character study

American  

noun

1. a work of fiction in which the delineation of the central character's personality is more important than the plot.

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Example Sentences

Mr. Soderbergh and Mr. Solomon—who has his own stellar résumé that includes such features as “Men in Black” and the “Bill & Ted” comedies—are not content to set up a stagey character study.

From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 9, 2026

He stars in Blue Moon - a character study of Lorenz Hart, a formerly successful songwriter struggling with the huge hit his former partner Richard Rogers is having with the musical Oklahoma!

From BBC • Feb. 11, 2026

Instead, it has all the hallmarks of both a black comedy comprising carefully crafted scenes and a deft character study made up of painstakingly applied warts-and-all detail.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 2, 2026

The three-time Oscar winner behind “Terms of Endearment” and “Broadcast News” is back with his first film in 15 years, the richly warm character study “Ella McCay.”

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 12, 2025

Peggy's character study of Audrey, the country wench, showed such an amusing combination of stupidity and common sense that in spite of the unimportance of the part, she won a real triumph.

From The Camp Fire Girls Behind the Lines by Vandercook, Margaret O'Bannon Womack