Post by shiftyPotentate on Dec 2, 2011 10:40:40 GMT -5
So last night I had an epiphany re: RPing and character creation. I mostly wrote this for myself to get it down and saved for later reference but I thought I'd post it here for others to read as well.
Here it is:
"I have a hypothesis on why I, and to some degree, anyone who roleplays might tend to be especially critical of their own characters and the tropes and stereotypes that character employs.
It came to me while I was reading the Friendly Neighboorhood Vampire trope on TV Tropes (the trope describes a vampire character who, instead of the traditional bloodsucking interested-in-their-own-survival vampire who doesn't care about the well-being of his victim, will be very concerned with the humanity of their act and generally pursue an alternative to the standard practice). When one character in a work exemplifies a trope like this, it's a character with a neat aspect that sets them apart from the rest of the cast (either because they are, in fact, a vampire, who also cares, or that in a cast of vampires, they're the one who cares). You can compare that character to the rest of the cast and have proper perspective.
But when you make your own character and assign them personality traits, when you give them that unique trait(s), you're comparing that character against themself, and what an average person would be like, since that (instead of a diverse cast) is your frame of reference. So rather than seeing their unique traits as healthfully different, you see all the different add-ons as being a little too much and maybe you added something that makes them a little sue ish.
With that in mind (and this is more a message to myself than other people so don't worry too much about it), take a character you create and compare them consciously against others that also fit a trope they possess. If you make an alchemist, compare them against a spectrum of alchemists, from the kind that mix potions to the kind that snap and make fire (I'm looking at you, Roy Mustang). If your character is an anthropomorphic bull, compare them to other anthropomorphics, and Tauren, and the like. The key is to have the right frame of reference, or else you'll probably worry too much about that character and that they might have too many strengths or an inappropriate weakness or something.
--Steven Benson"
Here it is:
"I have a hypothesis on why I, and to some degree, anyone who roleplays might tend to be especially critical of their own characters and the tropes and stereotypes that character employs.
It came to me while I was reading the Friendly Neighboorhood Vampire trope on TV Tropes (the trope describes a vampire character who, instead of the traditional bloodsucking interested-in-their-own-survival vampire who doesn't care about the well-being of his victim, will be very concerned with the humanity of their act and generally pursue an alternative to the standard practice). When one character in a work exemplifies a trope like this, it's a character with a neat aspect that sets them apart from the rest of the cast (either because they are, in fact, a vampire, who also cares, or that in a cast of vampires, they're the one who cares). You can compare that character to the rest of the cast and have proper perspective.
But when you make your own character and assign them personality traits, when you give them that unique trait(s), you're comparing that character against themself, and what an average person would be like, since that (instead of a diverse cast) is your frame of reference. So rather than seeing their unique traits as healthfully different, you see all the different add-ons as being a little too much and maybe you added something that makes them a little sue ish.
With that in mind (and this is more a message to myself than other people so don't worry too much about it), take a character you create and compare them consciously against others that also fit a trope they possess. If you make an alchemist, compare them against a spectrum of alchemists, from the kind that mix potions to the kind that snap and make fire (I'm looking at you, Roy Mustang). If your character is an anthropomorphic bull, compare them to other anthropomorphics, and Tauren, and the like. The key is to have the right frame of reference, or else you'll probably worry too much about that character and that they might have too many strengths or an inappropriate weakness or something.
--Steven Benson"
