Character Values in Conflict

In chapters 4 and 5 of John Truby’s book The Anatomy of Story he describes how you should compare your characters (Chapter 4, page 102) and place the values of each of the major characters in conflict as these people compete for the same goal (Chapter 5, page 117).

So that’s what I’m going to do here (…step back a little bit, please).

Comparing the Characters

List and compare the following structure elements for all your characters.

1. Weaknesses
2. Need, both psychological and moral
3. Desire
4. Values
5. Power, status, and ability
6. How each faces the central moral problem

The Moral Problem in BLUNT FORCE, as best as I’ve articulated it is: How one deals with (acknowledges, responds to, uses) violence.

SAM, Hero

1. Weaknesses:

   Alone, woman in a man’s world, weary-tired-exhausted, traumatized

2. Need, both psychological and moral

   • Psychological Need:

     Sam needs to acknowledge reality, good and bad events (running away and denial are not the answer).

   • Moral Need:

     Sam needs to stop denying reality in her life.

3. Desire:

   Rescue Carl and get on with her happy life (marriage to Carl).

4. Values:

   Independence, love, friendship, connection, power

5. Power, status, and ability:

   As an Army sergeant, Sam has been trained in various things, but her status and power are limited.

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   Sam has experienced a lot of violence growing up and all the way through her current military career. She has dealt with it by default but when given a choice she’s denied it or tried to escape. Even though she’s a soldier, she has not really engaged in violence of her own other than the most limited, defensive kind (defending herself or comrades).

D. KNAPP (formerly D. Reggs, Project Supervisor of Private Security firm), Opponent

1. Weaknesses:

   Views everything from a power/stability point-of-view, sees people as expendable resources

2. Need, both psychological and moral
   Note: A psychological need involves overcoming a serious flaw that is hurting nobody but the hero.

• Psychological Need:

  Needs to stop thinking of himself as independent and a law unto himself (untouchable?)

• Moral Need:

  Needs to treat people with care, kindness, respect and honor

3. Desire:

   To advance in his career in private security, make money and do whatever he wants.

4. Values:

   Power, strength, money, status, connections

5. Power, status, and ability:

   As the head of the section of the private security firm that Carl worked for in Iraq, Knapp has a lot of power over armed personnel and resources. He’s high up in the company and therefore enjoys that status and he has a lot of experience.

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   He delegates violence and uses it freely to “get the job done,” having had a lot of direct experience with violence as a younger man (Marine, Delta Force or Navy SEAL).

KEVIN (brother), Ally

1. Weaknesses:

   Believes he’s incapable of making a difference…of helping, traumatized by childhood abuse

2. Need, both psychological and moral

   • Psychological Need:

     Needs to stop thinking of himself as isolated, alone

   • Moral Need:

     None

3. Desire:

   To help his sister achieve the happier stable life she deserves

4. Values:

   Safety, mental-health, security, compassion, love, connection, family, loyalty,

5. Power, status, and ability:

   As a therapist Kevin has some status, power and ability but it’s limited to his purview

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   Kevin abhors violence, having received and witnessed too much of it growing up. While he deals with it by default, he feels helpless many times to stop it.

“BATS” (best-friend) Ally

1. Weaknesses:

   She’s a figment of Sam’s imagination.

2. Need, both psychological and moral

   • Psychological Need:

     None

   • Moral Need:

     Needs to stop encouraging solely Sam’s survival instincts and help her see reality.

3. Desire:

   Help Sam survive.

4. Values:

   Loyalty, friendship, action, power, strength, fun, excitement

5. Power, status, and ability:

   Bats has the power to persuade Sam to do things that seem to make sense. She has an uncanny and wide range of abilities. She has virtually no status.

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   Bats confronts violence recklessly and head-on without any concern for the consequences. She uses violence whenever she thinks it’s appropriate and she frequently thinks it’s appropriate.

CARL (fiancé), Ally

1. Weaknesses:

   He’s dead.

2. Need, both psychological and moral

   • Psychological Need:

     None

   • Moral Need:

     He needs to treat violence and war as something far more important than something you can simply get hired or paid for.

3. Desire:

   To marry Sam and have a happy, successful life together.

4. Values:

   Strength, friendship, loyalty, love, connection

5. Power, status, and ability:

   As a soldier, Carl was very talented and experienced. His status was modest and on the rise before he died. He has no power.

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   Carl was a professional soldier and therefore dealt with violence calmly and as part of his job, removing it from any context that might have potentially more meaningful or painful ramifications.

POLICE CAPTAIN, Opponent/Ally

1. Weaknesses:

   He’s used to the level of violence that is common to a major metropolitan center.

2. Need, both psychological and moral

   • Psychological Need:

     Needs to realize he’s not equipped to deal with the trauma and violence that is following some vets home.

   • Moral Need:

     None?

3. Desire:

   To resolve and neutralize this incident as quickly and bloodlessly as possible.

4. Values:

   Order, routine, procedure, predictability, authority, strength, power

5. Power, status, and ability:

   As a Captain in the L.A.P.D. he has a lot of power, status and ability.

6. How each faces the central moral problem:

   He deals with violence as an isolated yet controllable problem as long as you follow procedures and have enough man power to deal with it.

So that covers Chapter 4, comparing the characters. Onto putting the characters’ values in conflict, per Chapter 5.

Values in Conflict

• Sam:

  Independence, love, friendship, connection, power

• D. Knapp:

  Power, strength, money, status, connections, deception

• Kevin:

  Safety, mental-health, security, compassion, love, connection, family, loyalty,

• Bats:

  Loyalty, friendship, action, power, strength, fun, excitement

• Carl:

  Strength, friendship, loyalty, love, connection

• Police Captain:

  Order, routine, procedure, predictability, authority, strength, power

Reviewing this collection of values a clear set of oppositions reveals itself. As I envision D. Knapp, he’s a real prick, an evil guy, while keeping him a flesh and blood human being. Against that, Sam has a formidable opponent to deal with, which will only help as she obsessively goes overboard and does immoral acts to get what she wants, to rescue Carl.

As I’ve gone through this process it’s become clear to me that Sam’s character has to be a Republican of the kind who simply accepted what the Bush Administration sold the US public, without very rigorous and critical thinking. Conversely, her brother Kevin is a Democrat by virtue of the circles he travels through. But it could be said that both have made the same mistake, not facing up to the issues and abuses they’ve suffered in their lives which has led them to this situation in which they both lack the understanding to be able to really help each other.

With the exception of D. Knapp, these characters are not bad people. Sam and Kevin in particular are damaged and hurt people who have not found the ways to authentically heal and get past their histories. That failure is what has created this tragic situation for everyone involved.

Truby goes on to talk about Theme should be mostly expressed through the story structure. This comparison and contrasting of these values and other issues I think will serve as a good roadmap for my rewrite and it’s pretty clear that these ingredients have already begun to seep into the makeup of each character. I’ll be curious to see how this translates to writing the treatment.

This story is ultimately about what happens when you have violence and subtract any real or solid discernment from the execution of that violence. Like the combat-crazy cliché of the machine-gunner firing in full auto in a orgiastic, blood-thirsty rage, Sam is basically doing the same thing on her rampage to find her dead fiancé.

In addition to other goals, I hope to make it a successful allegory of the same thing that happened when the Bush administration invaded Iraq on false pretenses, creating a more destabilized world rather than a safer world because of the unpredictability of the repercussions and vengeances that will naturally occur with something like this.

© The Trubyphiles and “Blunt Force” Copyright 2009 Melton Eduardo Cartes. All other copyrights are those of their respective owners.

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