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A stock character is a character that relies heavily on cultural types or stereotypes for his or her personality, manner of speech, and other characteristics. In their most general form, stock characters are related to literary archetypes, but they are often more narrowly defined. Stock characters are a key component of genre, providing relationships and interactions that people familiar with the work's genre will recognize immediately. Stock characters make easy targets for parody, and the parody will likely exaggerate any stereotypes associated with these characters. Image File history File links Broom_icon. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Archetype is defined as the first original model of which all other similar persons, objects, or concepts are merely derivative, copied, patterned, or emulated. ... Look up genre in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... In contemporary usage, a parody (or lampoon) is a work that imitates another work in order to ridicule, ironically comment on, or poke some affectionate fun at the work itself, the subject of the work, the author or fictional voice of the parody, or another subject. ...

In the United States, courts have determined that copyright protection can not be extended to the characteristics of stock characters in a story, whether it be a book, play, or film. Nichols v. Universal Pictures Corporation, 45 F.2d 119 (2d Cir. 1930). A trial at the Old Bailey in London as drawn by Thomas Rowlandson and Augustus Pugin for Ackermanns Microcosm of London (1808-11). ... Copyright symbol Copyright is a set of exclusive rights regulating the use of a particular expression of an idea or information. ... For other uses, see Book (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... “Moving picture” redirects here. ... Nichols v. ... // The United States Reports, the official reporter of the Supreme Court of the United States Case citation is the system used in common law countries such as the United States, England and Wales, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Australia and India to uniquely identify the location of past court... The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the following United States District Courts: District of Connecticut Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Districts of New York District of Vermont The Second Circuit hears argument at the Thurgood Marshall U.S... Year 1930 (MCMXXX) was a common year starting on Wednesday (link will display 1930 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ...

History

Ancient Greece

By the loosest definition, stock characters have been around ever since the tragedy of Aeschylus, Sophocles, and Euripides, being based upon the traits of mythological characters. Although mythological characters are not representations of real people, they are a group that would have been recognizable to ancient audiences, and even back then, tended to fall into well-established group types. For example, Hephaestus, Hermes, and Prometheus represented the fool character as "jesters to the gods." This article is about the ancient Greek playwright. ... Sophocles (ancient Greek: ; 495 BC - 406 BC) was the second of three great ancient Greek tragedians. ... A statue of Euripides. ... The bust of Zeus found at Otricoli (Sala Rotonda, Museo Pio-Clementino, Vatican) Greek mythology is the body of stories belonging to the Ancient Greeks concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. ... Hephaestus, Greek god of forging, riding a Donkey; Greek drinking cup (skyphos) made in the 5th century BC Hephaestus (IPA pronunciation: or ; Greek Hêphaistos) was the Greek god whose Roman equivalent was Vulcan; he was the god of technology including, specifically blacksmiths, craftsmen, artisans, sculptors, metals and metallurgy, and... Hermes Fastening his Sandal, Roman marble copy of a Lysippan bronze (Louvre Museum) Hermes (Greek, , IPA: ), in Greek mythology, is the Olympian god of boundaries and of the travelers who cross them, of shepherds and cowherds, of orators and wit, of literature and poets, of athletics, of weights and measures... For other uses, see Prometheus (disambiguation). ...

In a stricter definition, stock characters originated in the theater. For example, the Greek Old Comedy of Aristophanes typically employed three stock characters: the alazon, the boastful imposter; his ironic opponent, the eiron; and the buffoon, known as the bomolochos. Furthermore, the furnishing of these prototypes of Old Comedy with accents, costumes, or props illustrated the desire of the playwright to have the audience readily recognize and relate with the character quickly. The servants wore short-sleeved cassock; parasites carried a short truncheon; rural deities, shepherds, and peasants held a crook; heralds and ambassadors had the caduceus; kings held a sceptre, heroes a club, and old men carried a crooked staff. Greek comedy is the name given to a wide genre of theatrical plays written, and performed, in Ancient Greece. ... Sketch of Aristophanes Aristophanes (Greek: , ca. ... The alazon, in Greek comedy is the opponent of the Eiron. ... In Greek drama, the eiron (ειρων, self-deprecator)[1] was a comedic character who succeeded by bringing his braggart opponent, the alazon, down by making himself seem like less than he actually was. ... The bomolochus (Greek βωμολο/χος) is one of the stock characters in Greek Old Comedy, corresponding to our buffoon. ... The Caduceus Two caduceuses without wings as decoration of door portal in Ztracená street in Olomouc (Czech Republic). ...

