We all know who they are. Sherlock Holmes. Superman. Batman. Tarzan of the Apes. There are others. These are not just wildly popular fictional characters today – they are cultural icons. It’s the dream of every fiction author to create such a being, but how? What are the characteristics that these and other extremely popular characters share?
1. They were the first of their kind. Sure, there were fictional detectives before Holmes came on the scene, but he was the first to employ his “methods” – forensic investigation, deductive reasoning, a chameleon-like ability to become almost anyone he chose. John Clayton, Lord Greystroke, was the first child to be raised by non-humans in the wild and to gain special powers because of it, while retaining all of the exemplary characteristics of the perfect man – strength, courage, and the morals of his time and culture.
2. They had a compelling story. Kal-El was introduced as the lone survivor of a lost world. Bruce Wayne was orphaned by the powers of evil. John Clayton was also orphaned in one of the wildest, most inhospitable places imaginable. All of these characters possessed inestimable characteristics that allowed them to rise above great adversity to become paragons of their times.
3. They were crafted with meticulous detail. I can close my eyes and see Holmes’ rooms in Baker Street or Tarzan’s cabin in the jungle. Many of the details about them were ancillary, that is, they were not important in the context of a particular story, but in aggregate, they served to define a unique, unforgettable individual whom a reader could feel that they knew intimately.
4. While each character was a product of his era, they also had characteristics that appealed across generations. Holmes has been updated many times with varying degrees of success, as has Tarzan. Batman and Superman undergo almost continuous transformation in the comic books, graphic novel and movies about them. These updates are successful only if the character does not lose their essential iconic characteristics.
I’m sure that Arthur Conan Doyle, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Bob Kane and Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster had no idea that they were creating cultural icons when they were developing their respective characters. But what they did do was pay attention to the principles of good writing, and let nature take its course.
I’d love to hear from my readers in the comments about these or any other characters you feel are iconic and what makes them so.