Multiples

Let’s talk writing for a spell, specifically: character. Even more specifically, let’s talk Jamie Maddrox, the Multiple Man. He’s the handsome looking but biologically impossible gentleman depicted below.



I’m something of a comic book nerd, a classification that has grown less derogatory in the last five years. The success of several big budget superhero films has led to a revitalised interest in the characters (although unfortunately interest in the original form- the funnybooks themselves- has increased only mildly). Their position in pop culture has also shifted a little, thanks to the development of ‘nerd cool’ and how many teenage girls fancy Seth from O.C. Admitting to knowing a little bit about comic books is no longer social suicide. Did you get all that? Comic books are cool, everyone says so. I’m really working on re-establishing my cred after the “I play strategy games on the internet” debacle a few posts back.

Multiple Man has been a relatively minor character in Marvel Comic’s X-Men books for nearly thirty years, who has become more popular in the last decade- getting his own miniseries, and now finding himself as the principle character in the ongoing X-Factor. Jamie Maddrox is a mutant, born with a strange abilities beyond those of regular humans. In Maddrox’s case, he can produce complete duplicates of himself that share his personality and intellect. His body creates new ‘dupes’ after absorbing kinetic impact- Maddrox normally creates new dupes by clicking his fingers or stamping his feet, although strong impacts can cause him to create dupes unintentionally.

In his first appearances, Maddrox’s dupes were exact copies of the original (Jamie ‘Prime’). Although he could not control them, they generally had no objection to being re-absorbed by Maddrox, as their new knowledge and experience would also be re-integrated. Maddrox has sent dupes all over the world, acquiring new knowledge that would take several lifetimes for a regular guy to accumulate. He has therefore ‘lived’ several lives, held hundreds of jobs, been a secret agent, a Shaolin monk and an Episcopalian priest.

Over time, however, Maddrox’s powers have developed in a slightly more schizoid direction. The constant re-absorption of memories has left some confusion over what Maddrox has actually done, and what his dupes are responsible for. Some of his dupes have clamoured for more independence, refusing to be assimilated into Jamie Prime. Most recently, his powers have begun to have an alarming side effect- the dupes that emerge are no longer complete copies of his personality. Instead they represent a random side of his psyche- his sense of guilt, or lust, or bravery etc. Maddrox has sent a dupe to talk down a suicidal colleague, unaware that the dupe typified his sense of the perverse. The dupe succeeded in calming the jumper down, and then booted him off the roof himself, just for the yucks.

But Joshua, I’m going to pretend I hear you cry, what has all this to do with character? And thank you so much for ruining the entire story for me!

Well, my sarky friend (I do apologise for having both sides of the textual argument myself, this blog has me drunk with power), I shall tell you if you cease your needless interruptions.

It has taken the character of Jamie Maddrox more than twenty years to develop this interesting spin on multiple personality disorder. A little ironic then that the character of the Multiple Man could be used to represent shit characterisation in general. Jamie Prime might be a superbly realised character, but his dupes have become increasingly flat, one-dimensional.

It’s easy to boss the characters you create around. The poor chaps can’t fight back, after all (at least not with the threat of the delete button staring them in the face. I like to bring some drama to my creative process). So you can make their personalities suit the situation you create for them, and dictate their attributes as you see fit.

Except you can’t keep doing it. Or at least, you really shouldn’t, you dullard. People are infinitely adaptable, but those adaptations are based on the consistencies in your persona. These different sides of you exist in different proportions; you are not as brave as you are maudlin, as optimistic as you are sexually charged. The dupes sent out by Maddrox only really have one character attribute that defines their existence. That doesn’t work for anybody else.

It’s certainly tempting though! If you’ve got a plot niggle to work through, or you want to create a certain atmosphere, why not simply shift up the ratios in you character’s psyche? Make them a little more courageous, if you want them to navigate a dangerous situation to spur the action along. Got a big romantic resolution on the horizon? Shame your protagonist seems like such a shallow, insensitive prat. Why not add a little in, or take a bit away?

The result is your fictional avatar acting ‘out of character,’ something literary criticism has generally identified as a BAD THING. Good (or at least famous) writers constantly talk about characters dictating the narrative, and this seems to by why. When you create a person in print, you are aiming for Jamie Prime- the original, rather than a series of dupes, dominated by traits that are convenient, rather than convincing.

I included Multiple Man in this post because he fits in cleverly with my point, but also because he’s a well created character, despite the obvious inconstancies in his psyche. His dupes might be one dimensional, but that flatness is carefully controlled as part of the plot, rather that simply to allow it.