There are a lot of stock character tropes, some of which are still prevalent in fiction, and others which are best left in the past.

Stock Character Examples Notable stock character examples As a result, plenty of stock characters can be fairly offensive, especially by modern standards.

In plenty of cases, stock characters are defined as stereotypes, but that’s only because so many stock characters have been defined by their class, race, or sex. One other aspect of these characters that cannot be forgotten are stereotypes.

A good way to remember is that archetypes are more general and vague, whereas stock characters are very specific. So while character archetypes are similar to stock characters, they are not exactly the same. In addition to stock characters, character archetypes were also created and fleshed out over time they represented more broad ideas and traits. Thus, many long standing types were given even greater exposure, which made making some movies and shows easier.īut it also made it easier for people to recognize these characters and think about them with a more critical lens. Many stock characters we have today would be further introduced in literature, cinema, and television. Greek and Roman theater helped flesh out stock characters as a concept, but many of the ones we have now would not originate until much, much later.

Statiatic/flat character definition