Because Howard lives with his mother, she is constantly poking her nose into his business, even though he is in his late twenties, possibly even his early thirties. When Howard brings his adult friends over, she brings up "... Oreos and Hawaiian Punch for you and your little friends." She still interrogates him as if he was a teenager when he returns home late. She exhibits other qualities that are stereotypically Jewish. She can't eat certain foods, and there is always something wrong with her body. Another example of a Jewish Mother is Kyle's Mom, from South Park. They are both examples of the stock character of the Jewish Mother.
I would have to choose the crazy super villain. This type of stock character often times is extremely intelligent, but lacks the ability to use their genius natures to better humanity. They often times obsess over a character or object to the point that it has consumed them, and as a result they have lost everything in their quest to find or obtain what they search for. They are good at gaining followers, but have no loyalty to the men they work with. They are often times ridiculous by appearance, but are without a doubt dangerous. My favorite example of this type of character has to be the joker from the DC comics’ universe. I like the joker simply because he seems to be the only super villain who has never really been defined as having a personality type. He can escape any prison and is often times underestimated by his opponents. I like the mystery that surrounds his past. He is untouchable and has no fears nor does he care for anything. This trait has allowed him to hide his thoughts and elaborate schemes behind a childlike smile. Like many characters that have been turned evil the Joker has allowed his alias to consume who he is and everything he does. He likes to have his grand plots and schemes to be done while using circus like materials. He is often times recognized by his purple or green clown suit, acid shooting flower, and hysterical laugh. He is as bad as they come, but is surprising strong and has a special talent for gaining followers and using they’re pent up angers and stresses to create and inspire chaos. He like many other crazy super villains has no value for human life. Though he prides himself on his ability to always have a joke or punch line he tends to be bipolar and has random mood swings often times involving the harming or attempted capture of his arch nemesis batman. This often times is one of his examples as an insane/crazy crime lord. He obsesses over batman and because batman won’t kill him he refuses to kill batman. He has a strange and twisted sense of morality only he really understands. He has appeared in many comic books and has been in video games, movies, and the many different TV series that have been produced off of batman.
My favorite stock character is indubitably the cat lady. Appearing in many films and television series as a strange neighbor or distant aunt, this character has brought slapstick comic relief to many a film. Women who own cats have long been associated with the concept of spinsterhood. In more recent decades, the concept of a cat lady has been associated with "romance-challenged women who can't find a man.” The term is also used to denote an animal hoarder who keeps large numbers of cats without having the ability to properly house or care for them. They may be ignorant about their situation. I appreciate this stock character for I enjoy the over exaggerated behaviors that are to exemplify the life styles of a spinster.
A stock character is defined as a type of character, who is often stereotyped, used often in literary genres, like horror, action, romance, etc, and can be easily picked out and described by a common element that all of the characters of the type have. One of my favorite types of stock characters is the villains that are so bad you have to love them. These characters often become one of my favorite characters in the show, book, or movie. Some examples of these villains are the Joker from the Dark Knight, Bane from the Dark Knight Rises, and Loki from the new Thor movies. My favorite one of these characters is the Joker. The Joker is the main villain in The Dark Knight and his goal for almost the entire movie is to just cause as much panic and mayhem until he defeats Batman. The Joker is a stock villain because nobody knows who he really is, he is the bad guy in the story, he continuously faces off with the hero, and he loses at the end of the story. I enjoy the Joker as a character because he is really evil and he has no real goal and he isn’t trying to gain something. In the movie Bruce Wayne’s butler Alfred says that “Some people just want to watch the world burn.” That is exactly who the Joker is in The Dark Knight.
A stock character is defined as a character in literature, theater, or film that can be quickly recognized and accepted by the reader or viewer. For example, the "school diva" is a common and well known character. The "school diva" is a well-liked and worshipped female student. In many cases she sees herself as the alpha female and better then her peers. She is also sometimes referred to as the Queen Bee. The "school diva" is often stereotyped as being beautiful, charming, manipulative, and wealthy. She often holds positions of social status. Some of them include being the school cheerleading captain, or the Homecoming or Prom Queen. "School divas" may have a substantial influence over their cliques, and are considered role models by their clique members and even people who outside of the group. Her actions are closely followed and even imitated. Some qualities of a "school diva" are having an overly heightened self-esteem, being overly selfish, and strong-willed, behaving as a bully, being spoiled, being pretty, popular, talented, rich, or privileged, and
being hated by her female peers. I like the "school diva" stock character because I feel like the Queen Bees have a lot of control over people and they know how to get what they want. An example of a "school diva" is Regina George from the movie Mean Girls. The qualities that she has of a "school diva" are that she has rich parents, she knows how to control everyone around her, and she is worshiped by almost everyone at her school in the movie. Regina George is truly the ultimate "school diva".
A stock character is a character type, often a stereotyped character, used repeatedly in genre fiction and other literary work. My favorite stock character has to be the one that got away. The one that got away is a former lover who regrets things not working out between them or a person who never had that chance to be in an actual relationship with a specific person. A perfect example of this is Ashton Kutcher and Mila Kunis from That 70’s Show. Kutcher plays a character named Michael who is a jock, popular and good-looking. Kunis plays Jackie, the rich, popular airhead. They fall in love in the show, and dated in real life. After the show ended, their relationship didn’t work out. Kutcher went on with his life and married Demi Moore, who he has now divorced. Kunis was dating here and there, but never found that special guy. Throughout the past year, Ashton and Mila have reconnected and are currently dating. I would definitely say that Mila is the one that got away from Ashton, but they are happily together again.
A stock character is a stereotypical character that can be found in most movies. One example includes the couple deeply in love, only to eventually be separated. In the movie The Great Gatsby, Daisy and Jay were in love and were planning to get married. However, when Jay was drafted to war, their marriage was postponed. After months of waiting for Jay to return, Daisy was pressured into marrying another man although she still secretly loved Jay. When Jay did eventually return home, he was heart broken when he found out what Daisy had done. Even though all this happened, when Daisy and Jay were reunited, it was like their love and relationship never ended, which is what interests me so much. Another example of this type of stock character is in the movie Dear John. Two characters John and Savannah were also deeply in love and planned their future together. Like Jay, John was drafted back to war, forcing Savannah to wait for him to return. After almost one full year of waiting, John was re-enlisted due to 9-11. Savannah was devastated, but had to move on. She still loved John deeply, but she eventually married another man. When John returned home, he couldn’t resist visiting Savannah. When they were reunited, just like Daisy and Jay, it seemed like their relationship never ended, and their love still remained. These two stories show the stock character of a couple deeply in love being separated.
The mad scientist, a staple to almost every action movie involving science, the mad scientist is defined as an insane scientist who usually strives for a perfection or purity of things. In most movies, the mad scientist is an antagonist and most usually seen as the villain. They often work with technology decades into the future and with materials that people have never heard of/don’t exist. In some movies, the scientists have good hearted intentions but end up becoming dangerous and turning them into an evil, mean spirited person. An example of this is the character Doctor Octopus or “Doc Ock” from the movie Spider Man 2. However, even though most are portrayed as antagonistic people with dangerous intents, some are the protagonists of their respective movie, T.V. show, comic, etc. An example of this type of character is Dexter, from Dexter’s Laboratory. I enjoy this archetype of characters because I feel as if this character type adds to the thrill and excitement of movies. I enjoy watching movies with technology out of this world as it adds more to the mystery of finding out how they will use it. For example the Mission Impossible series of movies all have some kinds of new technology and it makes that movie that much more exciting. The mad scientists always, in my opinion, end up making the movie more enjoyable, whether it adds another obstacle for the hero to overcome, or helps the hero succeed in doing his task.
