Top 5 List: Characters from Literature

Welcome to your monthly top 5 list on Pianoman's Blog.

They say a picture's worth a thousand words, but we aren't talking paintings today. We're talking about some of the most iconic characters created from words. The best books don't always have the best sentence structures or the most vivid language, but the best characters that we think about and cry for even though we can not physical see them. This is the Top 5 Characters from Literature.

HONORABLE MENTIONS
There are millions of billions of characters, so it's necessary to honor those who didn't quite make the cut, but are still worth mentioning.

1. Aslan (The Chronicles of Narnia series)

While the Narnia series may not have the most critically acclaimed movies and pale in comparison to The Lord of the Rings, Aslan the Lion is one of the most iconic characters ever created. Serving as a parallel to Jesus, Aslan has become a symbol in Christian environments and has served as the most powerful and fatherly characters in children's fantasy literature.

 He is voiced by Liam Neeson in the movies made by Walden Media.

2. Guy Montag (Fahrenheit 451)

One of the lesser-talked about characters, Guy Montag is the perfect example of internal conflict. Beginning as a despicable government book burner, Montag slowly melds into a man struggling to protect the literary works he once burned. Meanwhile, he's trying to protect those who once held importance in his life. With one of the most intense character changes ever written, Guy Montag earns a spot in the honorable mentions.

He was portrayed by Oskar Werner in the 1966 film. However, I think that he could be played perfectly by Mel Gibson or Matt Damon in the future.

3. Gandalf the Grey/White (The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings)

Like Aslan, Gandalf is iconic in fantasy literature. However, unlike Aslan, the way Tolkien writes Gandalf's dialogue always brings a smile to reader's faces and tears at the end of Fellowship of the Ring, all the while making him one of the powerful and, dare I say it, epic characters ever written and portrayed in film and literature.

He is portrayed to critical acclaim by Ian McKellen in Peter Jackson's The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit film trilogies.

The TOP Five:

5. Harry Potter (Harry Potter series)

Harry Potter introduced the revival of children's fantasy literature, inspiring kids of all ages to return to reading, some staying up countless hours to read the 870-page fifth book, and savoring every moment of the finale of the series. Harry was an archetypal boy-who-discovers-his-true-destiny that became a much more complex character who was seamlessly thrown into a much darker and deadlier mission to destroy the monstrous dark wizard that killed his parents and gave him his scar, all the while relating to his audience and not becoming such a Superman that we as readers cannot join him. While his adventures are over, we will still remember him for decades to come.

He was portrayed to perfection by Daniel Radcliffe in the movie adaptations by Warner Bros.

4. Count Dracula (Dracula)

Books are rarely ever truly chill-inducing, but Bram Stoker changed that when he wrote his best-known horror novel Dracula. Count Dracula is one of the most popular characters in literature, being portrayed the most--or at least second-most--in pop culture. Introducing the vampire archetype that was recently destroyed through the Twilight era, the dreadful monster hunted for his prey and scared the living daylights out of readers in one of the greatest novels ever written and through several representations on screen. Genuinely terrifying and equally influential, Count Dracula rightfully deserves a spot in this list.

He was portrayed most notably by Bela Lugosi in the 1931 classic adaptation and more recently by Gary Oldman in 1992's Bram Stoker's Dracula.

3. Sherlock Holmes

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Is he relatable? Not at all. Is he likable? He certainly doesn't try to be. So what makes Sherlock Holmes, the most popular literary character of all time, so popular with audiences. His fast-thinking analysis in nearly impossible cases make up for the character's harsh rudeness and unforgiving nature. Throughout his original appearances in literature, Sherlock represented everything a reader wanted to be--smart and superhuman. People today try to solve like the great Mr. Holmes, but Arthur Conan Doyle's crisp attention to detail is nearly impossible to replicate today.

Sherlock Holmes has recently been portrayed in two drastically different forms: an smart action hero played by Robert Downey, Jr, and a present-day representation played by Benedict Cumberbatch.

2. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird)

Atticus Finch. Perhaps the greatest character ever featured in a courtroom drama. Despite the crazy circumstances surrounding his case with the convicted black man Tom Robinson and the bigots in his county, Atticus is steadfast and never wavering until he does the best he can in this impossible case. Atticus, despite having some of the best bits of dialogue in the book and explaining the title, is a magnificent example of symbolism in the novel, especially in the scene with the old dog. A shining example of what lawyers should be, Atticus Finch rightfully deserves the number two spot in this list.

Atticus Finch was played by Gregory Peck in one of his greatest roles in the 1962 adaptation of To Kill a Mockingbird.

1. Gollum/Smeagol (The Hobbit/The Lord of the Rings)

While a bit of an odd pick for the number one spot, Gollum is without a doubt the best part of J.R.R. Tolkien's Middle-Earth novels. A hobbit consumed by the power of the One Ring, he serves as a reminder to Frodo Baggins of what will happen if the Ring is not destroyed. But it's not the dark past of Gollum that makes him so fascinating. His dialogue, on the page or onscreen, brings absolute life to the pages and I can't help but smile whenever Gollum's on. Despite the seriousness of The Lord of the Rings, he brings a certain type of lightness to the story, and his chapter-long cameo in The Hobbit brings a certain type of anxiety, suspense, and chillingness to the otherwise light-hearted story. I just can't help but put Gollum in this spot.

Gollum and Smeagol is portrayed most notably by Andy Serkis in Peter Jackson's Middle-Earth films that have come out in the past decade.

So what about you? What is your favorite character ever written about? Is there anyone you wouldn't want on this list? What are your top 5? Let me know in the comments below!