Aristotle

As Aristotle explored theories on the pursuit of happiness, he discussed the virtues of people surrounding him and, perhaps unintentionally, was the first person to study characters. Aristotle (Greek: Aristotélēs) (384 BC – 322 BC) was a Greek philosopher, a student of Plato and teacher of Alexander the Great. ...

His Book IV of Nicomachean Ethics, after an outline of positive characteristics (e.g., "liberality," "noble-mindedness," "wit") encouraged in humans, sketched some characters based on their possession, or lack, of these characteristics. Examples include the "rich man of vulgar profusion," the "vain-glorious," the "great-souled man," the “choleric,” the “good tempered man,” the “officious,” the “contentious,” the “self-detractor,” and the “buffoon." Nicomachean Ethics (sometimes spelled Nichomachean), or Ta Ethika, is a work by Aristotle on virtue and moral character which plays a prominent role in defining Aristotelian ethics. ...

In his Rhetoric, Aristotle explored how “young men, old men, men in their prime, well-born men, rich men, men of power, men of good fortune” varied emotionally. Although Aristotle’s work closely resembles what came to be known as the Character, Ethics and Rhetoric contained “disquisitions,” not Characters. Rhetoric (from Greek , rhêtôr, orator, teacher) is generally understood to be the art or technique of persuasion through the use of spoken language; however, this definition of rhetoric has expanded greatly since rhetoric emerged as a field of study in universities. ...

Theophrastus

The study of the Character, as it is now known, was conceived by Aristotle’s student Theophrastus. In The Characters (c. 319 BC), Theophrastus introduced the “character sketch,” which became the core of “the Character as a genre.” It included 30 character types — twenty-six moral types and four social types. Each type is said to be an illustration of an individual who represents a group, characterized by his most prominent trait. The Theophrastan types are as follows: Theophrastus (Greek Θεόφραστος, 370 — about 285 BC), a native of Eressos in Lesbos, was the successor of Aristotle in the Peripatetic school. ...

It is unclear where Theophrastus derived these types, but many strongly resemble those from Aristotle's Nicomachean Ethics. Despite the fact that Theophrastus sought to portray character types and not individuals, some of the sketches may have been drawn from observations of actual persons in Athenian public life. Although the preface of the work implies the intention to catalogue “human nature, associate[ed] with all sorts and conditions of men and contrast[ed] in minute detail the good and bad among them,” many other possible types are left unrepresented. These omissions are especially noticeable because each of the thirty characters represents a negative trait (“the bad”); some scholars have therefore suspected that another half of the work, covering the positive types (“the good”), once existed.^{[citation needed]} This preface, however, is certainly fictitious, i.e. added in later times, and cannot therefore be a source of any allegation.^{[citation needed]} Nowadays many scholars also believe that the definitions found in the beginning of each sketch are later additions.^{[citation needed]}

New Comedy

Main article: Ancient Greek comedy

New Comedy was the first theatrical form to have access to Theophrastus’ Characters. Menander was said to be a student of Theophrastus, and has been remembered for his prototypical cooks, merchants, farmers and slave characters. Although we have few extant works of the New Comedy, the titles of Menander’s plays alone have a “Theophrastan ring": The Fisherman, The Farmer, The Superstitious Man, The Peevish Man, The Promiser, The Heiress, The Priestess, The False Accuser, The Misogynist, The Hated Man, The Shipmaster, The Slave, The Concubine, The Soldiers, The Widow, and The Noise-Shy Man. Greek comedy is the name given to a wide genre of theatrical plays written, and performed, in Ancient Greece. ... Bust of Menander Menander (342–291 BC) (Greek ), Greek dramatist, the chief representative of the New Comedy, was born in Athens. ...