I previously had no idea what a stock character was. Now that I know, I wonder why I have never heard of it before, nor why it didn’t occur to me. My favorite stock character would probably have to be the sly villain. Specifically Rumplestiltskin in the ABC show Once Upon a Time. He is insanely intelligent, almost all knowing, and he’s always one step ahead of everyone. Some would say he is mean, or evil but I don’t believe that he is. If characters are smart enough to combat his wit then they often make out ok. The key is to not underestimate him. While the majority of what he does he does for his own benefit, he can be somewhat fair. As he often says when people come to him for help, “All magic comes with a price”. I love how witty he is as well as his personality. Other stock characters like him would be Ursula in The Little Mermaid, or the Voodoo Man in The Princess and the Frog. What is similar about those two is that what they promise sounds perfect, but it always comes with a price. They paint a perfect picture, but it’s never what is seems. Rumplestiltskin does that as well, only sometimes he wont ask for anything in return, except for a favor. A favor doesn’t sound like much, but with him it can be deadly. You never know what to expect with him and that’s part of what I love about Rumplestiltskin.
One kind of stock character that is present in many forms of literature is the “wise mentor”. Some notable examples of this are Yoda from Star Wars, Mr. Miyagi from The Karate Kid, and others. This type of stock character is portrayed as a wise, patient, and often old man who teaches and trains the protagonist about a subject, often leading to the protagonist going through a gradual and noticeable change in his or her behavior and/or actions. Sometimes, the mentors themselves is a major part of the story, having an often-times tragic backstory, which explains their own demeanor and their reason to teach the protagonist. The mentor character is often used to advance a character’s progression, and adds additional backstory and/or plot in the story. These defining characteristics, found in nearly all of this type of character, make them one of the most easily recognized character. Yoda and Mr. Miyagi teach their respectful proteges about how to fight the antagonist of their time, and along the way reveals to him/her their story, which influences the protagonists in the climax. I enjoy this stock character because while some qualities are set in stone, they will always vary greatly in their own story, and their importance to the story.
A stock character is a character based on a common social stereotype. The stock character of a contender is used in the movie Rudy. Rudy grew up in Illinois with a dream to go to and play football for the University of Notre Dame. His grades and the cost kept him from reaching Notre Dame so Rudy worked in a steel mill like his father and attended a Junior College to boost his grades, ultimately trying to transfer to Notre Dame. When his best friend Pete dies in the mill he decides to pursue his dream of playing football for Notre Dame. After finally getting in, he tries to walk-on to the team. After showing how hard he would work and doing everything he could to help the team he was put on the scout team, which is a practice squad that helps the varsity get ready for the next game. In his last game of his senior year, Coach Devine lets Rudy dress for their game against Georgia Tech. With very little time left the crowd chants “Rudy!” and Coach Devine puts him in for the next three plays. On the last play of the game Rudy sacks the quarterback and his team carries him off the field on their shoulders. Rudy is a contender because of the obstacles he faced on his journey to Notre Dame and the goals he achieved.
A stock character is a character that is based on a stereotype and is found in many different stories. One of my favorite stock characters is the underdog. An underdog is one that is expected to lose and has a disadvantage, but usually wins against all odds. Katniss Everdeen from the Hunger Games series is an example of an underdog. She is from the poorest district of her post-apocalyptic country of Panem. The tributes from District 12 are always against all the odds in The Hunger Games, the annual fight to the death of 24 children that are reaped from each district. Katniss willingly volunteers to participate and most likely die to save her little sister who was chosen. She knew that the odds were against her and everyone overlooks her district. When she is taken to the Capitol to prepare for the games, her odds soon turn around with the help of her clever stylist who gave her the “girl on fire” look that instantly gains her attention and sponsors. When Katniss is taken to the wild arena to fight 23 other kids, she uses her hunting skills, perseverance, and even a “star-crossed lover” angle with the boy from her district to make it through and eventually win the games against all odds.
By definition a stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. One of my favorite examples of a stock character would be Phil Dunphy from “Modern Family.” He’s the jokester. By watching the show, viewers can easily tell what type of personality he has simply by his first lines in the episode. This definitely makes him a stock character. Most shows have that one funny character. He is always ditzy, confused, and clueless. He makes the show enjoyable by telling silly, elementary school jokes. He is very dazed and confused, constantly falling, breaking objects, spilling something, accidently hitting someone else, and just constantly screwing up in a humorous way. Many people would say that you could only understand the references made in this show if you’re an adult. Phil, however, makes this particular show enjoyable for all ages. Phil Dunphy brings out the inner child in every adult who watches the show. I’m always in tears, laughing so hard, because of his corny jokes and actions. He is definitely one of the most important characters of the show. “Modern Family” probably wouldn’t be quite so funny without him. Phil Dunphy is definitely a great example of the common stock character.
A stock character is a stereotypical character usually repeated throughout movies. For example a common stereotypical character we see is the nerdy mastermind that sets up the main character for success. This is seen in almost every single movie where there is a super hero that is saving lives. It is also seen in a movie called National Treasure where Nicholas Cage is assisted by a computer genius that helps him steal the Declaration of Independence. He helps him get out of sticky situations and rigs the cameras to not work when he is in certain areas; buying Cage extra time. The nerd is often overlooked because of the shadow cast by the main character. Without someone planning and creating a strategy for the main character the hero would not be as likely to be successful. Just as in football if there wasn't any blockers protecting running back such as Marshawn Lynch or Adrian Peterson, chances are they wouldn't be able to create the yardage and touchdowns they do with the help of their blockers. Not enough credit is given to those supporting the hero in daily life and in movies. It is quite a shame we are too stuck looking though a tunnel at just what the hero seems to be capable of.
A stock character is a character in a book, show, or movie that represents a stereotypical person in everyday life. One of the most used stock characters in the “jock.” This character is usually seen as a person who cares more about his social status than academics. He can be seen walking through the halls talking with his other athletic friends, all of the wearing their lettermen jackets. He is usually seen with a football in one arm and a pretty girl in the other. He is the most popular person in school but not always the nicest. The jock can sometimes be seen as a bully who beats up on the smaller and weaker. An example of this stock character that comes to my mind is Troy Bolton from one of my favorite films, High School Musical. Troy is portrayed as the star basketball player who somehow falls into being a part of the schools play. This goes against many typical stereotypes, but Troy still portrays the typical jock. He is the most popular kid in school and has many things handed to him. He may have some special privileges for being the star athlete. Stock characters are still prominent in our media today, and they don’t seem to be going away anytime soon.
