If You Were A Character of A Novel (or Movie) Who Do You Identify With?
By pyewacket
@pyewacket (43903)
United States
April 29, 2008 8:03pm CST
I'm an insatiable reader, particularly of fantasy and children's books. We all have characters in books (or movies) that we identify with somehow, which is perhaps the appeal for many books as there is always at least one character we love.
Being that I'm a Harry Potter fan, I can't help identifying a lot with Hermione Granger..the "insufferable know it all" as Professor Snape calls her. As a kid I too always had a nose in a book, was the studious nerdy jerk, always dragged along a pile of books around with me, always got A's in my term papers...in college one time I really could have used her "Time Turner" for like her one term I took a LOT of classes..21 credits in just one term when most students only took about 14 credits a term, and yes, did survive without a breakdown.
I also kind of identify with Harry Potter himself. While my parents didn't die when I was a baby, like his did, my parents were divorced when I was only a year and a half old. I never got to know my father, and my mother and grandmother that I grew up with weren't the most loving people to grow up with..in other words they were as unaffectionate as the Dursleys that Harry Potter grew up with
On another note....I'm now reading the Artemis Fowl series and in some ways I even identify with him...he's a smart a$$ed kid of thirteen, a schemer, and also a nerdy geek, why he even uses a Mac computer..uh, just like me. Now while I might not be a "schemer" at least not for anything bad, I like to think I have that capability to "scheme" when things get rough in my life and I can problem solve away most difficulties in my life
So...what about you? Is there a character from a book or movie that you identify with?
6 people like this
12 responses
@ElicBxn (63594)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Even tho I grew up in the same town I have lived in since I was less than 2, I always identified with Mary Lennox in The Secret Garden or Sarah Crewe from the Little Princess. I always felt like a misfit, an outsider and picked on. I did try to make the best of it and, like Sarah Crewe, I made up pretend places where things were happier for me. Except that I never felt like a girl.
5 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
OMG--The Secret Garden was one of my all time favorite books as a kid....I STILL have my old copy of it too! I think I identify with a lot of misfit characters myself
4 people like this
@GardenGerty (160708)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I had to show off, and read [/u]The Secret Garden[u] when I was in second grade. I had seen the movie on television and absolutely loved it. I had a beautiful King Arthur book, but I do not know the title. It was all very pure, love from afar, and very mystical, and I have never seen anything like it yet. I also read it the first time when I was in second grade. I even carried that book with me to college. It had beautiful color plates for illustrations.
3 people like this
@ElicBxn (63594)
• United States
30 Apr 08
The book was read to me in second grade and then I spent YEARS looking for it. I found it, loaned it to a friend of my sister's and it got rained on. I had that copy for quite some time afterward until I finally replaced it with one that wasn't swollen out of shape.
1 person likes this
@Lakota12 (42600)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I always seemed to like the red heads in the movies altho I didnt know they all were for the movies were black and white the when I found out they were red heads I liked them even better for they were always so feisty and really stuck to thier gund
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Oh my those were fantastic actresses too!
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
You mean someone like Bette Davis...can't think of a more fiesty woman than her..same with Katherine Hepburn--
1 person likes this
@GardenGerty (160708)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I often get "into" whatever books I am reading, sadly
I just do not read anymore. In school the thirdgrade students did a unit on [/u]Sarah, Plain and Tall, and I do identify with Sarah. I would rather build bookcases than keep house. As a junior high aged girl I discovered Gone With the Wind[u] and fancied myself to be Scarlett O'Hara. Her dad, in my mind's eye, looked just like my Grandfather. I cannot think of much more right now to tell about, too tired, I guess.
I just do not read anymore. In school the thirdgrade students did a unit on [/u]Sarah, Plain and Tall, and I do identify with Sarah. I would rather build bookcases than keep house. As a junior high aged girl I discovered Gone With the Wind[u] and fancied myself to be Scarlett O'Hara. Her dad, in my mind's eye, looked just like my Grandfather. I cannot think of much more right now to tell about, too tired, I guess.@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Too be honest I don't read as much as I used to either...my favorite time to read is before I go to sleep. I used to spend hours lying in bed reading...now I have a nasty habit of falling asleep while reading...real bummer
1 person likes this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
30 Apr 08
well since I wrote the book angels watching over me, I identify with my characters, a little with the heroine, Carissa, but mostly with two secondary characters, Gracie and Lorraine, who are actually composites of me, but from very different aspects.