Mimistry

Another early form that illustrates the beginnings of the Character is the mime. Greco-Roman mimic playlets often told the stock story of the fat, stupid husband who returned home to find his wife in bed with a lover, stock characters in themselves. Although the mimes were not confined to playing stock characters, the mimus calvus was an early reappearing character. Mimus calvus resembled Maccus, the buffoon from the fabula atellana or Atellan farce. The Atellan Farce is highly significant in the study of the Character because it contained the first true stock characters.^{[citation needed]} The Atellan Farce employed four fool types. In addition to Maccus, Bucco, the glutton, Pappus, the naïve old man (the fool victim), and Dossennus, the cunning hunchback (the trickster). A fifth type, in the form of the additional character Manducus, the chattering jawed pimp, also may have appeared in the Atellan Farce, possibly out of an adaptation of Dossennus. The Roman mime, as well, was a stock fool, closely related to the Atellan fools. Look up mime in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Atellan farce (fabula Atellana)- This short, improvised comedic form is thought to have included exaggerated family situations or historical or mythological satire and burlesque. ... Atellan farce (fabula Atellana)- This short, improvised comedic form is thought to have included exaggerated family situations or historical or mythological satire and burlesque. ... Bucco is a genus of puffbird in the Bucconidae family. ... Image:Cirsium arvense - pappus of alexandria(aka). ... Fabius Dorsennus or Dossennus (Dossenus). ...

Roman input

Plautus

The Roman playwright Plautus drew from Atellan Farce as well as the Greek Old and New Comedy. He expanded the four types of Atellan Farce to eight (not quite as distinct as the farcical types). The types include: Motto Senatus Populusque Romanus Roman provinces on the eve of the assassination of Julius Caesar, c. ... Titus Macchius Plautus, generally referred to simply as Plautus, was a playwright of Ancient Rome. ...

• Old man, probably a miser - SENEX IRATUS
• Young man in love, possibly the miser's son, who rebels against authority - ADULESCENS AMATOR
• Clever slave - SERVUS CALLIDUS
• Stupid slave
• Parasite
• Courtesan - MERETRIX
• Slave dealer or pimp - LENO
• Braggart soldier - MILES GLORIOSUS

Plautus’s fool was either the slave or parasite. Miles Gloriosus (literally, boastful soldier, in Latin) is a stock character from the drama, specifically comedy, of classical Rome, and variations on this character have appeared in drama and fiction ever since. ...

Laertius

In revision of Theophrastus, Diogenes Laertius published Ethical Characters (Circa 230 BC), sparking interest in two lines of study. Diogenes Laërtius, the biographer of the Greek philosophers, is supposed by some to have received his surname from the town of Laerte in Cilicia, and by others from the Roman family of the Laërtii. ...

The first is that of the character book. Imitators of Theophrastus including Satyrus Atheneus, Heracleides Ponticus, Lycon, and Rutilius Lupus wrote their own character sketches. Circa 212 BC, Ariston’s discourse on morality included several proud Character types and mimicked the Theophrastan style. Following Philodemus of Gadara’s work on “Self seeking Affability” and Ariston’s characters, evidence of acquaintance with the genre is present, however popularity of the portrait over the generalized stock figures in increasing. This may explain the gap of time from the beginning of the Common Era to the 16th century marked by an absence of character sketching. Heraclides Ponticus (387 - 312 BCE), also known as Heraklides, was a Greek philosopher who lived and died at Heraclea, now Eregli, Turkey. ... In Greek mythology, Lycon was a son of King Hippocoon of Sparta. ... Publius Rutilius Lupus was a Roman rhetorician who flourished during the reign of Tiberius. ... Aristo (or Ariston) of Chios (Greek: ; fl. ... Philodemus was an Epicurean philosopher and poet, was born at Gadara in Coele-Syria early in the 1st century B.C., and settled in Rome in the time of Cicero. ...