We all know ‘em, we all love ‘em, it’s the one and only “comedy relief!” The comedy relief character is a character that has been used over and over again, with new “takes” on the character every time. This is a stock character that everyone knows, considering there’s one in almost every movie. It’s normally a friend of the main character that is introduced in a funny way and then is continuously put into funny, awkward, or humiliating situations. Mercutio from the Shakespearian play, Romeo and Juliet, is a good example of this character. He is always seen around Romeo and company joking around and all around making a goof of himself. He over does impressions of people and will make jokes in a dramatic matter. Another good example of this character in C-3PO from the Star Wars movie franchise. C-3PO constantly criticizes the situations other characters get themselves into, even though he himself is getting into some of these situations. A third and final example of this character is Genie from the Aladdin movie. He was a great character that backed up Aladdin himself and was given a lot of well written and funny lines, even a musical number where he is seen in many humorous forms. As you can tell, at least, from all of these examples, the comedy relief is one of the most used stock characters.
A stock character is a fictional character based on a common literary and social stereotypes. Regina George of the film Mean Girls is a stock character. Her stock character is a Mean Girl. She is beautiful, she is popular, she is rich, and nevertheless, she is mean. She has people catering to her left and right and always gets her way. Mean Girls goes on to show how the Mean Girl is taken down by the not so popular girl. I like the movie because it flips the roles of the stock character and the unpopular high schooler, Cady. Regina takes the net girl, Cady, under her wing and becomes "friends" with her only to later stab her in the back. Later on in the movie Cady and victims of Regina get their revenge. The sweet and smart Cady destroys her and stands up for unpopulars everywhere. The Mean Girl becomes the victim of hate and embarrassment while the Nice Girl becomes the Mean Girl. I think this movie tinkers with the Mean Girl stereotype because even the nice, smart, innocent girl becomes mean. This movie and stock character shows that we are all capable of cruelty and nastiness. Every character can be a little bit of a "mean" stock character. This movie is really enjoyable to me because the meanest stock character of them all is turned into a character that every viewer sympathizes for towards the end of the movie.
A stock character is a stereotypical character that is repeated in movies, books, and other fiction pieces. Some of these characters include the superhero, villain, the jock, the dumb blonde, and My favorite stock character would be the hero. Some popular heroes would be Superman, Spiderman, and Batman. They all go against a villain, another example of a popular stock character. These characters are American icons. Another version of a hero could also be the underdog. These heroes are features in comic books, movies, and novels. These superheroes all have villains. Superman has Lex Luthor, Spiderman has the Green Goblin and Batman has the Joker. They all go against the villains. They use their super powers to fight back or save someone that is in danger. They go undercover and no one knows who they are. The superheroes are usually what no none in the movie would expect. They use their powers for good and to fight the evil. The superheroes usually have a positive feel to them. I do not know why, but I really like the stock character of the superhero.
My favorite stock character comes from a book I’ve read for summer reading in 9th grade. Piggy from The Lord of the Flies is my favorite stock character. He is the picked-on, snotty, wimpy character that no one wants to be around. He is also the “henchman” that doesn’t work in the sense that he looks to Ralph (an unstable leader) for his protection but still supports him. Jack, the antagonist, constantly picks on Piggy because Piggy is the weakest and also the most vulnerable to taunting and ridicule because of his weight and his glasses. Piggy also embodies an immature child in the ways he acts and sometimes in his logic. I enjoyed reading the book because of Piggy, the conflict that arose between him and Jack, and the interesting, cruel death of Piggy. Piggy’s death finally set the stranded group of boys off into insanity and disarray. Piggy’s character was a comical, oblivious, wimpy character that was unpopular amongst the boys in the island. His unpopular character led to a rebellion and his untimely death that escalated the situation in the book. His role was essential to the development of the story and the theme of The Lord of the Flies.
A stock character is a character based on a common literary or social stereotype. One example of a stereotypical character in literature and films is a bumbling detective. Bumbling detectives are often mocked or ridiculed by their fellow peers. Although they can be very clever, these characters are portrayed as buffoons or clowns. My favorite bumbling detective is definitely the Ace Ventura. Ace Ventura is a classic character who always solves his cases no matter how difficult. Despite making a great amount of mistakes, he just keeps moving forward. Because of his outside of the box and peculiar thinking, Ace is uncannily able to put together clues that other people can not. One of the perks of being a bumbling detective is that no matter how dire the situation is, you will always come out unscathed. In addition, no matter how badly a detective screws up a case, there will always be another clue or lead. Ultimately, the bumbling detective is always successful because of his or her ability to put random things together, outside the box or peculiar thinking, and blind luck.
A stock character is a character in literature, theater, or film of a type quickly recognized and accepted by the reader or writer and requiring no development by the writer. In the movie, Remember the Titans, Sheryl Yoast is the young daughter of her father, who is a coach for the T.C. Williams football team. Right from the start, it is obvious to the viewer that Sheryl plays the part of a stock character that is a tomboy. The attributes of Sheryl that lead the viewer to believe that she is a tomboy are the clothes she wears, the way she talks, and her love of football, which is a masculine sport. Sheryl’s clothes are always a pair of jeans, and a flannel shirt. She has a southern accent, but the way her lines are portrayed make her seem like a tomboy. Sheryl also loves the game of football, and the way she talks to the boys on her father’s team is not feminine and sweet, but masculine and harsh. I like Sheryl because she isn’t afraid to be herself, and she finds satisfaction in spending time with her father on the football field. In other words, she doesn’t demand attention. Even when she is with other “girly-girls”, Sheryl doesn’t assimilate to fit in with them, but she tries to get them to do different activities. For example, instead of playing with dolls, Sheryl would rather shoot some hoops. In the end, it is ironic that one of the boys on Sheryl’s father’s team dies, and at the funeral, Sheryl is dressed very feminine, and it looks as if she has changed a bit, but she still has a tomboy edge to her.
Many pieces of literature feature a set of stock characters. Many works of fiction will have a smart person or a geek. Nerds are often stereotypically portrayed as a slightly overweight person with poor eyesight, and they usually talk with vocabulary people usually don’t understand. They are usually shown in fiction involving a high school setting, where stock characters usually feature a nerd, a jock, and other stereotypical types of high school students. In movies, nerds usually have nasal voices and they have odd hobbies, such as bug collecting or organizing everything in a room by alphabetical order. They also usually have extremely high grades, usually scoring perfects on every assignment. They are also usually flipped upside-down by bigger people for lunch money. The “nerd” is not a very accurate stock character for many reasons. You don’t really see many people in a real high school that regularly use large vocabulary words, and you’ve probably never seen a person flip another one over just for a few dollars. Most students don’t score perfects on everything, but these characters usually appear in school-based fiction to give a scope of people that can resemble other students. I like these characters because of how unrealistic most of these are, and the stereotypes for these characters are blown out of proportion, making it comical. The nerd is a central stock character in fiction involving a high school, and they are usually chosen to make stories more interesting.
My favorite stock character is the underdog, or unexpected hero type of character. This character is usually an outcast or a quiet person that nobody expects anything from. They just live on the sidelines but some motion of fate puts them in the spotlight. This type of character appears in countless books and movies, usually selelcted by chance for some great task or role that nobody would expect them to take, but they have a hidden talent or skill that allows them to be successful in their job. I like this stock character because most of the time the underdog or unsung hero kind of character has a great story around it. Some great examples are: The Hunger Games (Katniss), Lord of the Rings (Frodo+ Sam), and the Hobbit (Bilbo). These are all great books and movies and are hugely famous. They are acclaimed for their great stories and wonderful charecters that bring the stories to life. Another thing about this stock character is how they bring people into the story. When introduced as the “average joe” the audience can relate to them. But when they become a great hero is draws the audience in, eager to see how a normal person can achieve great things. The unexpected hero is one of the most commonly used stock characters and my personal favorite.
