Hi guys, been stuck on something. BECOMING. I have a character who is undergoing a change. Essentially becoming a super human person. Is Becoming an apt concern for him? Or should it be Obtaining.
My difficulty is because Becoming is said to be a transformation , and from my understanding, it’s an INTERNAL PROCESS, not an external one.
So I just want to ask if it can be used for a change in ones constitution.
Thanks.
Yes - especially if there are obstacles or some form of resistance to Becoming super human.
Thanks for your response. It’s appreciated.
So let me see if I understand you.
Becoming superhuman , like the muscles, the wings, and all that …
is allowed so long as it’s bringing some conflict. Yes?
So it accomodates a physical transformation?
If so then I must have been attaching too much to the Internal process angle of the Class.
Thanks.
In the Beauty and the Beast analysis we decided that the OS Concern was Becoming, with the transformation of the Beast (into a beast and back into a man) as the most central illustration.
What is the context? Is it about the physicality of having wings (can’t fit into his shirts, blocks the view of those behind him in the theater, leaves a trail of feathers everywhere)?
Or is it about achieving an identity with something (Harvey has to give up being an attorney to become Birdman!)? What is it that this part of the story is saying?
If becoming super human is no big deal and is the thing that everyone does in your story, then it’s not a Concern.
If becoming super human is something that everyone does but your MC has extra special problems surrounding his or her transformation, then yes it is a Concern.
If your MC is the only one becoming super human and this is a problem for someone or the MC, it is a Concern.
As for the “too much internal process” that is just a Dramatica definition to distinguish it from a process that is external. Becoming is pretty much what it says on the tin. Becoming. It is automatically internal.
Bear in mind, when you start writing the Becoming storypoint for your story (or any SP that is internal or abstract), you will end up having to illustrate it in a way that is quite visual.
Hey @Khodu, first off, Becoming can definitely accommodate a physical transformation. The gists include becoming a dog, becoming a cat, becoming old, changing one’s sex, becoming a zombie, and turning into a werewolf – just to name a few.
As I understand it, the internal vs. external gets blurred as you go down the model. For example, you might have a Universe MC who suffers extreme internal guilt over something from The Past. Overall they’re still a Do-er but their Concern, Issue and Problem may have internal manifestations.
The question is whether your MC’s conflict over “becoming super human (incl. wings, muscles, etc.)” works well with their overarching struggle to do with Psychology. I can certainly imagine how it would (self-destructive tendencies would seem to fit, just as one example). But does Psychology / manipulation / manners of thinking fit your ideas for this character?
Thank you all for your great contributions.
@mlucas the Character is definitely in Psychology. I was really trying to decide if Obtaining or Becoming was the true concern.
But I’m glad to see that Becoming can take on physical attributes. Talk about analysis paralysis!!! Was so stuck on the internal process thing.
Thanks again guys.
@Gregolas. This also puts some things in better perspective.
Many thanks.
@Khodu
Did you figure this one out? Sounds like you probably did.
I’ve been thinking about it again and how I would see the difference. I keep looking at the part of the Becoming definition that mentions achieving an identity with something and focusing on that as the difference. This works with Beast from Beauty and the Beast as one assumes he wasn’t going by ‘Beast’ prior to the transformation. Responding to the name Beast is one way of achieving that identity. And the ‘servants who aren’t serving’ are, I guess, losing their identities as servants and humans.
In most examples I can think of where a character gains or loses a physical attribute, their main concerns seem to lie somewhere in the area of “what’s happening to me?” Or “Who am I, and who am I becoming?” If your character is a regular guy that starts to see himself as a super human and becomes more heroic as he gets these super physical attributes, then I’d think he’s achieving an identity as a hero. But how does thinking of himself as a super human person cause conflict?
On the other side of it, I’m trying to think of a physical change that wouldn’t result in achieving an identity with that change. Maybe a boxer that already thinks of himself as the best fighter there is gaining an extra five pounds so he can fight in the heavyweight class? Someone who already feels like they could be a superhero growing wings and using them to try to save the day? Goku from Dragonball trying to obtain a certain strength level so he’ll stand a chance against Vegeeta? These characters might seem more concerned with ‘what’s happening to my body (as opposed to what’s happening to me)?’ Or ‘what (rather than who) am I and what am I becoming?’ Maybe ‘what do I need to gain or lose for my body to match who I am?’
That’s probably not right, but it does separate Becoming and Obtaining so that Becoming is clearly internal and Obtaining external.
Also:
If the character is definitely in Psychology, why wouldn’t Becoming be the true concern?
Hi @Gregolas. You’re right. I couldn’t quite decide which perspective would serve the story better. I knew the character would be transformed. I just wasn’t sure if that “becoming” was allowed for a physical change as opposed to sticking to just an internal process. So I started to look at “Obtaining” as an alternative. The aim was to have my cake and eat it too. So rather than the transformation, he would obtain wings ,and in the readers mind, there’ll still be the perception of that transformation as well.