Protection • [Element] • dyn.pr. Inaction<–>Protection • an effort to prevent interference with one’s concerns • Protection is the act of building one’s defenses against actual and potential threats. Certainly, preparing for problems brings a character advantages should the problems occur. However, the very act of building defenses can be interpreted as a threat to others who rely on Proaction and thereby precipitate the very aggression the character had tried to protect against. Also, a character representing Protection may stifle another’s need for risk-taking or become so wrapped up in preparations that there are no resources left to use for advancement. • syn. defense, safeguard, preservation, precaution

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Protagonist • [Archetype] • An Archetypal Character who represents the qualities of Pursuit and Consider • An Objective Character charged with the responsibility of pursuing a solution to the story’s objective problem. An objective problem does not mean it can’t be personal. Rather, it means that all of the dramatically functioning characters in the story are concerned about the outcome. The true Archetypal Protagonist pursues the solution against the Antagonist. In other stories a close cousin of the Protagonist shares all the same elements except he tries to avoid the Antagonist’s plan. For the Pursuing Protagonist the goal is to cause something. For the Avoiding “Protagonist” the goal is to prevent something.

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Projection • [Element] • dyn.pr. Speculation<–>Projection • an extension of probability into the future • Projection is a means of anticipating events and situations by extending the line of how things have been happening into the future. A character that represents Projection has a good grasp of what he might look for in things to come. However, this character will give great weight to past experience so abrupt changes in direction might be ignored until it is too late. • syn. anticipation, how things will be, most likely, probable

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Progress • [Type] • dyn.pr. Future<–>Progress • the way things are going • Progress concerns itself with change • what direction and how fast? It is not so important where things were, are, or will be, but rather how the struggle between inertia and change seesaws over the course of the story. • syn. flowing, advancing, proceeding, moving forward, developing step by step, graduated, staging, successive, procession, the way things are going

From the Dramatica Theory Book

Production • [Element] • dyn.pr. Reduction<–>Production • a method of thought that determines potential • Almost like deduction in reverse, Production arrives at a future truth by limiting out what can not happen, rather than arriving at a present truth by limiting out what cannot be. Anything remaining when the impossible is ruled out has potential. The problem for the character representing the Production characteristic is that Potentiality is often mistaken for Certainty if he fails to realize that any overlooked or unknown information can completely alter the course of the future. • syn. determining potential, noticing possibilities, ruling out future impossibilities, discovering of potential

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Process • [Element] • dyn.pr. Result<–>Process • an ongoing activity; the mechanism through which a cause leads to an effect • A Process is a series of interactions that create results. The character representing Process will concentrate on keeping the engine running smoothly. Unfortunately, he often forgets to look where the car is actually going. Sometimes the experiences along the way are the important part, other times it is arriving at the destination. • syn. chain of interactions, manner of procedure, cause/effect relation, progression, ongoing pull or tendency

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Problem (Objective Storyline) • [Element] • the underlying cause of the story’s difficulties • Of all the Elements, there is a single one that describes the essence of the story’s problem. The inclusion of this element in an Objective Character identifies him as the Main or Obstacle Character. This is because it makes that character the only one who can solve both the Objective and Subjective problems in a single stroke by addressing the problem (changing).

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Probability • [Element] • dyn.pr. Possibility<–>Probability • liklihood • The character having the Probability characteristic puts its beliefs and efforts behind what is most likely. It is not as bound to safety as a character containing the Certainty characteristic, yet will still only take “calculated” risks. It is always playing the odds and changes direction in mid-stride if the odds change. This allows it to steer clear of many dangers but also tends to make it fickle. • syn. likelihood, prospective, predictable, promising

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Proaction • [Element] • dyn.pr. Reaction<–>Proaction • taking initiative action • The Proactive characteristic will urge a character to begin problem solving on his own. This character will be a self-starter who is up and at it the moment he realizes a potential problem exists. Sometimes, however, a potential problem may not actually materialize and would have disappeared in short order by itself. Proaction may actually cause the problem to occur by irritating the situation. Worse yet, the character representing Proaction may act before the true nature of the problem is seen, leading him to cause damage to innocent or non-responsible parties, sometimes actually aiding the real source of the problem. • syn. to initiate action, execute, undertake, commit, implement

From the Dramatica Dictionary

Present (The Present) • [Type] • dyn.pr. Past<–>Present • the current situation and circumstances • “Present” does not refer to the way things are going, but to the way things are. It is a here and now judgment of the arrangement of a situation and the circumstances surrounding it. A story that focuses on the Present is not concerned with how events led to the current situation nor where the current situation will lead, but defines the scenario that exists at the moment . • syn. how things stand, the here and now, current situation, as of this moment

From the Dramatica Dictionary