A stock character is a character based on common literary or social stereotypes. The common stock character, the class clown, plays a huge role in the mood of some movies, stories, and books. The class clown is my favorite character because they portray that one person in class that always has others laughing. Even the teachers have to contain their laughter while trying to discipline the student. The class clown often says what everyone is thinking, but is to afraid to say out loud. Not afraid of the demerits and the dean's office, because he has been there to many times. Many people often think that the class clown is not very smart, but behind all of the jokes is an intelligent person. Most class clowns try and hide their abilities because of the risk of being made fun of, but little do they know that everyone would be happily surprised. The class clown is considered a stock character because when people think, class clown, they have an immediate image of the stereotype. The class clown always keeps a jubilant mood throughout the story or movie. They are basically the audience's comic relief no matter what it happening in the story.
A stock character is a character that is common in movies, books, etc. There are multiple types of stock characters from a superhero to a mad scientist. Yet one commonly used character is the nerdy boy or girl in high school. This character is normally portrayed as a skinny nerdy boy with glasses and braces and such. Also, this character usually has trouble with bullies or other “popular” students at his or her school. For example, in the movie 17 Again, the character Ned Gold, played by Thomas Lennon, is portrayed as an adult nerd. As the movie’s first scene, there was a flashback of him in high school as the nerdy kid who was bullied by the popular basketball player. Although this character is commonly used, it is extremely stereotypical. In movies and books they tend to over exaggerate the character, but in reality there is not a true “nerd”. Walking through St. Mark’s halls one would never see a nerdy boy with glasses being pushed around by the popular jocks. Rather, in reality, nobody bullies anyone in St. Mark’s. There are no “nerd” and “popular” cliques especially in St. Mark’s. The “nerd” character is a common stock character, used by authors of book and movie and television show writers that is often over exaggerated and extremely stereotypical.
My favorite type of stock character is the holmesian detective. This is a type of stock character that is a police officer or private detective that solves crimes using inductive and deductive reasoning. This type of stock character is named after Sherlock Holmes, because of the manner in which he conducted his investigations, his strange methods, and his cleverly amusing sayings. My favorite modern day version of the holmesian detective is the main character Shawn in the crime and detective show Psych. Henry, Shawn’s father, aided in the advancement of Shawn’s extraordinary powers of observation and deduction from a young age. Shawn claims to be a psychic, but in reality he uses his keen eye and sharpness to sniff out the crime scene for traces of evidence and clues. Shawn works with his friend Gus at their own private detective firm called Psych. Shawn often works on cases for the Santa Barbara Police Department. Shawn is one of my favorite television characters of all time because he is extremely witty but may come off as a typical run-of-the-mill goof ball to the everyday bystander when in actuality he is astonishingly intelligent. None of the detectives on the police force believe that Shawn is a real psychic, but because of his ability to solve crimes nobody says a word.
A stock character is a character who is stereotypical. The most used stock character in movies and t.v shows is the jock. The jock is always the bully in high school and the stupid one. He picks on the nerd and stuffs them into trash cans or puts their head in the toilet for a swirly. All of the girls adore him, but he only dates the head cheerleader. My favorite example of a jock stock character is Jenko from 21 jump street. He is the underachieving jock in the story. In the beginning of the movie, he does what any stereotypical bully does in movies. Jenko watches the nerdy kid ask the popular girl to prom, after she says no, Jenko makes fun of him. Jenko is also wearing the varsity jacket and has other football guys around him who laugh at all of his jokes. This stereotype is extremely unrealistic. Most football players aren’t the bullies and usually aren’t that stupid. In most schools you find the football players to be the ones studying the most to get good grades and stay on the team. The also don’t bully kids around because they would be kicked off the team. Jenko is a perfect example of a stock character.
A stock character is a character in a movie that has stereotypical traits which have been portrayed countless times in numerous movies. The stock character of the underdog who comes from behind to win is one of these characters. A common movie plot is the story of a humble underdog who beats the arrogant favored victor. Upon conducting an internet search of the word “underdog” one would find movies, television shows, and news articles that tell the story of the victory of the unfavored contender. This character is favored by many because people enjoy hearing the story of how an average joe is capable of achieving greatness. Watching a movie about a heavily favored contender who easily beats everyone is not nearly as entertaining as watching a story about an underdog who works hard and comes from behind to achieve victory in that the story of an underdog is much less predictable and in general most people can relate to the story of an underdog better. Inspirational stories such as We Are Marshall and Remember the Titans, comedies like Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, and action movies such as 300 are all critically acclaimed stock underdog stories that almost all audiences enjoy. Underdogs are always given more recognition in real life for victories than the favored victor does.
A stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. For example in every TV show, book, and movie there will be a mean girl. She is someone who everyone fears, but they worship her just as much. The epitome of this character is Regina George from the move Mean Girls. Regina is an awful human being, and the whole high school lets them walk all over her. The best part of the movie is when the principal ask who had been personally victimized by Regina George and all the girls in the junior class and the faculty raise there hands. When this character is apart of movie, book, or television show there is always a resolution. The mean character always ends up becoming nice and everyone forgives them. Mean Girls is no exception to this. At the end of the movie Regina loses her posse, becomes nice, and finds something new to interest her. Whenever there is a stock character there is a very similar plot that follows. This is what makes a stock character so important; it adds familiarity to the movie, show, or book you’re reading. It might make the ending predictable but the if there’s good writers that go along with the stock character then it’s impossible not to like it.
A stock character is a stereotypical character that is often portrayed to help enhance a story. One example of a stock character is the two-timing “good guy”. In the beginning of the story it is thought that he is one of the good guys who are trying to protect people. By the end of the movie however, it usually comes out that the dastardly villain they were chasing happened to be their boss. Usually they do it for money and more often than not they are portrayed as corrupt military officials who wanted money or self-gain of other sorts. An example can be seen in the movies, The Pacifier, The Lion King, and Star Wars. In The Pacifier the commander tricks the main character to do all the dirty work for him. In The Lion King, Scar kills his own brother to become king. And in Star Wars the Chancellor who leads the Republic is also the villain he is supposed to be destroying. They are often put into stories to add the surprise twist at the end. After all, who would think that the person in Angels and Demons who hired an assassin to kill Cardinals and tried to blow up the Vatican would be the priest in charge of running the Conclave. They may be stock but they are always different and always have different motives which keep them interesting no matter how commonplace they may seem to be.
Regina George from “Mean Girls” is the “popular girl.” She is a girl that is well-liked and appreciated at her school. She is pretty, blonde, and filthy rich. All the girls want to be her and all the guys want to date her. She is often mean and prissy to less popular girls. Regina has sidekicks that follow her everywhere. She is the Queen Bee of the school.
