It has taken me a while to get to this. A few people on Yahoo Answers have stated they don't agree with me on the importance of a character's name. Everyone is free to have their own opinion. Since I haven't been able to tell each of them why I believe character names are important I have decided to write about it on this blog.
Most people say the plot and how you write the story is important and I agree. But to say the naming of any one character isn't I don't agree. I think in most cases the story popularized a name not vise versa. Example: Harry Potter (Harry Potter Series), Edward Cullen (Twilight Saga), Elizabeth Bennett (Pride & Prejudice) the list can go on. The characters could easily be named something else and probably be just as popular. But the Author must have given thought to the Right Name for their character.
Personally I like to look at the nationality of the characters as that in my opinion is an important factor. I also like to find a name with a good meaning. The meaning doesn't have to do with the characters personality as that personality doesn't become clear when someone is just born. I mean I go for a meaning that I like and a name that I think fits the story and character best. Like I will name a character Serenity just because I think the name is beautiful and would have been a name the characters parents would have named her. That character became the antagonist within the story. In that way look at Star Wars, Anakin Skywalker wasn't born and name Darth Vader. The name and significance of the name Anakin was from the mother and George Lucas chose it that way for a reason. So I don't choose a name meaning based on what the character becomes later on. If need be I have the character change their name to coincide with their new role in the novel.
Each person has a different way of choosing a name for their character. I think people should do more research into a name. I don't think a name defines anyone but I think a name creates different feelings and reactions to that name. So I think giving more thought when naming a character isn't a bad thing. Of course like I said every Author has their own way of coming up with character names. You do what is most comfortable for you and I will do the same for my stories.
I hope this has made a little sense to anyone reading this and that it tells you all why I think more Importance should be laid on Character Names.
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