by John B. Rosenman
What’s more
important to a writer—a good plot or good characters?
What’s more
important in a movie—a good plot or good characters?
It’s an old debate,
dating back to Aristotle’s Poetics 2400
years ago. Writing of tragic plays,
Aristotle analyzed the complexities of Plot and placed it First over Character
in terms of importance.
But this is a new
age, and we have new forms of art. What about
you? Think of good books you’ve read,
good movies you’ve seen. What is more
important—plot or characters? Oh, I know
other things are important, too. Good
dialogue, good description, and so on.
But which one really pulls you in more and keeps you reading or
watching.
In my Inspector of the Cross series, Turtan is
four thousand years old and has had many breath-taking adventures fighting the
aliens in order to save humanity. I
think he’s a really interesting guy, but the plot ain’t bad either. In fact, you couldn’t really have one without
the other. (Available at Amazon below):
http://www.amazon.com/Inspector-Cross-John-B-Rosenman-ebook/dp/B007USB0YU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1404172900&sr=8-1&keywords=inspector+of+the+cross
In my just published novel The Merry-Go-Round Man about three teenage boys growing up in the not-so-innocent fifties, Johnny Roth is just beginning to discover two great (and I think interesting) gifts. The plot itself raises the question of whether or not the boy who scrambles first to the top of a small merry-go-round will be a winner for the rest of his life. Johnny takes part in this contest. Is he or this major plot element more important? (Available at Amazon below):
In my just published novel The Merry-Go-Round Man about three teenage boys growing up in the not-so-innocent fifties, Johnny Roth is just beginning to discover two great (and I think interesting) gifts. The plot itself raises the question of whether or not the boy who scrambles first to the top of a small merry-go-round will be a winner for the rest of his life. Johnny takes part in this contest. Is he or this major plot element more important? (Available at Amazon below):
Or think of classic literature. Isn’t mad, fanatical Captain Ahab a wonderful
character in Moby Dick? Yes, but what would he be without his endless
quest for a white whale across the world’s oceans?
You can probably pick any medium you like. The movies, for example. Ah, the Star
Wars franchise. It’s hard to beat
the menacing Darth Vader, the mystery man with the deep, deep voice and in-drawn,
hissing breath beneath the frightening mask. Talk
about being unforgettable! Still, the
galactic-wide war beneath two empires, one good, one bad, one ruled by the Dark
Side, is as awesome and archetypal as you could wish. Luke Skywalker and Han Solo vs. Darth Vader et al. The Good Guys vs. the Bad Guys. The only thing missing are the white hats and
the black hats.
You can probably add your own genres and mediums. In the end, what do you think is more
important—a good plot, good characters, or something else? Or is the question dumb or meaningless? Aristotle also included Spectacle as the
lowest and least important of his six parts of tragedy, but judging by movie
blockbusters today, special effects, bombs exploding, lavish sets, costumes
and the like are what often attract people to the theater. To heck with old Aristotle: is SPECTACLE the
most important thing in movies or fiction?
Gentle Reader, you tell me.