They introduced her into the movie being carried around by many guys. People would share their opinions on her and say, ”She is so pretty, ”or,” She is perfect.” In reality she was very insecure and would take her insecurities out on other people. She was a bully and would be rude to other people, but people were too scared to stand up to her. People saw her as a threat. She didn’t care about anyone else but herself, and would do anything to get what she wanted. Her friends got tired of her attitude and decided to rebel against her by giving her candy bars so she would gain weight, convinced Regina’s boyfriend to dumb her, and Regina’s old friend Cady became the new Queen Bee. The movie teaches you that you should treat people how you want to be treated because you will get what you deserve.
Throughout literature and film history, there have been many different types of stock characters and have become very prominent. One of the most common stock characters in every work of art is the hero; however, despite there being a hero in every book, movie, or TV show every created, there are many different types of heroes. My favorite type of hero, and my favorite stock character, is the reluctant hero. The reluctant hero is one of the most popular of all the heroes, and he/she is typically an ordinary person put into extreme, extraordinary situations in which all eyes are on him/her, and he/she often has his/her courage, strength, and character tested in these situations; the reluctant hero also usually does not agree or believe that he/she is special or has any real importance. The reluctant hero is definitely a stock character because he/she is one of the most common and important figures in all great novels or stories, and it is very easy to spot a reluctant hero. I enjoy the character of the reluctant hero because he/she is very humble, but he/she has a lot of courage and potential, and ultimately the reluctant hero always does great things and works towards the heroic cause. Some of the most well-known and well-liked examples of the reluctant hero are Harry Potter, Katniss Everdeen, and Frodo Baggins from The Lord of the Rings. All these characters initially have a hard time believing that they are anything special and important, but they know they must do everything they can to accomplish their heroic cause.
A stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. I chose the stock character, knight in shining armor. The knight in shining armor is a reoccurring character in most fairy tale stories. This character is not necessarily an actual “knight in shining armor” but it is someone who saves and then falls in love with the damsel in distress, another stock character. The knight in shining armor is usually in the man, but in the case of Princess and the Frog, the knight was a frog. I love this character because I used to want to be a princess when I was younger. I fantasized about my knight in shining armor coming and rescuing me and whisking me away to a land far away. Far away from the all of the evil in the world. We would live happily ever after, in love, for the rest of our lives. Although I never became a princess I still have some hope that my knight will rescue me. However, I am pretty young so I know it will be awhile until I fall in love and live happily ever after. I am still looking forward to the rest of my life and I can’t wait to meet my knight in shining armor.
With a series as expansive as the Harry Potter series, there are numerous stock characters present. They vary from the young hero (Harry Potter himself) to the stern, cold-blooded teacher (Professor Snape). Personally, my favorite character in the series is Professor Dumbledore. Even though he is the headmaster of Hogwarts, Dumbledore does not possess the stereotypical traits that a prototypical principal would have, such as sternness and a love for discipline. However, Dumbledore acts like a father figure towards Harry, and is essentially the stock character of a caring grandfather for Harry (although the two are not related). He shows kindness and compassion and also possesses a vast knowledge of magic which he shares with Harry throughout the book series. Whenever Harry is in trouble and cannot help himself, Dumbledore is always there to help him in some form. However, like a grandfather should, Dumbledore makes sure Harry learns from his mistakes so that he will not commit them again. Dumbledore also teaches Harry many important life lessons, like what Harry should value and what he should let go. Harry counts on Dumbledore to be there for him through thick and thin, and he always is. Although he is the headmaster of Hogwarts, Dumbledore’s kindheartedness and benevolence lead him away from being the stock character of the prototypical principal and makes him more like the stock character of the compassionate grandfather.
Rocky Balboa is the perfect example of the underdog type of character. He is a man with a dream, but he is in difficult situation. He doesn’t have the money to pursue a career in boxing. Without this money, he can’t hire a top of the line coach. So instead of giving up, he battles the adversity. He starts off in a old dirty gym, with a coach who was once known for his coaching ability, but is now an old crotchety man. Rocky trains day and night, never stopping the pursuit of his dream. Without the fame and the fortune clouding his judgement, Rocky is able to become a great boxer. He then begins his rise to fame. He begins beating boxers who are supposedly better then him, gaining recognition along the way. Finally he reaches the final match that will make him the greatest boxer of his weight class. Again Rocky is faced with the adversity of being the underdog. But since he has been in the position before he is able to handle it and defeat Apollo Creed and become the best boxer of his time. Today, when people think of underdogs, the name Rocky Balboa is mentioned and people who are in a tough position strive to be like Rocky and rise to greatness.
A stock character is a character that exhibits a certain stereotype or personality and is used in various different stories. Some examples of this are the miser, varsity jock, mad scientist, and underdog hero. One very common one is the wise old man, or mentor. This is a character used throughout many stories : Gandalf in the Lord of the Rings, Dumbledore in Harry Potter, Mickey in rocky, Oogway in Kong Foo Panda, and many others. The wise old man offten has lots of life expiriance, and takes on the protagonist as a personal protégé in whatever the story is about. The protagonist may find himself in a new situation he has new faced before, such as being a wizard and being a boxer. In many stories, the wise old man will die about half way through, and the protagonist has to deal with his death emotionally, and often uses it as motivation to be successful at whatever the old man taught him. In the end, dead or alive, the protagonist will realize that he learned from the wise old man, or mentor, and the hero may go on to be the next wise old man. This stock character is very important to the epic story genre, as well as many others. He is one of the most important stock characters there are.
Most stories or movies have those characters everyone has seen or heard of before. This character or characters are known as stock characters. One that has been used numerous times, especially in movies and television series, is the simple-minded blonde. In the television series The Big Bang Theory, most of the characters are nerds and scientists except for one. Her name is Penny. She, the blonde-headed actress, waitress and student, is the outcast of the group. All of the other characters have either graduated college majoring in engineering or with a doctorate. Penny can never comprehend the scientific references in the jokes her friends make. She is motivated to learn just to understand these references. Sometimes Penny cannot “see the big picture”. For example in the episode “The Work Song Nanocluster”, one day she decided to start a business making flower barrettes. She got a huge order worth $156 and could not wait to get that money. Although, once she put in all the time, effort, and cost of making the barrettes, she would barely earn any money. Also, Penny did not understand the concept of taxes. I find her character very entertaining and essential to the series to make it funny. Penny is the character that most viewers can relate to while watching the show. Although some of her comments may seem comical and shortsighted, the viewers can understand why she would say such a thing and get a laugh out of it.
