What is the difference between "character" and "characterization" according to the paragraph below? Character is essential to plot. Without...

Based on the included paragraph, it is a bit tough to specifically nail down the definition of "character" because the paragraph doesn't include a definition.  The paragraph states that characters are "essential to plot" and "influenced by events," but that doesn't concretely tell readers what a character is.  The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a character as follows:

one of the persons of a drama or novel

That works okay, but I believe that the definition should...

Based on the included paragraph, it is a bit tough to specifically nail down the definition of "character" because the paragraph doesn't include a definition.  The paragraph states that characters are "essential to plot" and "influenced by events," but that doesn't concretely tell readers what a character is.  The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines a character as follows:

one of the persons of a drama or novel

That works okay, but I believe that the definition should be expanded a little bit.  The above definition seems a bit too limited to me because it gives the connotation that a character must be human.  I like to define a character as follows: a character is a person, an animal, or an imaginary being that participates in the action of a story.  

Characterization is what makes a character feel real and alive.  Characterization is the tool that authors use to make a character something more than a proper noun.  The paragraph that the question provides ends with a statement about authors using various characterization methods to build a character.  

The two methods of characterization are direct and indirect characterization.  Direct characterization happens when the narrator or another character directly tells readers information about a character.  This kind of characterization usually occurs early in a story.  The narrator will tell readers that a particular character has blond hair and blue eyes.  There isn't anything for a reader to deduce about the character.  That's what indirect characterization requires.  A reader or viewer must deduce the characteristics of a character based on that character's behavior, speech, appearance, etc.