ABSTRACT
Some of the experiments in putting characters together in a story, to see what happens, are simple and predictable. In a sentimental romance, we know that the sweethearts will end up together. In a melodrama, we know that the hero will defeat the villain. Different genres of story delve into their characters at different levels: Little Red Riding Hood is much less complex than Hamlet; a character from an Agatha Christie story is likely to be more one-dimensional than one from Maya Angelou. All of them have one thing in common: they were built. Sometimes the foundations are shallow and we get the stereotype; with the best, the observation is deep and wholly original; but they all are based upon some form of research into the human heart and psyche.