Stock characters are very stereotypical and unoriginal, but sometimes stock characters are the very support of the greatest literary arts. Stock characters represent things that are stereotypical and they usually portray common character in real life or in the spirit of things. The underdog is perhaps the best and most joyous and triumphant stock character there is. The underdog is the most thrilling and wild character that was always faced with adversity in events earlier, but emerge in triumphant glory and spectacular thrill. A monumental smile is worn on every face that has watched an underdog make it big. The most famous real life example, is the Cinderella story of March Madness where a 16 seed would win it all There are many examples of heroic underdogs like small town Daniel LaRusso from the Karate Kid(original, of course), or the legendary Rocky Balboa given a random chance to fight the Heavyweight Champion of the World. But even “legendary-er” is the John McClain from the Die hard series played the almighty thrill-seeker Bruce Willis. In the first Die Hard John McClain is a New York cop who is in Los Angeles to visit his wife and kids for Christmas. As he goes to his wife’s work Christmas party, a terrorist attack and a dubious heist to steal billions of dollars is launched. Average Joe John McClain being armed with two pistols beneath his shirt starts to stop this madness. He is no ordinary man in these moments; it seems that he actually rises in his skill and power throughout the movie. He is primarily trying to save his wife, but in the process he takes down a whole team of trained criminals. John McClain is not an average cowardly man in the scenes of Die Hard, he rises above and beyond the duty of any single human being. He is beaten bloody, only has a white beater on, and is barefoot walking on the broken glass of the upper levels of the building. If this scene didn’t give put a smile in the dynamic courage of John McClain, then you were one tough cookie. In the end, John McClain single handedly stopped a terrorist invasion, saved his wife, and also made a best friend along the way. These are the glorious moments we strive for, or at least I do, because there is nothing more epic than being in the spontaneous moment of happiness when you live out the clichés of shocking the world, and turning skeptics into believers.
Stock characters are a type of character usually described as a stereotype. One of my favorite types of stock characters is a damsel in distress. A young woman is usually stuck helpless until a brave man comes to rescue her. Most times the young girl is protected by a monster or dragon and the man has to fight to save the love of his life. In many cases, the man performs this heroic act in hopes to marry the young woman, which in turn makes the woman fall in love. One of my favorite damsel’s in distress is Sleeping Beauty. Sleeping Beauty, or Princess Aurora, grows up in a castle to a royal and very wealthy family. After she was born, her parents invite the entire town and the fairies to welcome their baby girl into the new world, except for one fairy, Maleficent. Because of this, she curses Princess Aurora to one day prick her finger on a spindle and die. However, when this occurs, the other fairies use their powers to soften the curse and change it into a deep sleep. When the Prince hears of this, he knows he must awaken her and save her from the evil Maleficent. In order to get to the princess, he must defeat Maleficent in her dragon form and kiss Sleeping Beauty to awaken her. After she awakens, they agree to marry and live happily ever after. Sleeping Beauty is my favorite stock character because even though she may go through hard times, people still care about her and things take a turn for the better. The fairytale ending “…and they lived happily ever after,” is an overused cliché, but is very special when it comes to the end of the story. Every little girl wants to grow up and have a fairytale ending like that. It keeps the little girl inside of us alive, hoping that one day, a man will be brave enough to overcome any obstacle to be with the girl of his dreams.
When it comes to writing, whether it is books or television or movies, there are always stock characters present to fall back on when in doubt. Stock characters are stereotyped characters that are often used in genre fiction. The “ambitious adventurer” is a common stock character, especially in fiction novels and (appropriately named) adventure movies. The “adventurer” is someone who is always looking for new things to do and new places to explore. This type of character doesn’t simply go and visit places and try new things, they are always excited to and willing to explore unknown places and will seldom shy from a challenge. Lyra Belaqua from the His Dark Materials Trilogy by Philip Pullman is a great example of this type of stock character. In her fantastical world, Lyra looks for any opportunity to escape her drab lifestyle and explore the world with all its possibilities. Of course, Lyra soon does what most adventurers do and gets in way over her head, but that is the beauty of the character. If adventurers did not do that, what kind of exciting story would there be to tell? Lyra, although overwhelmed at times, continually wants to explore and push herself to new heights, which is an admirable characteristic. Adventurer characters are always inspiring and make up a huge chunk of teenagers’ interests when it comes to literature. Sometimes all it takes is reading or watching about an adventurer to unlock that side of a person.
A stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. They rely heavily on the newest fads and styles. For example their attitude, their manner of speech and other general characteristics that makes up a personality. Even clothing and self appearance have a huge impact on a stock character. When thinking of different stock characters I thought of the stereotypical crazy scientist. The first nutty scientist that came to mind was Emmett Brown, “Doc” from the classic movie series Back To the Future. Doc is portrayed as the stereotypical absent minded nutty scientist. He is always making some type of crazy invention; like the contraption he came up with that made ice cubes when he was trapped in the Wild West. His nutty and absent minded ideas that were all over the place almost got him and Marty (Emilio Estevez) killed when he stole the plutonium. But most importantly that he was intelligent enough to create a mathematically and scientific equation that was capable of time travel. Even Doc’s weird scientific lingo that he blurts out at times throughout the movie that confuse Marty are stereotypical of a crazy scientist. Doc is always looking a mess, his clothes are raggedy and his hair is always sticking up like Albert Einstein; much like you would expect from an insane, but crazy intelligent scientist. Doc is the epitome of the stereotypical crazy scientist and is a great example of a stock character.
A know-it-all is described in the dictionary as, “a person who acts as though he or she knows everything and who dismisses the opinions, comments, or suggestions of others.” A know-it-all is a very common stock character depicted in stories throughout time. My favorite know-it-all stock character would have to be Hermione Granger from the Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling. Hermione does actually know almost everything there is to know about magic and wizardry and she never misses a chance to brag about her knowledge. Harry and Ron who aren’t initially her friends during the first book find her rather annoying because she is constantly degrading them for their lack of knowledge. When she thinks she is helping them learn she is really making a show of what a better wizard she is. However, she might do this because she is not from a wizard family like most of the other students and so she might feel like she has something to prove to them as most know-it-alls do. They think they need to impress people with their knowledge. Hermione also does not quite have her priorities sorted out. In her mind the prospect of being expelled from school is worse than that of death. Although Hermione is a know-it-all, she has good intentions and a kind, brave heart. She constantly is seeking to prove herself and always helps a friend in need using her gained knowledge.
A stock character is a character that is always portrayed with the same stereotypical descriptions. One example of a type of stock character is the earthly manifestation of a divine god. In Western society, one particularly prominent example of this stock character is Jesus. Jesus is portrayed essentially the same way, somewhat inaccurately, in almost every movie, television show, play, etc. in which he is a character. He is always pictured with pale white skin, although he was Middle Eastern; long, brown hair; blue eyes; and he is usually clean-shaven. In Western society, this is how we almost always see Jesus portrayed. He is usually much cleaner and healthier looking than the people around him as well, and seems to give off a glow. Most of these depictions were inaccurate, however, as Jesus was from the Middle East and likely had an olive-colored complexion, curly black hair, brown eyes, and probably had a large beard, as was the custom in that time period in the Middle East. Regardless, Jesus is easy to spot in almost every movie or TV show we watch, because he is presented the same way each time. He also is always shown to speak quietly and calmly, no matter the situation. He is always portrayed as very kind, level-headed, and clever when he engaged in debates, specifically about religion.
A stock character is a character in a movie or story that is very stereotypical. For example, a very protective father. The character of a protective father is in a lot of movies. The father is always watching there kids and is really strict a bout what the kids are allowed to do. My favorite example is in the movie “17 Again”. Zac Efron plays a father who is trying to reconnect with his kids who are in high school. He gets turned into a high school student and sees this as an opportunity to redo his life. While Zac Efron’s character is a teenager, he enrolls into the same school that his kids go to so he can be around them. His teenage self becomes best friends with his son and his daughter starts to like him. While Zac Efron’s character is a teenager he watches his kids and is involved in their live to make sure they are not getting into trouble, and if they start to get into trouble he puts a stop to it. This movie really shows how this father is so protective that when he is turned into a teenager, instead of trying to turn back, he finds his kids and watches over them constantly.
