Friday 22 January 2010

Most Memorable Characters: Marnie Elmer




What makes a memorable character? For me, it's someone so outlandishly out-there and yet, we can still relate.

One of those characters for me is Marnie Elmer from Winston Graham's book Marnie.

In his book, he describes a girl with so many issues:
1) Astraphobia - fear of thunderstorms
2) Erythrophobia- a fear of the color red
3) She's a girl desperate for her mother's approval
4) She's a kleptomaniac
5) And, she has intimacy issues

Why? Because something in her past is preventing her from dealing with life in a productive way. The book, like the Hitchcock film, looks at her life and why she acts the way she does.

We found out what the reason was behind it but her uniqueness makes her loved.

Who is a memorable character for you?

10 comments:

Elizabeth Spann Craig said...

Hitchcock was a genius, wasn't he? I loved that movie, too.

A memorable character is a fictitious person that I'd enjoy being. :) If only for a little while. And when I read, I feel like I'm looking at the world through the character's eyes.

Elizabeth
Mystery Writing is Murder
Mystery Lovers’ Kitchen

Ann Elle Altman said...

Elizabeth, I would sure like to be my characters once and a while.

ann

Kimberly Franklin said...

That is such a great question. Yet, it is one I have no answer for right now, seeing as it's Friday and my brain is fried! I'll have to think about this one....

Hope you have a great weekend!

TirzahLaughs said...

I remember that movie I think...the sailors. They upset her so but she found her way to move forward.

T.

Ann Elle Altman said...

Kimberly, it's difficult with so many good ones out there.

Hope you have a great weekend also.

Tirzah,
Yeah, the sailors. I found the psychology in the movie wonderful. Hitchcock really understood psychology and mastered suspense because of it.

ann

T. Powell Coltrin said...

I love, own and watch that movie at least two times a year.

I think Hitchcock was a genius. He did seem to love the psychology of people and played it out in his movies.

Martin Edwards said...

The book is as fascinating as the film, and it's strange (to me) that Winston Graham, having achieved great success with crime fiction, gave it up to focus on the - admittedly very popular - Poldark series.

Ann Elle Altman said...

Journalling woman, I own the movie too, we should do a movie club review...ha ha ha. Just joking. Well, maybe not... nope, actually don't have time.

Martin, I have never read the Poldark series, but I should. Didn't they make a television series from it?

ann

Martin Edwards said...

Yes, the tv series starred Robin Ellis and Angharad Rees and was very popular in the late 70s.

Ann Elle Altman said...

Martin, I will have to see if I can find copies of it. They probably sell them on amazon.

ann