Many of literature's most lifelike and memorable characters are static. On the contrary, many static characters-like Romeo, for instance-are quite complex.

Just because a character is static does not mean that they are 'bad' or overly simplistic.

Static characters can be protagonists, antagonists, or other minor characters, and a narrative can have more than one static character.

The opposite of a static character is a dynamic character: one who does undergo internal changes over the course of a story.

Some additional key details about static characters: For instance, in Romeo and Juliet, it can be argued that Romeo is a static character: he's defined by his impulsiveness and emotionally volatility, and rather than changing these traits, he ultimately dies because of them. Antagonists are often static characters, but any character in a story can be static.

What is a static character? Here’s a quick and simple definition:Ī character is said to be 'static' if they do not undergo any substantial internal changes as a result of the story's major plot developments.

Static/flat character definition