The second field is the study of nomenclature. As the Character rose as a literary genre, many terms were coined in attempt to place labels on the new subject. The translation Theophrastus’ title is based on the terms charassein and Charakter, associated with the stamping of an impression. Rhetorica ad Herennium (c. 20 BC), attributed to Cicero, split the character up into two qualities: effictio, the description of physical appearance, and notation, the nature of man. Later in his De Inventione, Cicero divided the character, or conformation as he called it, into eleven points: name, nature (natura), way of life (victus), fortune (fortuna), physical appearance (habitus), passions (affectio), interests (studium), reasons for doing things (consilium), one’s deeds (factum), what happens to one (casus), one’s discourses (orationes). Seneca, too, played a part in providing labels for the new genre in his Epistulae Morale, using the terms ethologia and characterismos for characteristic conduct of moral types. Circa 93 AD, Quintilian’s Institutio Oratoria discussed the effect of personality on rhetoric and in so doing, coined the terms ethopoeia, an orator’s imitation of another person’s character or habits, and prosopopoeia, the same thing, but with a dramatization of the person as well as the giving of his words. Other terms conceived in the period include figurae sententiarum and descriptio personae. Decorum, the rhetorical principle that an individual’s words and subject matter are appropriately matched, also became a relevant term, and would remain significant into the Renaissance. The Rhetorica ad Herennium is the oldest surviving Latin book on rhetoric. ... Cicero at about age 60, from an ancient marble bust Marcus Tullius Cicero (IPA:Classical Latin pronunciation: , usually pronounced in American English or in British English; January 3, 106 BC – December 7, 43 BC) was a Roman statesman, lawyer, political theorist, philosopher, widely considered one of Romes greatest orators... The De Inventione is a handbook for orators that M. Tullius Cicero composed when he was still a young man. ... Seneca may refer to: Roman figures (any links to Seneca in Roman pages should be relinked to one of these two) Marcus (or Lucius) Annaeus Seneca also called rhetor, Roman orator and father of Seneca the philosopher and dramatist. ... Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (c. ... Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (c. ... Etiquette is the code that governs the expectations of social behavior, the conventional norm. ... The Renaissance (French for rebirth, or Rinascimento in Italian), was a cultural movement in Italy (and in Europe in general) that began in the late Middle Ages, and spanned roughly the 14th through the 17th century. ...

Supersession by philosophy

The Romans' “perverse admiration for decorum,” is in part responsible for the deterioration and the resulting blackout period of the Character genre. During this blackout, the Character smoldered under the philosophies of such men as Horace. In the Ars Poetica (c. 18 BC), Horace drew pictures of typical men at various ages, from childhood to old age. Horace’s belief that “what is typical of a class should be observable in the individual,” was illustrated in his epistles classifying Achilles as a man of rage and love, Paris an impractical lover, and Ulysses the model of virtue and wisdom. Others, such as Hermogenes, Aphthonius, and Priscian, shared this belief and sought to explore the workings of human nature. Horace, as imagined by Anton von Werner Quintus Horatius Flaccus, (December 8, 65 BC - November 27, 8 BC), known in the English-speaking world as Horace, was the leading Roman lyric poet during the time of Augustus. ... Ars Poetica is a term meaning The Art of Poetry or On the Nature of Poetry. It originated with a work by Horace and has since spawned many other poems that bear the same name. ... The Wrath of Achilles, by François-Léon Benouville (1821–1859) (Musée Fabre) In Greek mythology, Achilles (also Akhilleus or Achilleus) (Ancient Greek: ) was a hero of the Trojan War, the central character and greatest warrior of Homers Iliad, which takes for its theme, not the War... Statue of Paris in the British Museum This article is about the prince of Troy. ... Head of Odysseus from a Greek 2nd century BC marble group representing Odysseus blinding Polyphemus, found at the villa of Tiberius at Sperlonga Odysseus or Ulysses (Greek Odysseus; Latin: Ulixes or, more commonly, Ulysses), pronounced , was the Greek king of Ithaca and the main hero in Homers epic poem... This entry is not about the Hellenistic Ionian architect Hermogenes of Priene Hermogenes of Tarsus, was a Greek rhetorician, surnamed the polisher. ... Aphthonius can refer to: Aelius Festus Aphthonius Aphthonius of Antioch This is a disambiguation page—a list of articles associated with the same title. ... Priscian (Priscianus Caesariensisi), the celebrated Latin grammarian, lived about A.D. 500, i. ...

