Comprehend
To comprehend means gaining a basic understanding. To comprehend the characters, we can ask questions like:
- Who are the characters?
- Who is the protagonist?
- Who is the antagonist?
In The Three Little Pigs, there are three pigs, a grandmother pig and a wolf. The youngest pig is the protagonist, and the wolf is the antagonist. The protagonist is the main character that represents the hero, and the antagonist is the one that opposes the protagonist (the bad guy).
Interpret
To interpret the characters, we want to dig a little deeper into the details than in the comprehension stage. We can ask questions about their traits, behavior, perception and purpose.
Character traits ask questions like:
- What can we tell about the character's personality?
- What does the character look like, and how do they dress?
- Where are the characters from?
- What is their social status and economic background?
The youngest pig is wise, patient and mature. The middle pig is playful. The oldest pig is lazy and shuns hard work. The wolf is described as big and bad. He seems hungry and persistent with a healthy set of lungs.
Character behavior ask questions like:
- How does the character respond to obstacles?
- How does the character interact with other characters?
- Why does the character behave that way?
The youngest pig, when faced with an obstacle, thinks of a good solution and takes action. He builds a strong brick house and also builds a fire in the chimney to deter the wolf because he is the wise pig. The middle pig takes the easy way when building a house and runs away from his problem (the wolf) because he isn't focused enough to do things well. The oldest pig also takes the easy way when building a house and runs away from his problem (the wolf) because he is too lazy. The wolf uses his strong force when facing obstacles because he is big and bad.
Character perceptions ask questions like:
- How does the character perceive himself or herself?
- What do other characters say about him or her?
- What does the author or narrator say about the character?
This version of the story doesn't give insight into the characters thoughts or perceptions. An example could be if the story said ' . . . and the youngest pig, who thought he was the best . . .' We can tell the author's perceptions though through descriptive words in the story and actions the characters take. The author portrays the youngest pig as wise, young and mature. The middle pig is portrayed as wanting to play all day, and the oldest pig is described as lazy. The author created the wolf to be big and bad.
Character purpose ask questions like:
- What is the purpose of the character in the story?
The youngest pig is the protagonist and carries the role of defeating opposition. He represents wisdom and hard work overcoming the wolf. The middle pig represents the result of playing instead of working. The oldest pig demonstrates the problems that come from laziness. The wolf is the antagonist and is the adversary to the three little pigs. He provides the opportunity for the youngest pig to demonstrate his wisdom.
Drawing Conclusions
Now that we have a good understanding of the characters, we can begin to draw conclusions. Here are some examples of questions we could ask ourselves in order to draw conclusions:
- What conclusions can we draw about the characters?
- What lessons can we learn from the characters?
The three little pigs are designed to teach us a lesson about life. The oldest pig and middle pig teach us that if we neglect our work due to laziness and playfulness, there are consequences. Their minimal time building homes is actually a waste because their homes are destroyed. Had they put more effort in, the homes would be still standing. The youngest pig teaches us that, even though he's the youngest, hard work pays off. He takes the time to build a brick house and he's able to defeat obstacles that come his way. His work can withstand the test of time.
Lesson Summary
In this lesson, we discussed the process of analyzing characters. By first comprehending the text, then interpreting the details, followed by drawing conclusions, we can easily analyze characters in a story. Just remember the acronym CID:
- Comprehend
- Interpret
- Character traits
- Character behavior
- Character perceptions
- Character purpose
- Draw conclusions
- Draw conclusions about the characters
Learning Outcomes
This lesson should make it easier for you to:
- Analyze the characters in a story using three steps
- Understand what comprehend means and how to comprehend characters
- Demonstrate how to interpret characters
- Recognize how to draw conclusions about characters