Gracie is the fat single parent of a boy - me,
Lorraine is the psychologist friend, - me
Now for other books, it would be Jo March in Little Women, the very mature older sister in Louisa May Alcott's book
2 people like this
@winterose (39887)
• Canada
3 May 08
two books I wrote,
well for the novel, I worked about 2 hours or 1500 - 2000 words a night, that was the easy part, the revisions is a lot harder, I had about 5 proof readers and 3 edits on it, each people saying something different add this, take this out, what did you take it out for you really needed sort of thing.
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Wow--I'm very impressed that you wrote a book. I have some novels as well, but my greatest problem is just finding the time to really write them out as I have a zillion other things to do...how do you find the time...I'm all ears cause I really do want to write my books
And yes can relate...so much of the characters I write have parts of me in them as well
2 people like this
@BarBaraPrz (47344)
• St. Catharines, Ontario
30 Apr 08
Generally, when reading a book, I'll identify with the lead character (that is, if it's a well-written book). That's not always the case with a movie, but the same applies.
2 people like this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Heehee--so you like identifying with the lead characters?
1 person likes this
@010878 (303)
• Indonesia
30 Apr 08
Well I love harry potter and I can relate to Harry character because mostly we both have the same birthday LOL (so I dunno maybe i'm more like neville ??!? ) and we both tend to be shy around girls tho perhaps one thing is quite difference is I'm pretty sure I'd be in Slytherin LOL
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Nah..I most definitely would rather be in Gryffindor..LOL
1 person likes this
@pyewacket (43903)
• United States
30 Apr 08
Where is this quiz..I wouldn't mind taking it...LOL
1 person likes this
@emeraldisle (13139)
• United States
1 May 08
Reading your post I started to wonder if I wrote it. Sounds just like me in college. I normally took 18 to 19 credits but the one semester I took 20 (they wouldn't let me take 21, even taking the 20 i had to get permission 
). I also worked during it all, several part time jobs. Unlike you though I had a bit of a meltdown. So I also identify with Hermione in many ways. The over achiever with grades and being the nerdy jerk with the ton of books.
I've read a lot of books and seen a lot of movies over the years and I usually find a character in each that I can identify with at least somewhat. There are some where I might not directly identify with but I wish I could be like them. 
.
). I also worked during it all, several part time jobs. Unlike you though I had a bit of a meltdown. So I also identify with Hermione in many ways. The over achiever with grades and being the nerdy jerk with the ton of books.
I've read a lot of books and seen a lot of movies over the years and I usually find a character in each that I can identify with at least somewhat. There are some where I might not directly identify with but I wish I could be like them. .
@irisheyes (4370)
• United States
30 Apr 08
I'd like to be my all time favorite female literary character - Becky Sharpe in Vanity Fair. She was the quintessential bad girl schemer but she had a heart and did the right thing in the end.
@sarahruthbeth22 (43143)
• United States
5 May 08
I characters I wish I were like but I don't have any I can identify with. i wish I had the power to be like Medea. I wish i could be as smart as Meyer Lansky. and I wish I could enjoy my work like Ben Siegal aka Bugsy.And be as passionate as Beethoven.
@Hatley (163776)
• Garden Grove, California
30 Apr 08
Miss Marple from Agatha Christies books. the elderly lady whom everyone thinks is a little dottie but she is actully very smart and always helps the police to find out who dunit. I love reading mystery books. also Sue graftons woman detective Millhone I do not remember her first name off hand but she is in her thirties and has a very interesting way of solving mysteris.she is a female private, oh now i remember Kinsey Milhone. that would be my second choice.
@drumbum04 (171)
• Philippines
30 Apr 08
If I were to identif with a character in a movie, I would like to be Lara Croft in Tomb Raider. I am adventurous and energetic. It would be fun to be Lara because she goes to different places trying to fulfill her mission. She battles tough men and ends up victorious. She is so cool.
@munkeyaviator (2)
• Israel
30 Apr 08
I would identify with Jenna Jameson or Pamela Anderson. No matter what I do in life I always manage to get $&%@ed from all sides.