Of the many stock characters, one of my favorites is the spoiled child. Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is a fantastic example. The spoiled child stock character is just what the name implies, a child who is very poorly behaved and is very spoiled by his or her parents. Veruca Salt is the child of wealthy parents who own a peanut-shelling factory, and her parents spoil her outrageously. She is a very annoying and bratty child as well, and she is persistent and constantly bugs her parents to get what she wants. The book, along with the two movie adaptations all portray her character in this way. Both the book and and the 1970 movie, and the 2005 one as well from what I remember, also portray Veruca as very nagging and she is constantly begging her parents for the things she sees along the tour and throws fits when they cannot get her them until they finally give in. The book and the 2005 movie Veruca leaves the factory after she is deemed a “bad nut” by the sorting machine that she interferes with, as she wants one of the squirrels that sorts the nuts. In the 1970 movie she leaves the factory after begging her parents for one of the geese that lay the chocolate eggs; she sits down on one of the chutes that belong to the geese and falls down into it when it decides that she is a “bad egg.” I really enjoy Veruca’s character, as it’s a funny one to watch, especially the dynamic between her and her parents, who seem to be afraid of her, and the 1970 movie adaptation is my favorite as far as the portrayal of that dynamic. Veruca truly is an interesting character, and a very good example of the spoiled child stock character.
A stock character is someone who is based on common literary or social stereotypes. The comic relief is usually a coward that turns out to be heroic and adds humor. They are usually afraid but end up doing what they’re afraid of anyway. Scooby-Doo and Shaggy from Scooby Doo are examples of comic reliefs. Scooby and Shaggy always find themselves in situations that they had at first refused to get into but end up in anyway, mostly because they are tempted with Scooby Snacks. Humor is also added because of the fact that Scooby –Doo is a talking dog. Scooby and Shaggy share many of the same character traits such as their fear and constant hunger. Their fear sometimes comes to their advantage when the group is using clues to track down monsters and ghosts such as accidentally finding a clue or hidden door. Sometimes the pair even manages to accidentally capture the villain. I enjoy Scooby-Doo and Shaggy because I can remember always watching reruns of the original series when I was younger and watching newer versions. I always liked the show and would always watch it when it was being played although when I was very young it scared me.
A stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. Regina George is a stereotypical “popular girl” in the movie Mean Girls. Regina is a popular, well-liked female teenager in high school who everyone wishes to be. She is a born leader and must always be the center of attention. She is very good-looking, and has several “sidekicks” who follow her around everywhere and do whatever she tells them to. She gained the title of “Queen Bee” in her school. Like the stereotypical “popular girl,” Regina George is the initial love interest of the male lead character until he sees the unappealing qualities in her personality, like being a bully to all the other girls in their school. Not being the love interest of the lead male character and not having his full attention all the time angers her, causing the plot of the story to develop. I enjoy the stock character of Regina George because she describes the stereotypical “popular girl” that is often portrayed in books and movies very well. She also creates a bit of drama in the movie that keeps it interesting and exciting. The addition of stock characters into the movie, Mean Girls, also enhances the already present humor.
When it comes to short stories and books there are many stereotypical characters that appear. There’s the infamous villain, the female sidekick, the underdog hero. Personally, one of my favorite characters with a stereotyped description is Harry Potter. Harry Potter is supposed to be the underdog that rises up from the horrible house that he is forced to live in and becomes the hero that saves the day. In every book he starts as the outcast and does something that saves the day and brings him into the limelight. He starts out as a victimized child that someone attempts to murder. After he survives, he lives most of his life shoved into the corners. He’s told he’s different and he’s told he’ll never fit in. But when someone comes to tell him he’ll fit in he rises up from the shadows and saves the day. At the end of the series he saves the entire world from the evil forces. He represents the stereotypical underdog that rises up and saves the day as a hero. In most stories that stereotype usually works out that way and in this case as well as many, Harry saves the world from utter destruction.
The classic underdog is one of my favorite and most profoundly enjoyable stock characters. The underdog character is someone who beats all odds of coming out on top at the resolution of the plot. What is considered victory for an underdog character? The essence and beauty of this stock character is that there are many different and possible victories and circumstances that this character can overcome to achieve their ultimate goal of success. Even though there are many variations of this specifics of this character, it still does not change the structure and outline for the generic stock character of an underdog who triumphs over their problems with determination, commitment, and just a little bit of luck. One the greatest underdogs is the character Rudy Ruettiger in the amazing football movie Rudy. This character aspires to play and become a part of joining the Notre Dame football team; however, he is faced with many roadblocks such as his physical size, his financial situation, and certain life events that forever leave an imprint on his heart and in his mind. Through hard work, dedication, and faith Rudy beats the odds and gets accepted at the last moment to Notre Dame. From there, Rudy is able to join the football team and play on the team for a single game winning play. Rudy is one of the greatest true stories of an underdog. Other underdogs include Micky Ward in the movie The Fighter and Rocky Balboa in the movie Rocky. I love this stock character because it encompasses the idea that through hard work, anything is achievable. This theme is very similar to the American Dream.
A stock character is a character based on a social stereotype. I happen to have more than one favorite stock character. My two favorite stock characters show the common cliché of the good girl falling for the bad boy. My favorite stock characters are Danny Zuko and Sandy Olsen from Grease. Danny is the typical “bad” boy and Sandy is the typical “good” girl. They fall in love over the summer and when Sandy unexpectedly transfers to Danny’s school, they realize their differences clash. Sandy is a naïve, sweet girl with a modest style. She is smart and is kind to everyone at Rydell High School. When she joins the school’s girl gang, The Pink Ladies, she realizes she wants to break out of her shell and expand her horizons. Danny, on the other hand, is used to being the kind of person who does not care about school and has more important things on his mind like hanging out with his gang, The T-Birds. Danny realizes that he wants to show more of who he really is instead of his high school persona. He wants to shape up to be a better man for Sandy. Sandy realizes that to win Danny over she needs to “loosen up.” Danny and Sandy are my favorite stock characters because they are both very dynamic. They both wish to expand their horizons to win each other over and they both try to break out of their shells.
My favorite stock character would definitely have to be the Grinch from How the Grinch Stole Christmas. The Grinch is the typical villain turned good guy. The Grinch hates Christmas and everything about it. He’s bitter and thinks of awful ways of how he can ruin the Who’s Christmas. Just like a typical villain the Grinch hates everyone and everything. He is lonely and refuses to let anyone in. He is considered evil and feared by those in Whoville, just like any villain. Like a typical villain in any story the Grinch devises a big evil plot and carries it out. He steals Christmas; every present, every decoration and every last drop of Christmas food is gone. Eventually the Grinch sees the error of his ways, with the help of Cindy Lou Who, and his heart begins to grow. He gives Whoville back their presents and turns from a villain to a good guy. The Grinch is my favorite mainly because he makes me laugh. The Grinch is very silly and does many ridiculous things. I also love the fact the Grinch realizes that what he is doing is not okay all through a little girl. As they say, “his heart grew three sizes that day.”
