In fiction, a foil is a character who contrasts with another character, usually the protagonist, to highlight particular qualities of the other character. [2] [3] [4] In some cases, a subplot can be used as a foil to the main plot. This is especially true in the case of metafiction and the "story within a story" motif. [5] The word foil comes from the old practice of backing gems with foil to make them shine more brightly. [6]
A foil usually either differs dramatically or is extremely similar but with a key difference setting them apart. The concept of a foil is also more widely applied to any comparison that is made to contrast a difference between two things. [7] Thomas F. Gieryn places these uses of literary foils into three categories, which Tamara A. P. Metze explains as: those that emphasize the heightened contrast (this is different because ...), those that operate by exclusion (this is not X because...), and those that assign blame ("due to the slow decision-making procedures of government..."). [8]
In Emily Brontë’s Wuthering Heights , Edgar Linton is described as opposite to main character Heathcliff, in looks, money, inheritance and morals, however similar in their love for Catherine.
In Frankenstein , by Mary Shelley, the two main characters—Dr. Frankenstein and his "creature"—are both together literary foils, functioning to compare one to the other.
In Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice , Mary's absorption in her studies places her as a foil to her sister Lydia Bennet's lively and distracted nature. [9]
Similarly, in Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar , the character Brutus has foils in the two characters, Cassius and Mark Antony. [10] In the play Romeo and Juliet , Romeo and Mercutio serve as character foils for one another, as well as Macbeth and Banquo in his play Macbeth .
In William Shakespeare's tragedy Hamlet , a foil is created between Laertes and Prince Hamlet to elaborate the differences between the two men. [11] In Act V Scene 2, Prince Hamlet tells Laertes that he will fence with him and states, "I'll be your foil, Laertes" (5.2.272). [12] This word play reveals the foil between Hamlet and Laertes, that was developed throughout the play.
In the Harry Potter series, Draco Malfoy can be seen as a foil to the Harry Potter character; Professor Snape enables both characters "to experience the essential adventures of self-determination" [13] but they make different choices; Harry chooses to oppose Lord Voldemort and the Death Eaters, whereas Draco eventually joins them.
George and Lennie are foils to each other in John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men . Lennie is huge and strong as a bull but is also mentally slow, while on the other hand George is small, skinny and very smart.