Character: refers to the qualities that distinguish a person.
Personality: refers to the traits that distinguish a person.
Both are very important aspects of one's being. Both can be good or bad, admirable or not.
What is the difference? In life, we all have a personality. It can completely change or slightly adjust from time to time. It can even be varied, as in the case of multiple-personalities! It is easily adapted, and even more easily altered. People are often known, and even judged, by their personalities. Yet, a personality does not necessarily reflect the true person lying within.
Character, on the other hand, is something one develops continuously, from the moment of birth to the last breath of life. It is not hereditary, though it is most affected by conditions in one's early life. Those elements of one's character that are acquired throughout life can never be lost. One can avoid "listening" to their inner self, to favor their external personality, yet, it is always there. Your Character directly reflects who you are.
The most important difference between the superficial personality and the sincere character is that, while personality is the traits one possesses such as being a clear speaker, a good listener, and/or someone who tells humorous jokes (which can all be valuable traits), a character is made up of the qualities of honesty, courage, integrity, conscience, perseverance, love ... which really show one's true nature!
After careful study and thought, it is clear to me that character, candid and profound, is preferable to personality.
Picture yourself in these situations:
- You witness your peers criticizing one another. They think you are funny and invite you to join in the slandering.
- A difficult test is coming and you haven't gone over the material. Your classmates think you do well in the subject. You find out another student has the answers and offers them to you.
- You are in the middle of an athletic competition. To catch up to you, an opponent pushes another aside, injuring the victim.
How would you deal with these situations? Do you make fun of someone merely to be seen as comical? Do you cheat on the test so others will think you are smart? Do you keep going and win the contest or go back and help the injured competitor? Is it more important to show personality and mastery, or character and virtue?
I would choose character over personality anytime! It is greater to do what is right and Just than to benefit ourselves, even if it means we must make personal sacrifices.
It is true that we all admire the one who can draw a crowd with the elegance of their conversation. It is true that it would be enjoyable to be able to make a joke at any time or put everything into perspective and simply smile at all the confusion around us. it is true that sometimes personality traits can be very inspiring. However, unless you use these characteristics for the common good of all - - always - - it is utterly irrelevant.
Character and personality are indirectly represented in the well-known adventures of Tom Sawyer, composed and written by Mark Twain. As you may recall, Tom slyly fools a number of neighborhood children into painting a fence for him. He even convinces them that the opportunity is worth paying for! Mark Twain presents Tom as a boy with a clever, independent personality. He is portrayed as lazy when it came to work, but very adventurous.
Although his personality benefits him in the short run, when conflicts and possible danger arise, Tom must draw on his strengths of character, such as honesty, integrity, and courage to solve problems. A good example of this is when Tom witnesses a murder in the town graveyard. The culprit, Injun Joe, frames a local drunk, Muff Potter, for the crime and threatens to kill Tom if he tells the truth. When Tom discovers Muff will be hanged for something he did not do, he spends a lot of time pondering the issue. Eventually, his character shines through. Tom tells the truth, freeing Muff Potter. it is later that Tom just barely escapes the wrath of Injun Joe. Nevertheless, Tom willingly makes the sacrifice for a greater good.
In conclusion, I find myself returning to the poetry with which I began. I believe the simple eloquence of these lines best differentiates character and personality.
"Personality is to man what perfume is to a flower."
"Character is what you are in the dark."
Personality is a mask. Its glamour
is an act. Character is who you are underneath the make-up, when others
cannot discriminate because of how you look. It is the only real
image of your soul you have to offer others.
New 1998
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