Plot and Character

This information has been abbreviated  from a class I taught at Barnes and Noble in Woodbury, Minnesota.    

     Plot is the interweaving of cause and effect to create a pattern of unified behavior.  According to Aristotle, plot is the most important element of story.  These days, however, Aristotle would find that many writers who disagreed with him about the supremacy of plot.  Modern day novelists choose from a variety of elements to drive a story forward; and there is an ongoing argument about which reigns supreme in the modern story: plot or character. 
     Whatever the genre of your story, the importance of both plot and character can't be denied.  Plot is integral to every story because plot acts as a driver in the story; moreover, plot is crucial in creating the form of your story.  Although some writers like to complain that trying to force form onto story takes away from author creativity, just the opposite is true.  Creativity is often enhanced by story form.  Story form is important because story needs structure to be acceptable to the audience.  Plot, unlike any other element of story, can create a sense of form. 
     Equally important to story; however, is  character.  At the risk of oversimplifying, character is the who or what the story is about.  Often called the protagonist, the main character of the story should be capable of propelling the plot forward.  A character story differs from a plot driven story in that focus is not on what happens in the story so much as how a character reacts to what happens in the story.  A character driven story takes the reader on a journey of discovery. 
     A plot driven story, on the other hand, focuses on the events of the story.  The main character must still react to story events, but the character reaction is relevant only in so much as it gets the character to the next plot point in the story.  Missing from these types of stories is a focus on the character's growth.  The James Bond stories (written by Ian Fleming) are a good example of plot-driven story.  As a character, James Bond must have credibility, but the reader or movie viewer is little interested in Bond's feelings.  The Bond persona is set; as long as Bond does not become some sensitive, pacifist who prefers to shake hands over kicking butt, the reader wants to know two things: what will happen and what will happen next.    
     So, a plot can exist without a fully developed character, but character and plot always go hand in hand.  For the writer, plot  and character are tools that should be so closely intertwined in your story, that in the reader’s mind, one could not possibly exist without the other.  In the end, the main goal of the character is to push through the conflict of the plot, or grow through the turning points of the plot, or overcome the events of the plot.  When a character does that, then, you've got a story!