English resurgence

Steady return

In Medieval England, the study of the Character began its slow recovery, perhaps partly because the existence of feudalism at this time created clear types in society. The Middle Ages formed the middle period in a traditional schematic division of European history into three ages: the classical civilization of Antiquity, the Middle Ages, and modern times, beginning with the Renaissance. ... Roland pledges his fealty to Charlemagne; from a manuscript of a chanson de geste. ...

The Canterbury Tales of Chaucer centered around prototypical characters, including moral and professional types as well as astrological or physiological classifications. With works such as Vision of Piers Plowman (c 1380) and Everyman (c 1520) the use of allegorical characters, such as Dowel ("Do-Well"), Dobet ("Do-Better"), and Dobest ("Do-Best"), and Death, Everyman, Strength, Discretion, Beauty, Fellowship, Knowledge, Good-Deeds, and Avaricia, became a familiar device, not unlike the use of stock characters. Although both stocks and allegories will be recognized by society and represent an institution beyond the individual, stock characters are representative of actual men, while allegorical characters are horizontal studies of one tendency in all men. The English Mystery plays, also contained a form of prototypical character: the vice or devil, and the clown. Although some trace these characters no farther that our natural proclivity for fools, the devil and clown figures seem to have descended from the satirical interludes of the Grecian stage (the satyr play), the Fabula Atellana of Rome theaters, and the Exodiarii and Emboliaria of the mimes. Brant-Barclay’s Ship of Fools (1494) drew upon these simple characters of mystery plays, miracle plays, and morality plays to create this early source of strong medieval sketches. Canterbury Tales Woodcut 1484 The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century (two of them in prose, the rest in verse). ... Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902 Chanticleer the rooster from an outdoor production of Chanticleer and the Fox at Ashby_de_la_Zouch castle Geoffrey Chaucer (ca. ... Page from a 14th century Psalter, showing drolleries on the right margin and a plowman at the bottom. ... Everyman is a 16th century English morality play, with possible origins in a late 15th century Flemish morality play called Elckerlijc. ... Mystery plays are one of the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. ... Papposilenus playing the crotals, theatrical type of the satyr play, Louvre Satyr plays were an ancient Greek form of tragicomedy, similar to the modern-day burlesque style. ... The ship of fools, depicted in a 1549 German woodcut The ship of fools is an old allegory that has long been used in Western culture in literature and paintings. ... Mystery plays or miracle plays are one of the earliest formally developed plays in medieval Europe. ... Morality plays are a type of theatrical allegory in which the protagonist is met by personifications of various moral attributes who try to prompt him to choose a Godly life over one of evil. ...

Erasmus proved to have a deep understanding of the Character in his De Duplici Copia Verborum ac Rerum (1512). In Copia, Erasmus sketched the moral types of “amantis,” “luxoriosi,” “avari,” and “voracis,” as well as the “pretender to wealth.” Especially significant was his sketch of the “pseudoplutus,” which connected the Character with the type-personages of Plautus and Terence. Erasmus also painted vivid sketches in his Moriae Encomium (Praise of Folly) (1509). Desiderius Erasmus in 1523 Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (also Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam) (October 27, probably 1466 – July 12, 1536) was a Dutch humanist and theologian. ... Hans Holbeins witty marginal drawing of Folly (1515), in the first edition, a copy owned by Erasmus himself (Kupferstichkabinett, Basel) The Praise of Folly (Greek title: Morias Enkomion (Μωρίας Εγκώμιον), Latin: Stultitiae Laus, sometimes translated as In Praise of Folly, Dutch title: Lof der Zotheid) is an essay written in 1509... Hans Holbeins witty marginal drawing of Folly (1515), in the first edition, a copy owned by Erasmus himself (Kupferstichkabinett, Basle) The Praise of Folly (Latin title: Moriae Encomium, sometimes translated as In Praise of Folly, Dutch title: Lof der Zotheid) is an essay written in 1509 by Erasmus of...

