Have you ever read a story with a Mary Sue? You know, that perfect person who is so flawless, they seem plastic? They never make a mistake and know how to do everything? And you got bored 100 words in because they solved any issue seamlessly?
No matter how beautiful the setting or twisty the plot, it is flaws are the character traits that make story characters relatable and interesting. They are a key ingredient in creating an un-put-downable story.
What Are Flaws?
Positive traits can hook the reader’s sympathy immediately, so that the reader knows even the most flawed character has at least one redeeming quality. But too many positive qualities without the balance of negative ones ruin a story.
Imagine a nice, empathetic Sherlock Holmes, a Harry willing to forgive Voldemort and help him out, or an Amelia Bedelia who is great at housework and following directions. Their stories would fizzle on page one. Flaws create tension and conflict, which creates an interesting story, where the reader has to read on to see what happens next.
A fatal flaw is a type of flaw that will cause a character to fail at their goal, and they are most commonly used in tragedies.
Character Flaw Definition
Character flaws are simply negative character traits. They can present as fears, weaknesses, biases, physical scars or internal scars. All flaws are linked to a backstory wound, again, it can be internal, external, or both.
Everyone is a balance of positive and negative, but it is the negative that is important to the development of a story. The character’s flaw is what is keeping them from achieving their story goal immediately. Readers read to not only see the protagonist overcome the antagonist but also to see how the protagonist changes and is shaped like iron in a blacksmith’s fire. Their flaw is beaten out by perseverance and they are made into something more beautiful—or not. And that is the warning to the reader about refusing to change.
Flaws are often the dark side of positive attributes that have been taken too far. Leadership can lead to a lust for power, while helping everyone can lead to action paralysis.
Also, character flaws may or may not be related to their skills or abilities. Being bad at archery isn’t a character flaw. But poor eyesight, impatience, shakiness, refusal to even try because of cynicism, are all flaws that can cause a character to be bad at archery.
Character Flaws List
Choosing the proper flaw for the protagonist is important because it should be something related to the theme of the story and something that directly interferes with them achieving the story goal. Here are some flaws to get the creative juices flowing.
- Overachiever
- Workaholic
- Possessive
- Poor hygiene
- Materialistic
- Complainer
- Blamer
- Know-it-all
- Bully
- Critical
- Coward
- Liar
- Disloyal
- Envious
- Obsessive
- Fears
- Gullible
- Socially awkward
- Fidgetor
- Pessimist
- Greedy
- Selfish
- Vain
- Immature
- Manipulative
- Self-deprecating
- Timid
- Temper/Anger
- Pride
- Addict
- Storyteller
- Superstitious
Flaws Examples in Literature
Flaws have three different levels of their impact on the story, minor, major, and fatal. Minor would be Indiana Jones’ fear of snakes, which doesn’t affect the plot much but adds some tension and humor. Major would be Hagrid’s blind love for dangerous creatures which causes all kinds of mayhem for Hagrid, Harry, Ron, Hermione, and the other students at Hogwarts. Fatal is the main flaw we’re talking about—the one that is keeping the character from achieving their story goal and requiring a character arc of internal change.
The Harry Potter series by J.K. Rowling
Harry Potter’s hubris affects his relationships with his friends and often puts them all into unnecessary danger. This often hinders Harry on his quest to stop Voldemort, but is tempered by his loyalty to his friends.
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens
Scrooge’s stinginess causes broken relationships with those around him and he is forced to face his past choices of money over people.
Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen
This story is literally named after the characters’ main flaws. Elizabeth Bennett’s prejudice and Mr. Darcy’s pride keep them from finding true love.
Charlotte’s Webb by E. B. White
Both Wilbur and Fern begin the story with a deep naivete about the world, and they both must grow up.
The Odyssey by Homer
Odysseus’s fatal flaw is arrogance. He loses all his traveling companions due to it, and it almost keeps him from returning home.
The Adventures of Tom Sawyer by Mark Twain
Tom Sawyer gets into lots of trouble due to his mischievous nature, which causes people to not like him.
Anne of Green Gables by L.M. Montgomery
Anne Shirley is stubborn to a fault. At times it helps her, but mostly it keeps her from finding her place.
Fight Club by Chuck Palahniuk
The narrator is apathetic to the point of a psychotic break. It keeps him from stopping the extreme measures about to be taken in order to feel anything.
