NEGATIVE TRAIT THESAURUS

VIOLENT



Never struggle with Show-and-Tell again. Activate your free trial or subscribe to view the Negative Trait Thesaurus in its entirety, or visit the Table of Contents to explore unlocked entries.

CHOOSE MY PLAN

HELPFUL TIP:

Characters with this flaw will be extra sensitive to certain emotions, so think about how events in your story might specifically trigger these feelings to generate compelling tension and conflict. Another idea is to give a supporting character a positive attribute that is an opposite of this flaw, which will get under the skin of both characters and cause friction in their relationship.
DEFINITION:
Using physical force to intimidate, abuse, or cause injury

SIMILAR FLAWS:
Bloodthirsty, brutal, savage

POSSIBLE CAUSES:
Growing up in an abusive environment
A genetic predisposition
Desperation caused by poverty or poor living conditions
A brain injury, particularly to the frontal area
Being abused or tortured in the past
Witnessing peer violence
Side effects from drugs, alcohol, and some medications
A lack of empathy
Antisocial personality disorder

ASSOCIATED BEHAVIORS AND ATTITUDES:
Having a quick and savage temper
Exacting revenge
Punching holes in walls
Breaking personal objects
Vandalism
Verbal abuse
Getting into fights
Being fascinated with weapons
Enjoying violence on television and in real life
Being aroused by the sight of blood
Stealing
Pushing and shoving others; inciting conflict
Using intimidation to get what one wants
Joining a gang
...

ASSOCIATED THOUGHTS:
...

ASSOCIATED EMOTIONS:
...

POSITIVE ASPECTS:
...

NEGATIVE ASPECTS:
...

EXAMPLE FROM HISTORY:
...

OVERCOMING THIS TRAIT AS A MAJOR FLAW:
...

TRAITS IN SUPPORTING CHARACTERS THAT MAY CAUSE CONFLICT:
...