Flourishing of ideas

At this point, the Character genre was on its way to being recollected, as evidenced by the many editions of Theophrastus published between the years 1527 and 1599. During these years, several additional sources, too, suggested the coming reemergence of the Character. Thomas Wilson’s Arte of Rhetorique (1553) made use of the term descriptio in sketching the pinch-penny. Richard Sherry’s Treatise of the Figures of Grammer and Rhetorike (1555) revisited the terms characterismus and effictio in imitating Erasmus. George Pettie’s translation of Guazzo’s Civile Conversation (1586) included what may have been the first post-Ciceronian attempt to enumerate the divisions of society. Pettie’s divisions included "young men and old, gentlemen and yeomen, princes and private persons, learned and unlearned, citizens and strangers, religious and secular, men and women.” George Puttenham’s Arte of English Poesie (1589) also took a part in the nomenclature trend. Puttenham used the term prosopogrphia describing sketches of real people and set it apart from the previously coined term prosopopoeia, which Puttenham took to describe the personification of abstractions. Other significant titles of the period include Fraterinty of Vocabondes (1561) by Awdeley, Caveat or Warening, for Commen Corsetors (1567) by Thomas Harman, The Countess of Pembroke's Arcadia (1587) by Sir Philip Sidney, Pierce Penilesse (1592) by Nashe, and Wits Miserie (1596) by Lodge. Thomas Wilson is the name of a number of different people: Thomas Wilson (Virginia) (1765–1826), U.S. Representative from Virginia Thomas Wilson (Minnesota) (1827–1910), U.S. Representative from Minnesota Thomas Webber Wilson (1893–1948), U.S. Representative from Mississippi Thomas Wilson (composer) (1927–2001), Scottish composer Thomas Wilson... George Puttenham (d. ... Thomas Harman was an Elizabethan author who lived in Kent, England. ... The Countess of Pembrokes Arcadia, also known simply as The Arcadia is by far Sir Philip Sidneys most ambitious work. ... Philip Sidney Sir Philip Sidney (November 30, 1554 - October 17, 1586) became one of the Elizabethan Ages most prominent figures. ... Thomas Nashe (November 1567–1600?) was an English Elizabethan pamphleteer, poet and satirist. ... Look up lodge in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

New genres

The real impetus to establish a new genre came only in 1592 and 1599, when Isaac Casaubon published the Greek text together with Latin translations, an elaborate commentary, and a ‘Prolegomena’ discussing literary connections. Casaubon coined the terms “Characters Ethici” and “Notationes Morum” and set the concept of the Character whirring with Renaissance spirit. Following Casaubon, Ben Jonson produced several works highly influenced by the Character. Cynthia’s Revels (1600) is said to contain the first genuine English Characters. Every Man Out of His Humour (1600) and Volpone (1606) also follow the Theophrastan model. Isaac Casaubon (February 18, 1559 - July 1, 1614) was a classical scholar, first in France then later in England, regarded by many at the time as the most learned in Europe. ... For other persons of the same name, see Ben Johnson (disambiguation). ... Every Man out of His Humour is a 1599 play written by British playwright Ben Jonson. ... An illustration for an 1898 edition of Volpone by Aubrey Beardsley. ...

Shakespeare, too, contributed to the genre of Character, although not quite as straightforwardly as Jonson. Shakespeare was known for his remarkable ability to write a broad range of characters. Although he was interested in writing realistic character, in exploring various types, he, of course, hit on several stocks. Shakespeare especially employed the fool character in many of his plays: Feste in Twelfth Night, or What You Will, Lavatch and Parolles in All's Well That Ends Well, and Puck in A Midsummer Night's Dream, Launcelot Gobbo in The Merchant of Venice, Touchstone in As You Like It. In addition, Shylock in The Merchant of Venice has often been described as an antisemitic character designed to play into the prejudices of the time, and in this way he would also fit the definition of a "stock character" as well. However, he often settled on rounded characters, stock types with individualized twists. Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... Malvolio and Olivia, in an engraving by R. Staines after a painting by Daniel Maclise. ... Alls Well That Ends Well is a comedy by William Shakespeare, and is often considered one of his problem plays, so-called because they cannot be easily classified as tragedy or comedy. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Portia and Shylock (1835) by Thomas Sully The Merchant of Venice is one of William Shakespeares best-known plays, written sometime between 1596 and 1598. ... Walter Deverell,The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind, 1853 William Shakespeares As You Like It is a pastoral comedy written in 1599 or early 1600. ... Portia and Shylock (1835) by Thomas Sully The Merchant of Venice is one of William Shakespeares best-known plays, written sometime between 1596 and 1598. ...