Hamlet by Shakespeare
Ophelia is spineless, giving away her agency to everyone around her and being used as a chess piece.
Matilda by Roald Dahl
Matilda’s flaw is actually her age. Because she is so young, even though she is highly intelligent, she has no control over her life. But when she is sent to school, she begins to change all that.
The Picture of Dorian Gray by Oscar Wilde
Dorian Gray is willing to do anything and pay any price to live out his hedonistic tendencies.
Silence of the Lambs by Thomas Harris
Clarice Starling is so focused on her ambition that she doesn’t see what it will truly take to get justice for the victims, and the price she will have to pay.
Wuthering Heights by Emily Bronte
Catherine and Heathcliff are so obsessed with their star-crossed love that they destroy everyone and everything that blocks their path.
A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket
Mr. Poe is ridiculously incompetent at finding a safe home for the Baudelaire orphans and seeing through Count Olaf’s disguises, constantly putting the three children in danger and making it impossible for him to do his job properly.
The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
Jay Gatsby has multiple flaws. His arrogance, romanticism, and recklessness lead him down a path of poor choices. While Daisy Buchannan is shallow and focused on wealth and all the trappings, it can bring her into high society, which keeps her from ever being satisfied with her life.
Moby Dick by Herman Melville
Captain Ahab’s stubbornness leads to a long-reigning battle between him and the white whale where sailors on his ship and the Pequod itself are eventually collateral.
Misery by Stephen King
Annie Wilkes’ controlling nature keeps Paul Sheldon in a miserable and horrific situation, but also ends up pushing him to finish his novel and understand his writing in a new way.
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy by J.R.R. Tolkien
Frodo suffers from an intense fear of failure, which causes him to constantly be timid in his choices. While Gollum’s flaw is obsession with his “precious,” which leads him to make terrible and deadly choices.
Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn
Amy Dunne manipulates the people around her to achieve her goals and punish those she feels need to be punished.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Alexander Dumas
Edmond Dantes is completely fueled by the flaw of vengeance throughout the novel, returning an eye for an eye to those who mistreated him.
Tips For Writing Character Weaknesses
- Determine what the story goal is, and find a flaw that will make it hardest for the character to achieve that goal. Do they want a family? Then give them a belief that they are unworthy of love, or make it so they have an inability to trust.
- Determine what the wound, or root cause, of the flaw is. This traumatic backstory is important for you to know as the author, even if it never shows up in the story. If they are a perfectionist, did they have parents with ridiculously high expectations, or were they abandoned and they need to prove they are valuable?
- Don’t tell the reader what the wound and flaw are. Show them. Have your selfish character scream for care when they have a cut on their finger, while someone else has a broken leg. Or maybe they accuse someone else of not sharing. Your characters’ actions, choices, thoughts, dialogue, and reactions should be driven by their flaws and are great ways to showcase who your character is without outright telling the reader.
- Consider the positive aspects of the flaw. Someone who is timid is often overlooked, but that means they could see or hear something that others don’t realize they know. Or when they do speak up, it is because they have carefully taken in all the information and carefully thought out the best plan of action. Or maybe it is easy for others to make friends with them, or it brings out someone’s protective side.
- Think of ways your character would act due to this flaw. Even if multiple people had the same flaw, they would all react differently because of their different experiences and unique mix of traits. So, someone cynical could roll their eyes, put others down with their words, always expect a bad outcome, make friends with like-minded people, or refuse to associate with others.
- Beware that the character isn’t flat or cliché. Positive traits and other smaller flaws will help round out your character and may create some surprising internal conflicts.
- Determine where the character arc starts and ends. Is it a positive arc, starting with a fatal flaw and learning how to change for the better over the course of the story? Is it a negative arc, where they start with a minor or major flaw and fall deeper into the rabbit hole, leaning more into their flaws and unable to change by the end of the story? It could also be a neutral character arc, like Sherlock Holmes, who doesn’t change much. But bear in mind, modern readers read to become attached to a character through their flaws, struggles, and change.
- Choosing minor flaws is a way to make your character seem more real and shows the reader early on that there is depth to this character that will be revealed over the course of the story. They can also be clues or red herrings in a mystery. Tics and habits like bouncing a knee, biting a lip, or chewing on a pencil, can give away a character’s emotions, as well.