Top 10 Fictional Characters I Love!
Have you ever read a book only to realize that you did not want that book to end because you feel strongly for the character/s in it? This happens to me a lot! Many a times, I fall in love with the characters, empathize with their feelings, pain and their struggles. Most of the time, it is the protagonist that catches my interest, but some times, I feel more strongly for a supporting character.
It’s been a while since I have shared a Top 10 Tuesday list, so for this Tuesday, here’s my list of Top 10 Fictional Characters I Love and feel strongly for!
1. Mr. Darcy and Miss Elizabeth Bennett – Pride and Prejudice
This may not come as a surprise to anyone who knows me, and this may not be a surprise to anyone who loves Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Do you know of someone who is not in love with these characters from her book? Yea, I thought so!
2. Urmila – Sita’s Sister
Urmila, the bold and daring sister of Sita, is the protagonist in this mythological fiction from Kavita Kane. Urmila is one character who has always been overlooked in Indian mythological texts despite her important role in the Ramayana. I was intrigued by Kane’s version of her story and read more about her from whatever source I could find. Her immeasurable sacrifice for her sister and her family is one that makes you want to bow to her.
3. Scarlett O’ Hara and Rhett Butler – Gone with the Wind
How can you not fall in love with the vain, self-centered, arrogant Scarlett from Gone With the Wind who is very spoilt yet very lovable, fashionable and intelligent despite her pretense at ignorance? Rhett Butler raised my expectation of men so high that I am yet to find one that matches him. Sigh!! I know he is not perfect indeed he’s flawed, but that’s exactly what makes him real!
4. Mary Bennett – Pride and Prejudice
Mary Bennett is one of the most overlooked characters of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Always the one to be ignored in the family, Mary received the least importance from Austen as well as the Bennett family. It must have been tough for the poor girl being the middle child. When Jane had Liz her by her side and Lydia had Kitty, it was poor Mary who was always left to fend for herself. I could not help but feel for her helplessness!
5. Hassan – The Kite Runner
Khaled Hosseini’s The Kite Runner is the kind of book that stays with you eons after you have read it. It is no surprise, then, that the characters from the book leave a mark in your mind. One such character from the book is Hassan. Although, the story is about Amir, it is Hassan’s character that gnaws at the strings in your heart. Anyone who has read the book will know what I mean!
6. Jay Gatsby – The Great Gatsby
While Jay Gatsby’s perseverance in obtaining his goals is commendable and makes him an inspiring character who teaches you to go after what you want with all your heart, it is his vulnerable, relentless and blind pursuit of Daisy that had me feel so strongly for his character. Makes me wonder though, is it possible to fall so much in love that one does not see or hear anything but the love they pursue?
7. Liz Gilbert – Eat, Pray, Love
Notice a pattern here? I have a thing for tragic characters or characters who had to deal with tragic situations in their life. Liz Gilbert of Eat. Pray, Love stuck with me while reading, probably because at the time I was in an abusive marriage and dying to break free. Her story almost inspired me to stand up and fight for my rights, which is why she is one of most favored characters ever!
8. Lady Macbeth – Macbeth, William Shakespeare
Of all the heroines of William Shakespeare, I hold a special place in my heart for Lady Macbeth. Maybe because it was the first of the many of Shakespeare’s work I read or maybe because I liked the conflict portrayed in her character. Lady Macbeth suppresses her instincts toward compassion, motherhood, and fragility normally associated with femininity in favor of ambition, ruthlessness, and the singleminded pursuit of power.
9. Lisbeth Salander – The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
By now, you probably know that I enjoy reading about strong female characters, one such strong character is Lisbeth Salander from The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. The character is too complex to deduce yet you feel for her as she goes through her struggles. The fact that she does not let these struggles get to her and always emerges victorious is what makes her a character to remember!
10. Anna Karenina – Leo Tolstoy’s Anna Karenina
Despite her infidelity in her marriage, Anna Karenina remains a noble and admirable character in Leo Tolstoy’s novel Anna Karenina. Anna’s most prominent qualities are her passionate spirit and determination to live life on her own terms. Though disgraced, she dares to face St. Petersburg’s high society and refuses the exile to which she has been condemned, attending the opera when she knows very well she will meet with nothing but scorn and derision. She is a feminist heroine of sorts and that makes her one of my favorites!