The genre continued to climb with Joseph Hall’s Characters of Virtues and Vices (1608). Hall is thought to be responsible for the unquestioned emergence of the Character as a distinctive and acknowledged literary form. At last coining the term “character,” Hall presented nine virtuous and fifteen vicious types, all moral or psychological, based on Christian ideals. Among these types are the wise man, the honest man, the faithful man, the valiant man, the humble man, the patient, the truly noble, the good magistrate, the busy-body, the superstitious, the malcontent, the flatterer, the covetous, the vain-glorious, the hypocrite, the profane, the unconstant, the slothful, the ambitious, the envious, the unthrift, and the distrustful. Especially of note is Hall’s sketch of “the good magistrate,” for it is said to bridge the gap between innumerable analytic and satiric pictures of feudal Estates written before Hall and the numerous Characters of social and professional classes written after Hall. Joseph Hall (July 1, 1574 - September 8, 1656), English bishop and satirist, was born at Bristow park, near Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire, on the 1st of July 1574. ...

Around the time of Hall, a new stock-based form was developing in England. The puppet tradition known as Punch and Judy involved a trickster on strings. Although the lazy, gluttonous Punch resembles Bucco and Maccus from the Atellan Farce, such a stock character is present in all stock pools. Such forms came easily with the new awareness of character building up in England. A traditional Punch and Judy booth. ...

The pinnacle

The Character genre finally reached its pinnacle with Sir Thomas Overbury’s A Wife: Witty Characters Written by Himselfe and Other Learned Gentlemen His Friends (1614). The most famous of the 17th-century Character-books, Overbury included 83 types in his fullest edition. Of these, 32 are speculated to have been written by John Webster, with others by Thomas Dekker and John Donne. In addition to the Theophrastan moral types, the Overburian characters include complex social types, including national representatives, women, and representatives of institutions. According to Overbury, his Character sketches are “pictures (real or personal) quaintlie drawne in various colours, all of them heightened by one shadowing.” His Characters include A Good Woman, A Virtuous Widow, A Worthy Commander in the Wars, A Nobel and Retired House-keeper, A Very Very Woman, A Fair and Happy Milkmaid, A Mere Common Lawyer, A Mere Scholar, A Mere Pettifogger, An Arrant Horse-Courser, An Excellent Actor, An Almanac-maker, An Improvident Young Gallant, A Revered Judge, Fantastic Inns of Court Man, A Drunken Dutchman Resident in England, Cleargy Hypocrites, Clerke Hypocrites, A Sailor, A Whore, A Jesuit, and several prison types. Thomas Overbury Sir Thomas Overbury (1581 - September 15, 1613), English poet and essayist, and the victim of one of the most sensational crimes in English history, was the son of Nicholas Overbury, of Bourton-on-the-Hill, and was born at Compton Scorpion, near Ilmington, in Warwickshire. ... John Webster (c. ... Thomas Dekker, (c. ... For the Welsh courtier and diplomat, see Sir John Donne. ...

Other character books

Although the character sketch is said to have peaked with Overbury, A Wife was by no means the last character book. On the contrary, as the character sketch became vogue, countless books continued to catalogue character prototypes. Some noteworthy works include John Stephens’ Satyrical Essayes Characters (1615) including 50 types, and John Earle’s Microcosmography (1628) including 76 types. Eloquentiae Sacre et Humanae Parallela Libri XVI (1619) by Nicholas Caussin, includes many “epidictici characters,” moral and social types, and abstractions suggesting the origin of the types. Caussin alleges that “Garrulus” descends from Theophrastus and Horace; “Avarus, et Tenax” comes from Theophrastus and Plautus; and “Avarus Dives” is from Carthaginian saint Cyprianus. By 1665, the Character genre was so clearly defined that Ralph Johnson in his Scholar's Guide from the Accidence to the University, could outline the “Rules for Making a Character.” In 1688, the Character first extended beyond England and into the mainland of Europe. Jean de La Bruyere’s Les Caracteres, ou les Moeurs de ce Siecle was to become the first work of social criticism in French literature. La Bruyere systematically organized his types under the categories Of Works of the Mind, Of Personal merit, Of Women, Of the Affections, Of Society and Conversation, Of the Gifts of Fortune, Of the Town, Of the Court, Of the Great, Of the Sovereign and the State, Of Mankind, Of Opinions, Of Fashion, Of Certain Customs, Of the Pulpit, Of Free-Thinkers John Lloyd Stephens (November 28, 1805–October 13, 1852) was a American explorer, writer, and diplomat. ... John Earle (c. ... Ralph E. Johnson is co-author of the influential Computer science textbook, Design Patterns. ... Jean de La Bruyère (August 16, 1645 - May 10, 1696), was a French essayist and moralist. ...

