(Loved Trope) Aptronyms

[u/dream_monkey]

Aptronyms are characters whose name is heavily symbolic or represent them as a character. Sometimes it is a subtle play on words, sometimes it’s just a clunky transliteration. Either way, it can help characterize a character and provide more allegorical depth. Authors must be careful not to delve into the realm of cliche, though.

1. Draco Malfoy (Harry Potter series) His name means Evil Dragon, and he tries really hard to live up to his name.

[Many commenters have pointed out that Darth Vader is not a true aptronym. I stand corrected .]

1. Darth Vader (Star Wars series) His name means Dark Father, which cleverly conceals one of the biggest reveals in cinema history.

2. Cthulhu (Lovecraft mythos) Cthulhu may just sound like a nonsense syllable, unpronounceable by a human mouth. The name is derived from the word “cthonic” which means a being that lives under the earth or in the underworld, so an ancient and terrible god that lies dreaming in death at the bottom of the ocean would definitely fit the description.

[u/Helota_Keksz]

Why is it so far fetched that an Asian family can come from two different ethnic groups? There are at least two characters in the story who are mixed species, for Pete's sake.

[u/Strange_Potential93 → u/Helota_Keksz]

Why are you doing extra internal gymnastics to avoid admitting that the author was careless and lazy, especially towards people she doesn’t deem important.

[u/Helota_Keksz → u/Strange_Potential93]

Because I'm already tired of headcanon vs hatecanon at step 0, if there's a plausible explanation, I'll roll with it.

[u/Strange_Potential93 → u/Helota_Keksz]

That’s incredibly naive, you clearly just don’t want to cope with the fact that the author of something you are attached to is a knobhead

[u/Helota_Keksz → u/Strange_Potential93]

And you are clutching at literally everything to toot your horn in this context. (But I'm a good sport, so let me give you another tip: under the clothes, that harlot is always naked)

[u/Strange_Potential93 → u/Helota_Keksz]

That doesn’t even mean anything but whatever die on this hill, I don’t know why you want to but go ahead and do it.