A stock character, a character of a quickly recognized type and easily accepted by the audience, is readily used through literature. One of my favorite stock characters is the “rightful heir.” Generically, this type is kicked off the scene as a young child and has to fight his way back to take his/her rightful place. Simba, from Disney’s movie The Lion King, falls into this “rightful heir” category. When Simba is a cub, his dad, the king, shows him the lands that he will one day rule. Simba is instantly intrigued. He loves the idea of being the king so much. All of this pride over-confidence makes Simba feel like he’s invincible. So, he goes off with a friend to explore unknown areas. His dad must come after them to save them from the vicious hyenas and Simba’s foolishness. Simba isn’t so lucky the next time. His dad dies trying to save him. He flees because he is scared of what the rest will think of him. When he’s gone, the throne is snatched by a relative who runs the pride like a tyranny. Once Simba has grown up, he comes back to his home and fights off the tyranny. He is crowned king of the pride, the title that was rightfully his from the beginning.
A stock character is someone that any would recognize in a movie, book, or TV show; usually you will recognize them as the stereotypes. You have the jock, the nerd, the outcast, the bad boy, the hero, the villain, the bully, the underdog, the over achiever, well you get my point there are many types of stock characters. One of my favorite stock characters is Katniss Everdeen she is played by Jennifer Lawrence in the movie The Hunger Games. She is known as the underdog. An underdog is someone who’s not popular; often know as a loser that has no chance of winning a completion or anything, but usually ends up on top and wins. In the movie Katniss is an underdog because she comes from the poorest district out of the 12 districts and they rarely even win the Hunger Games because of the lack of training, and how poor they are, you probably have a better chance of finding a needle in a haystack than seeing someone from District 12 win the Hunger Games. But in in the end Katniss managed to beat everybody and win the Hunger Games. That is a true underdog and that’s why she’s my favorite underdog.
The stock character that I picked is Regina George from Mean Girls. The type of stock character that she is is the dumb blonde, or the mean girl. She is the dumb blonde because she is always acting ditzy. For example, she asks if butter has any carbohydrates, which we all know it does, and also thinks that by drinking cranberry juice cocktail, which is pure sugar, will help her lose weight. She is also a mean girl. She is a mean girl because all she does is make fun of people and make them feel bad about themselves. An example of this is, she has a book full of things making fun of other people, calling them fat and ugly. She then takes the book and makes copies of all the pages and scatters them throughout the school so that everyone can see. When everyone sees the pages, she blames all of it on one of her friends, Cady. Cady gets all the blame for it and gets in tons of trouble. When Regina gets hit by a bus while arguing with Cady, everyone blames Cady and says that she pushed her under the bus. Even though she plays the mean girl, she is still my favorite stock character because she has funny lines in the movie and at the end turns into a nice girl.
A stock character is a character with a cliché persona that is used or even over used throughout literature and film. A stock character should be immediately identifiable and usually gives the reader or viewer a positive or negative opininion on the person just base off of prior stories who used the charcter. Possibly on of the most explored with stock characters that allows for interpretation is the us of aliens. I really do like the idea of aliens as a stock character because their basic background as a more advanced an intelligent species allows for the author to change nearly everything else. You could change their appearence, technology, purpose for arrival, mannerisms, and much more. The list could go on and on until the list itself is 200 words. However while they vary, the aliens usually share specific traits like being rather intelligent and also sharing a similar anatomical structure but with more bulb-shaped heads and football-shaped, black eyes. Usually they have silvery skin and don't choose to talk or simply until absolutely necessary. In the end it is just a simple stock character with a bit more flexibility.
My favorite type of stock character is easily the underdog. The underdog is the character who everyone thinks can’t do something or anything, but then shows everyone that they are worth something and then prove themselves. The best example of an underdog is Rudy Ruettiger from the movie “Rudy”. It’s a story of a young kid form the Midwest who wants to play football for Notre Dame. He was not athletic at all, was 5’6”, 180 lbs, and was dyslexic, and he was told all his life he could never even go to college or play college football. He worked hard in school and always played hard at youth and high school football practices. He ended up working at a steel mill where he was still determined to go to Notre Dame. He then went to Holy Cross college for his freshman and sophomore years, he improved his grades enough to get into Notre Dame for his junior and senior year. He walked onto the football team and played practice squad until his final game of senior year. He got mauled everyday at practice by larger, faster, superior athletes. But his coach let him dress the final game and play the last two plays against Georgia Tech. His family, who were huge Notre Dame Fans, looked on and watched him record 1 sack on his final play ever and his 2nd at Notre Dame in front of thousands of people; he then became the only player ever to be carried off the field at Notre Dame. I enjoy this so much because I’m a huge Notre Dame fan and I always watched that movie as a kid and wanted to be relentless like Rudy.
A stock character is someone based on a common literary or social stereotype. Stock characters rely heavily on cultural types or names for their personality, manner of speech, and other characteristics. For my stock character I chose the “cat lady.” In many movie and books there is often a old, unmarried or widowed women. This woman usually has an odd amount of animals. Most of the times these animals are cats. In today’s world people become obsessive over certain things, everyone is different. But many times people refer to “the old lady with a bunch of cats” when stereotyping old ladies. I think the thought of certain stock characters is quite funny, this one included. I agree to this stereotype and disagree. Because some old ladies do tend to have a lot of animals because they feel very lonely at times, which I don’t blame them because you get bored when you live alone. Also I disagree because some people do not like animals so therefore they would not have many cats.
The Doctor is a humorous and trickster hero in the television show, Doctor Who. The Doctor is a virtuous, although somewhat impish, hero that relies on his superior intellect to outsmart antagonists. He is a time traveler that appears in many different places and times, and helps people in distress (mostly complete strangers). He travels with many different companions that often grow as characters throughout the story. Although he often appears defeated he almost always out plays his enemies in the end (with no small amount of help from other characters). The Doctor shows mercy to his defeated opponents, and he adheres to his own personal rules, such as not killing people and not using deadly weapons. In the series The Doctor is the last of a race of highly intelligent aliens (although he looks like a human). He voyages in his time traveling ship known as the Tardis, and he saves people in peril from all manners of unnatural and otherworldly dangers. The Doctor displays valuable personal qualities including not only intelligence and cunning but also valuable moral qualities like mercy and forgiveness, but he does at times become emotional and show faults. I enjoy the character type of the trickster hero because it is unpredictable and builds suspense and curiosity over the final outcome.
Stock Characters are typically stereotypical of what you would expect them to be like. They can be found in movies, shows, and plays everywhere. My personal favorite character is the geeky nerd who gets picked on. I admire this stock character the most because he usually doesn’t care what anyone thinks about him and just does what he wants regardless of what others think. I respect that and I can almost relate to it. In some movies he even gains popularity. He enjoys the short amount of time of it, but then begins to realize it’s not who he truly is, and that he is a geek at heart. The nerd’s role sometimes is not important and I admire that too because it’s not all about being the center of attention of all the time and it’s just better to true to yourself and do what you want to do more than anything. Most importantly I admire them because they are usually very intelligent and advanced more than the other characters of the movie to the point where it seems like the nerds are the only ones using their brains.
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