I hope you enjoyed reading my list of favorite fictional characters. Do you have any favorite fictional character that you feel strongly for? Let me know in the comments!
Rashmi P. Menon
A Single Mother with an unbreakable passion to Live the Life! I am a Writer/Author by passion and an IT Project Manager by profession. I am also the voice of Artemis at In The Pantheon - a multi-author collaborative writing project. When not hunting as Artemis, I am busy querying agents and working on my multiple writing projects. Women Empowerment and Child Rights Advocate.
21 Comments
Miriam
What a great list of characters. I love many of these too, Darcy and Miss Elizabeth, Hassan from The Kite Runner (what a great book). Nothing beats getting immersed in the characters of a book.
MindandLifeMatters
Absolutely! Couldn’t agree more on that. Nothing beats the feeling of being immersed in the characters of a great book!
suzannebowditch
Have you read The Signature of All Things by Elizabeth Gilbert? The character of Alma Whitaker in that book is an independent, very bright, strong, memorable woman. Great list 🙂
MindandLifeMatters
No, I am yet to read it. I think I’m going to like her, must add to my reading list. Thank you, Suzanne. 🙂
Mick Canning
Yes, Hassan!
MindandLifeMatters
Hassan one of the characters that one feels empathy for!
Mick Canning
Very strongly, yes.
ranu802
These are wonderful books. Like you I felt bad for Darcy and Elizabeth. I loved the character of Jay Gatsby too. I read Kite Runner and feel the same as you do. Some of the books on your list, I didn’t have a chance to read. I watched the movies,Shakespeare’s Hamlet and Eat,Pray And Love. But did not read the books.
I did not read Anna Karenina or Urmila, but heard the story of Gone With The Wind. I watched a few scenes of ,”Gone With The Wind.”
All the books you’ve mentioned are amazing. 🙂
MindandLifeMatters
Thank you, Ranu. I am glad to know that you feel the same for these characters. I highly recommend Gone With the Wind, Eat Pray Love and Anna Karenina – they are amazing books 📚
Meg Sorick
Yes! Hassan! I loved the Jay Gatsby character, too. Robinson Crusoe is an all time favorite and for a fictional series character, I love the police consultant Alex Delaware from Jonathan Kellerman’s novel series.
Nitin Chandran Nair
I read a lot of Manga and I loved all the fictional characters. I sometimes wished they were real.. 🙁
MindandLifeMatters
I don’t know a lot about Manga, but I know what you mean when you said you wished they were real, I always wished that for these characters I listed! 🙂
Nitin Chandran Nair
Right! 🙂 Those are just stories but we somehow connect with them and make them alive in our minds and heart. It feels sad when these stories end. One such particular Manga I read was ‘Inuyasha’. The climax, although a happy ending, made me feel sad and depressed thinking about the whole purpose of the story..and I never wanted it to end. 🙁
thepurplegarden
Wow this is a great list along with thoughts on the characters! I will keep this as a reference for books I must read! I have recently read The Mermaid Chair by Sue Monk Kidd. I especially enjoyed how she is so descriptive of place in her writing. It was one of those reads that truly took me there. Also, the way she is able to describe thoughts and feelings. It was a powerful book for me and has inspired me to read her first novel, The Secret Life of Bees. I enjoy books about people in the process of deep soul and self searching and discovery.
MindandLifeMatters
Thank you, Aimee. I am sure you will enjoy Eat Pray Love. It’s amazing in the soul searching genre. If you haven’t read it, I recommend you do. 🙂
judyjourneys
I recommend Redeeming Love by Francine Rivers. Michael’s “I won’t let go of you” love for the prostitute Angel is amazing.
MindandLifeMatters
Thank you for the recommendation, Judy. I’m going to pick it up for sure. 🙂
Bun Karyudo
Lady Macbeth is an interesting one. She’s not necessarily someone that would click with all people, but I also find her fascinating.
MindandLifeMatters
That’s true, she is not one liked by many. But I found her character very intriguing and it just stuck with me.
jacquelineobyikocha
We love the same books. I’ve read these classics over and over, yet they always hold pleasure for me 🙂
MindandLifeMatters
You love the same books! Yaay, that’s nice to know! I would read these books over and over any day! 🙂