Tools of Characterization
Characterization in The Sound of Music
Actions
Cinema's a great way to tell a story. We see how the characters behave and draw our conclusions about them. Not that it's impossible to fake it, but in The Sound of Music things are usually what they seem; characters act in accordance with their personalities. Case in point: Maria seems like the sweetest, most lovable person when we first see her because she's singing and dancing. Who wouldn't love someone with that much joy to spare? Sure enough, she turns out to be the sweetest, most lovable person.
That said, we quickly learn that her antics are coming at the expense of her duties at the abbey, where she's supposed to be attending vespers. And that's not her only offense: the abbey's nuns can name a whole slew of delinquent behaviors that Maria's been engaging in during her training, including whistling, dancing in the halls, keeping curlers in her hair under her wimple. Nothing awful, but stuff that goes against the rules. Like Kurt, she's "incorrigible," but even her misdeeds are sweet and lovable.
All this tells us that Maria finds it pretty much impossible not to follow her heart and express herself, even when that kind of expression isn't encouraged or appropriate. It doesn't make her a very good nun, but it does help her be the vibrant and courageous woman that she is.
The captain is a man of principle. He means what he says and doesn't take no for an answer. Even after he loosens up with Maria and the children, he's still consistently brave and resolute. It's not hard to predict that he won't tolerate living under the Nazi regime.
The villains in the movie act pretty consistently evil, so there's no problem knowing who we should hate. Herr Zeller, in particular, engages in nonstop threatening, harassing, and dissing. No question about his character at all.
Direct Characterization
In most films, you won't see as much direct characterization as you might see in a novel or short story. Characters don't typically sit around describing other characters; films rely more on action and images. There's one exception in The Sound of Music, and that's because there's an entire musical number early in the film telling us all about our heroine: "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria?"
It's a shortcut way to explain one of the movie's important plot points—Maria leaving the abbey to go work for the von Trapps. The nuns tell us everything we need to know about why this happens: she's flighty, late for everything, exuberant, sings and dances all the time, infuriating, wild, unpredictable, kind, lovable, and gentle. Not someone who fits in well to the quiet, cloistered life (except for the kind and gentle part).
Family Life
All we need to know about the pre-Maria Captain von Trapp we can probably get from watching him summon his children using a whistle. Sure, he gives each of them a personalized signal, but we can't really think of a colder and more impersonal way to address your children. That's definitely the way Maria feels, and she politely informs the captain that she'll just learn their names.
Of course, we soon learn that the captain's recovering from losing his wife a few years back, and that's why he's been so distant with the children and just generally joyless. His behavior toward the kids is our first clue that there's something seriously wrong going on in his emotional life.
The baroness is completely unconnected to family (except for being widowed) as far as we see in the movie. She's living in a grownups-only world, which clues us in that she's likely to become the wicked stepmother if she manages to get the captain to marry her. Max is somewhere in the middle. He's a bachelor with no family that we meet, but his close attachment to the von Trapps shows us he can at least tolerate being around children and he seems to truly love them. That makes him a more sympathetic character than the baroness.
Maria has no family before she meets the von Trapps, but the way she takes to the children tells us loads about how caring, perceptive, and patient she is. She goes from being a cloistered nun to an instant mother of seven, and she becomes the glue that holds them all together.
The fact that the children take to Maria so quickly shows that they must have had a loving mother. Even when their father becomes cold and distant, they never stop wanting his attention. They think parents are good; they want a mother. That's a clue that something went right in their early years.
Speech and Dialogue
Here's Shmoop's handy Sound of Music Guide to the Good Guys and Bad Guys:
Good guys sing. Bad guys don't.
Too simple for you? Here's some nuance, then: Bad guys who turn into good guys don't sing at first, then they do. Good guys who turn into bad guys do sing at first, then they stop.
Try it out for yourself.
- Singers: Maria, the nuns, the children.
- Non-singers: the baroness and Herr Zeller.
- Those swing characters? The captain and Rolfe. I
In this film, singing means joy, kindness, playfulness, and compassion. The villains just don't sing.
Max, who's somewhere in the middle of all this, doesn't sing, but he's a music lover nonetheless. That's our signal to know that Max is an okay guy.
Fun fact: In the Broadway stage version, the baroness, Georg, and Max do sing two songs early on. They're very cynical, grownup songs about the crazy world in general and how wealthy people can be too busy for romance because of all the time they spend taking care of their money. Both songs were axed for the film version. Like we said, there's not much room for irony in The Sound of Music.
Appearances
Maria's simple clothes reflect her modest and unassuming personality. Brigitta's comment when she first meets Maria that her dress is "ugly" is meant to show Maria that she doesn't belong in their fancy household. Maria's not afraid to make the children some play clothes out of old curtain fabric, and she doesn't seem bothered at all by appearing in an old dress soaking wet in front of the captain.
Once she's a married woman, Maria dresses up a bit. The captain always looks crisp and natty; he's a naval officer, after all. He makes the kids wear uniforms, too, as a way of trying to keep some order in the house. Once the kids are dressed in the curtain-clothes, they each loosen up and let their inner child run wild.
Can you imagine the baroness dripping wet in old clothes? Neither can we. She could be on the cover of Vogue, even when she's lounging around outside. She's definitely the city mouse.