Extemporal comedy

Perhaps by chance, this seems to have coincided with the beginnings of the extemporal comedy or commedia dell'arte. Most likely having descended from the Atellan Farce and the Greek and Roman mime, commedia began with four stock characters, first known as magnifichi (magnificent ones) and zanni (slaves), later receiving the names Pantalone, Dottore, Arlecchino, and Scapino/Brighella. In 1667, in a comedy by Ravenscroft, appeared the character of Harlequin. Succeeding La Bruyere, Novelty; or Every Act a Play (1697) came to include Harlequin, Pantalone, Columbine, and Clown. Commedia flourished into a form that would mark the height of the stock character. Like in the Greek Old Comedy, stock costumes are important in assisting the audience in identifying the familiar type. The use of masks in Commedia helped the clear physical portrayal of the character. Masks also served to exaggerate the characters, aiding Commedia in its sense of satire. At no other point in theater history has a form so perfectly typifying the Character genre arisen. Karel Dujardins set his closely-observed scene of a traveling troupes makeshift stage against idealized ruins in the Roman Campagna: dated 1657 (Louvre Museum) Commedia dellarte (Italian: play of professional artists also interpreted as comedy of humors), also known as Extemporal Comedy, was a popular form of improvisational... Zanni (from the Italian, dialectal nickname for Giovanni) was the archetype of the comic servant characters of the Commedia dellarte. ... Pantalone is a stock character that is classified as one of the vecchio or old men in Commedia dellarte. ... Arlecchino (also known as Harlequin in English, Arlequin in French) is the most popular of the zanni or comic servant characters from the Italian Commedia dellArte. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Brighella. ... Brighella, from the 16th century. ... Ravenscroft is a surname, and may refer to Edward Ravenscroft, English dramatist John Ravenscroft, real name of British DJ John Peel John S. Ravenscroft, Episcopal Bishop Raphael Ravenscroft Thomas Ravenscroft Thurl Ravenscroft See also Ravenscroft Psalter Ravenscroft School Ede and Ravenscroft This human name article is a disambiguation page — a... “Arlecchino” redirects here. ... For other things of this name, see Columbine (disambiguation). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

The Innamorati or lovers of commedia dell'arte were stock characters in the sense that they appeared in every scenario, which often revolved around them. However, their lack of distinctive character was shown by their lack of masks, and the action took place about them, with other characters bringing about their fate. The Innamorati (from the Italian innamorato, lover, the one who is in love) are young lovers, characters of the Commedia dellarte. ... Karel Dujardins set his closely-observed scene of a traveling troupes makeshift stage against idealized ruins in the Roman Campagna: dated 1657 (Louvre Museum) Commedia dellarte (Italian: play of professional artists also interpreted as comedy of humors), also known as Extemporal Comedy, was a popular form of improvisational...

Lists of stock characters

• List of heroic stock characters
• List of stock characters in comedy
• List of stock characters in military fiction
• List of stock characters in science fiction
• List of female stock characters

This is a list of stock characters within the heroic archetype. ... This is a list of stock characters that are most commonly used for comedic effect. ... The Bitter War Veteran: A man who fought as a soldier during a war; he usually leaves home a naïve young man, experiences the horrors of war, and returns home embittered and deranged. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... This is a list of stereotypical female characters. ...

See also

For stock characters with articles on Wikipedia, see.

• Anti-hero
• Archetype
• Authority figures in comedy
• Central Casting
• Commedia dell'arte
• Fall guy
• Redshirt
• Sidekick
• Stereotype
• Tragic hero
• The Vice
• The Villain