Intro
As promised, I am back with a new character archetype analysis. Last time, we went into the hero archetype and I showed you that not just all heroes fall into this category, but even villains sometimes. So it's clear the name doesn't just say it all.
Today we are getting into The Innocent archetype. So let's dive into this, and see what Disney Characters fit this archetype. Just for fun, before you scroll down to the characters, take a moment to think about which character you think would be the Innocent Type. Whether you know the description or not, what comes to your mind?
Disclaimer: Take the character archetypes with a grain of salt. They are fun, yes. But there aren't only 12 character types. You can use them as a base or your characters add extra character traits or dept. You can even combine archetypes. Perhaps your character falls into two or more categories. Either way, when you want to create a characters, these are a good base, but add dept with different things.
What Is The Innocent Archetype?
The innocent type is often a child, or a character with a child-like demeanor. They look at the world with optimism and wholesomeness. They are often pure and very simple, embracing life with trust and warmth. This often helps them make the best of a situation or see the good in people.
Character Strengths
- Optimism: They are always very optimistic, even if they end up in a terrible situation or are in danger. They know how to make the best of a situation.
- Imagination: Like a lot of children, or child-like characters, they have a lot of imagination. This could be the reason why they always are so optimistic.
- Pure: These characters have a pure heart, seeing the good in everyone and wanting to help everyone they can.
- Resilience: These kind of characters can often recover from stress or trauma very quickly.
- The ability to inspire others and bring joy: The characters are often so optimistic that they could be able to rub of on others. They can make others feel better quickly and bring joy to others.
Character Weaknesses
- Naive: Because of their happiness and optimism, these kind of characters can be very naive, and don't know when there is danger right in front of them.
- Physical Powerless: They are not physically strong at all, so they would have to count on their mental strength.
- Vulnerability: They are very vulnerable, both mentally and physically. I think it would be easy for them to get upset if someone is mean to them etc.
- Overly Trusting: They want to see the good in people and bring joy. So often they don't see how someone cannot be trusted and they are very easy to take advantage of.
So, now that we've gone over the character traits of The Innocent, does it fit the characters you thought of before, or would you like to change your answer on some of them? Either way, let's see if we match on some characters below!
Disney Character Examples
So, there are some obvious characters that come to mind here, but I have also gone through a few characters that seem to fit this description that are less obvious. Remember, the characters are able to have multiple archetypes, so it's okay to reuse them if you think they fit somewhere else as well. The following characters are who I think of when I think about The Innocent Archetype.
Snow White (Snow White And The Seven Dwarfs)
One of the first I can think of to have the innocent type is Snow White. I do also consider her to be another archetype, but we will get there when we get to that type.
Snow White is very optimistic and pure. She's mistreated by her and forced to live like a maid, but she makes the best of her situation. She is also kind of naive and a bit too trusting. Like, she goes into the cottage and instantly decides that if she will clean the house for them, they'll let her stay. And of course the fact that she let the hag inside and believed the lie about the magic wishing apple, instead of taking the animals' attack on the hag as a warning.
Other than that, I think she has a lack of physical strength in a physical fight, I really don't think she would last very long.
(I have done a full character analysis for Snow White here if you are interested in how I see her character in detail)
Aurora (Sleeping Beauty)
One of the other princesses I would consider being the Innocent Type is Aurora. She doesn't play a very big role in her movie, but we do get to know a few things about her.
She is happy and dreamy, and I see her as very optimistic and pure just like Snow White. She loves the animals, and she's always singing. Of course, these are also part of the wishes the fairies gave her, but I can see some similarities.
I feel she is a bit naive, dreaming about her prince and falling in love with a man she meets in the forest very quickly. The fact that she also falls for him quickly, and actually invites him to her cottage for that same evening, makes her feel like she is a bit too trusting in my eyes. Of course, she doesn't know maleficent, but it could have easily been her in disguise. And of course the fact that the fairies told her not to talk to strangers, while she did...
She also has the lack of physical strength as far as we know.
Olaf (Frozen)
Our lovable snowman absolutely falls under this category without a doubt. He is always happy optimistic and pure. He loves warm hugs and he wants to make others happy too. Obviously, he is physically powerless since he is a snow man and often falls apart. In the second movie his a lot smarter though, and maybe knows a little too much trivia.
Because of his love and happiness, he is also naive and trusting. He never met Hans, but if he would have been there, he probably wouldn't have seen through Hans' act either. He does know what love is though, because he knew Kristoff loved Anna before she realized it.
Conclusion
To be honest, I have been thinking for a while, but other than the three that I came up with, I cannot think of another character at the moment. I could say with confidence though that there is no villain that fits in this list, cause I don't know which villain can be optimistic and pure 😜. But hey, prove me wrong if you know one!
Who do you think fits in the spectrum of the innocent type? Let me and everyone else know in the comments, we can learn from each other.
Hope you all enjoyed this post, and until next time again!
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