Need

Definition

In storytelling, a need refers to a character's underlying motivation or desire that drives their actions throughout the narrative. It often highlights a fundamental aspect of their personality and serves as a catalyst for their growth and transformation, particularly when faced with challenges or conflicts. Understanding a character's need is essential for crafting relatable and compelling arcs that resonate with audiences.

5 Must Know Facts For Your Next Test

1. A character's need often reflects their internal struggle and can be different from what they initially desire.
2. The exploration of a character's need allows for deeper emotional engagement with the audience, making their journey relatable.
3. Characters usually confront their needs in pivotal moments, leading to significant turning points in the narrative.
4. The resolution of a character's need often aligns with their overall growth, showcasing how they have changed by the end of the story.
5. Understanding both the need and the desire helps writers create complex characters who experience authentic development.

Review Questions

• How does a character's need influence their actions and decisions throughout a story?
  • A character's need serves as a core motivation that shapes their choices and reactions to various situations. It can lead them to make decisions that might seem irrational at times but are driven by their deeper yearning for change or fulfillment. As the story progresses, the evolution of this need can create conflict and propel the plot, ultimately guiding the character towards growth and resolution.
• In what ways can understanding a character's need enhance the development of their arc?
  • Understanding a character's need provides insight into their motivations and helps define their arc by illustrating how they confront personal challenges. By mapping out how this need evolves, writers can create more layered narratives where characters face internal and external conflicts. This understanding allows for rich storytelling that emphasizes transformation, making it clearer how the character has grown by overcoming obstacles related to their needs.
• Evaluate the relationship between a character's need and their flaws in contributing to their overall growth within the narrative.
  • The relationship between a character's need and their flaws is critical in shaping their overall growth. Flaws often stem from unmet needs or misdirected desires, leading characters into conflict both internally and externally. As they confront these flaws in light of their needs, they can either succumb to them or evolve beyond them, resulting in meaningful transformation. This dynamic not only enriches character complexity but also underscores the universal themes of struggle and redemption within storytelling.

Related terms

Desire: A character's explicit goal or want that often contrasts with their deeper need, driving the plot forward.

Character Arc: The journey of a character as they evolve over the course of the story, typically shaped by their needs and experiences.

Conflict: The obstacles or challenges a character faces that reveal their needs and prompt growth or change.