Foil Character Definition Literature
Foils are often used to highlight a character s strengths or to criticize their weaknesses.
Foil character definition literature. A supporting character who has a contrasting personality and set of values. A foil character is any character in literature that through his or her actions and words highlights and directly contrasts the personal traits qualities values and motivations of another character. A character that exhibits opposite or conflicting traits to another character is called a foil.
Can be multiple characters. Foil in literature a character who is presented as a contrast to a second character so as to point to or show to advantage some aspect of the second character. Is not always the antagonist.
Foil character definition. The objective is to highlight the traits of the other character. In some cases a subplot can be used as a foil to the main plot.
Foils are used in all types of literature. Define foil in literature. The intention behind introducing a foil character in the plot is to highlight more attention on the personality traits of the other character.
Watson in sir arthur conan doyle s sherlock holmes stories. The term foil though generally being applied to a contrasting character may also be used for any comparison that is drawn to portray a difference between two things. In literature authors will sometimes highlight certain aspects of a character s personality by using a foil.
This is especially true in the case of metafiction and the story within a story motif. The definition of foil is a literary character that is meant to highlight and amplify characteristic in another character by possessing opposite traits. In short a foil character can be defined as a character whose personality is opposite to another character.
An obvious example is the character of dr. The word foil comes from the old practice of backing gems with foil to make them shine more. The foil character is used to highlight some particular quality or qualities of the main character.
In fiction a foil is a character who contrasts with another character usually the protagonist to highlight qualities of the other character. By having two opposite characters interacting in similar plot events the reader gets to see how each character confronts conflict turmoil relationships and moral dilemmas. To sum up a foil character.
The foil character may be completely opposite to the protagonist or very similar with one key difference. Watson is a perfect foil for. The term comes from the old jewelers practice of displaying gemstones on sheets of foil to make them shine more brightly.
Putting the foil and main character in close proximity helps draw readers attention to the latter s attributes. Foil characters can be antagonists but not always sometimes foils will even be other characters alongside the protagonist when an author uses a foil they want to make sure that the reader is picking up on important attributes and characteristics of a.
