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Character Quotes

Character shows up in fiction, politics and physics.

"Character" is used two distinct ways in this collection — as a literary term about how a fictional character carries moral weight, and as a description of personal integrity tied to one's politics and work. For traits and personality more broadly, see Personality quotes.

Action is only really compelling when it reveals character - character revealed through action, and not action for its own sake.

Quotes by Paul Greengrass

I sometimes improvise, and that's what I call 'massaging the character.'

Quotes by Paul Guilfoyle

We all have these tendencies in us that could go this way or that. I think that's the real key in writing. To look at a character without judgment.

Quotes by Paul Haggis

I think that Dean Ambrose is driven to create a first-time-ever, unique character that other people in the future can be compared to.

Quotes by Paul Heyman

When I go in to 'Comedy Bang Bang,' I'll go in most of the time with some beats of where we're going with the idea. Everything else is improvised. Nothing is scripted. A lot of times I'll go in there...

Quotes by Paul F. Tompkins

I have to admit to being a music snob. I think, in a parallel universe, I pretty easily could have been Jack Black's character from 'High Fidelity,' working in a record store and snidely commenting on everyone's purchases.

Quotes by Paul G. Tremblay

I really didn't have any plan for her other than the henchgirl role, who was better at getting laughs out of the other gang members than the Joker was. I gave her the name Harley Quinn because I thought Harley...

Quotes by Paul Dini

There's something very, very liberating about Harley Quinn. Much more so than a character like Catwoman or Poison Ivy. Those are great characters. But then again, those characters are more of the femme fatale and the temptress roles.

Quotes by Paul Dini

It's a lot of fun to identify with a character who lives by their own rules.

Quotes by Paul Dini

Batman is pretty much a self-trained guy. I think it would be fun to do a character like Superman or Captain Marvel or maybe Green Lantern, somebody who's got a completely different resource for fighting crime and fighting villains.

Quotes by Paul Dini

I've always liked the Krampus character, and I've always been fascinated with him, especially the tradition that he was such a part of the holiday season in Europe, in Germany, Austria, northern Italy, various other places.

Quotes by Paul Dini

I have a great fondness for any character I work on. Whether it's somebody like Batman or Harley Quinn or whatever character I'm writing, I just really enjoy the heck out of it, and I try to do the best...

Quotes by Paul Dini

Encourage your kids to be creative. When you see them tracing a character from TV or a comic, say something like, 'That's nice. Now how about you create a character yourself?' Keep kids curious and excited about creating.

Quotes by Paul Dini

You learn by playing a great team, and I'm talking about character things, not hockey technique.

Quotes by Paul Coffey

I think the idea is to try and understand everything about the characters and where the character is coming from, from their point of view, why they say what they do. And not, 'Oh, but I would never say that....

Quotes by Paul Dano

You try to get to know your character as best as you can before you start filming - what's written and not written.

Quotes by Paul Dano

In 'There Will Be Blood,' my character was someone who was an actor himself almost. He had a rehearsed quality about him. He was a performance artist in a way.

Quotes by Paul Dano

Also, from a technical point of view, as you're standing in front of a microphone all day, it's quite a good idea that I should play a laid back sort of character because if he was too frenetic, I'd be...

Quotes by Paul Darrow

More-radical scholars insist that an inherent clash exists between science and our long-held conceptions about consciousness and moral agency: if you accept that our brains are a myriad of smaller components, you must reject such notions as character, praise, blame,...

Quotes by Paul Bloom

It's rare that a character film is easy to fund.

Quotes by Patty Jenkins

Frequently Asked Questions

What different meanings of "character" appear on this page?
Several - literary character in the sense of a written character's moral dimension, the idea that one's politics and the character of their work are inseparable, the freeing quality of dialogue comedy, and even a scientific reference to the "duality of character" in matter and radiation.
Is there a quote about writing and moral character in fiction?
Yes, one quote discusses how everything in fiction ultimately comes down to the relationship between the reader, the writer, and the characters, questioning whether a character addresses moral being in an important way. For more, see the Characters page.
Is there a quote connecting politics and creative work?
Yes, one quote states a belief that "one's politics and the character of his particular work are inseparable," reflecting a radical viewpoint. Browse the Personality page for more on how personal outlook shapes expression.
Is there a quote about comedy writing and characters?
Yes, one quote describes finding it liberating that in dialogue comedy, the characters and what they say aren't the writer themselves - just fleeting thoughts and observations rather than stated truths. For more on how characters take shape, see the Character Development page.
Is there a scientific quote about "character" here?
Yes, interestingly - one quote uses "duality of character" to describe how matter and radiation sometimes behave like waves and sometimes like particles, applying the word in a scientific rather than literary sense. For more on how character is portrayed, check out the Characterization page.

Unusually, one entry borrows the word from physics, describing the dual wave-and-particle character of matter and radiation. Continue with Characters quotes or Character Development quotes.