Dramatic character development can be one of the most difficult things to pull off, but if done well, it could become the most interesting aspect of a story. Although there are many ways to go about this, one of the most compelling is with a corruption arc.
When a noble and just character loses their conviction, and they corrupt and distort under the pressure of their desperation; when their desire to achieve a goal takes precedence over the means by which they must achieve it; when they get a taste of how much safer, easier, or prosperous their life would be if they just crossed the line a little… then a little more… until they’re in over their head; THAT is a story worth reading.
The best part is, corruption can happen to anyone—even the most virtuous of characters.
What is a Corruption Arc?
Much like its cousin, redemption arcs, corruption arcs take a character through a plot arc that ultimately leads to dramatic character development, though the two are inverted from one another.
A redemption arc sees a villain grow and evolve to the point where they can move on from their past and work towards being a better person. A corruption arc takes an upstanding character and corrupts their point of view, twisting their morals until they inevitably fall into villainy.
To put it simply…
A redemption arc takes a bad character and makes them good.
A corruption arc takes a good character and makes them bad.
Every villain has an implied corruption arc, or something that turned them into the villain they are in the story—it just happens behind the scenes or before the story actually begins. In that instance, it is referred to as a villain origin story, but the principle is the same.
Villains are complex characters to write, so if you want to explore this idea more or get some tips on writing a complex and interesting villain for your story, be sure to check out my other article: How to Write Good Villains in Fiction.
Of course, a character doesn’t have to be a virtuous little angel before their corruption arc. You could have a lot of success with a character who teeters on the edge between good and evil, before finally giving in one way or the other. If this idea sounds like a good fit for your story, be sure to check out What is an Antihero? (And How to Write One!)
Making a Character for a Corruption Arc
Any character can experience a corruption arc, but there are a few things you should pay extra attention to if you want to make the job of writing it easier. Although these are not strict rules, here are a few tips for making a character that will fit well into the structure of a corruption arc.
(Psst! I’m not going to talk about the basics of developing a character for a story here. For that, you’ll need to check out How to Make Characters Interesting, Complex, and Unique!)
Start with a Noble Character
I know you’re thinking about how I just told you that characters don’t need to be morally perfect before a corruption arc. I said it alongside a shameless plug for my antiheroes article, but I do stand by the statement! But… starting with a character who is objectively a good (or at least halfway decent) person makes your job a lot easier. It makes the corruption a lot more obvious and creates the perception that the character experienced a real corruption rather than the assumption that they were secretly hiding a dark part of themself the entire time.
Corruption arcs are all about contrast, so the stronger and more admirable a character’s morals are in the beginning, the more dramatic their inevitable corruption is destined to be. And of course, more drama means more intrigue.
Their Guiding Principle
A guiding principle is the centerpiece of a character’s moral code. It is the fundamental belief that influences a character’s decisions, and it will be the main ideal that is manipulated to drag the character toward corruption.
Guiding principles are generally broad and vague, and can thus be interpreted differently over time as circumstances, motives, and goals shift. This is why they play a pivotal role in corruption arcs. As the character’s position changes, they can find ways of twisting their guiding principle to justify what they are doing.
Here are some examples of guiding principles you can give your characters:
- Nothing is more important than family
- Justice is absolute
- The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few
- The environment should come before the economy
- Everyone should live free
- Equality is more important than anything else
- It is more important to listen than to speak
- Honesty is the best policy
- Respect should be inherent, not earned
- It is better to give than to have
- Traditions and culture must be preserved
- Survive at all costs
While none of these principles are explicitly toxic, all of them can be twisted in a way to justify bad behavior. A person who believes nothing is more important than family would surely be willing to commit heinous acts to protect the members of their family. Someone who believes the greater good should take precedence over individual needs may be able to use that to justify sacrificing individuals’ peace or safety. Someone who believes that justice is absolute may take matters into their own hands if the law fails to convict someone, and take up the role of a vigilante—for better or for worse.
When selecting a guiding principle for your character, make sure you keep that dynamic in mind. The guiding principle must sound good in theory, but be vulnerable to manipulation.
Their Fatal Flaw
A fatal flaw is a negative personality trait that will inevitably lead to a character’s downfall. It may not be their biggest flaw, but in a corruption arc, it is the hinge on which the character pivots to the dark side. A fatal flaw is what is ultimately responsible for the character’s corruption.
In most stories, a fatal flaw can look like any ordinary flaw, such as greed, pride, selfishness, or impulsivity. In a corruption arc, however, the fatal flaw is often a lot less straightforward, and can even be presented as a good thing in the beginning of the story. Virtues of trust, curiosity, and bravery can be vulnerable to exploitation, and if pushed to the extreme, can become flaws in themselves. Trust is a valuable positive trait, but when a character is too trusting, they can place their trust in the wrong people. Being too curious for their own good can lead a character to learn forbidden knowledge, which could put them in danger or even shatter their perception of reality. Being overly brave could cause a character to overestimate themself, and end up at someone else’s mercy.
Be sure you establish the character’s fatal flaw before the corruption takes root. You don’t have to foreshadow that the character’s mindset could be dangerous, but you need to at least present it as an important aspect of their personality.
Flaws are fickle things. If you need a little bit more help on how to craft the perfect flaw for your character, you can look at How to Create Complex Flaws for Characters to get a more dedicated explanation.
Their Motive
Motives, or more appropriately, character motivations, explain why a character behaves a certain way. If a character is charitable and kind at the beginning, but at the end of their arc they are greedy and selfish, you have to be able to justify why they changed—this is where motives come in.
There are three types of motives that are particularly relevant to corruption arcs: desperation, delusion, or temptation.
Desperation: Desperate motives are the things that are tied to a character’s needs of food, shelter, medicine, and safety. The character may be unable to afford food or a necessary medicine. They may be threatened or manipulated by someone else. Perhaps they have a loved one in a dangerous position, and they have to act out in order to protect them. They may feel afraid, cornered, and like they have no choice but to engage in corrupting behaviors.
Delusion: Delusional motives are based on misunderstanding. Usually that results from a misunderstanding about a situation or process, but it can also extend to a misunderstanding about reality itself. These motives usually look like a character who has a (seemingly) noble goal, but a destructive method of trying to achieve it. These kinds of characters may see sacrifice as a necessary evil to benefit the greater good, and they may see themselves as scapegoats for that ultimate goal.
Temptation: Temptation is the most common type of motive in a corruption arc, and they are based on wants rather than needs. These are the motives that lead characters to seek wealth, power, respect, dominance, or anything else they desire. Characters faced with an easy way of getting whatever they want don’t always make the righteous choice.
Of course, characters can have more complicated motives that blur the lines between these categories. A character may start out doing something illegal to pay off a debt, but once they realize how much money they could make, they decide to keep engaging with it after the debt is paid. That’s a motive that starts out as desperate, then turns into temptation.
If you aren’t totally clear on what character motives are or the role they play in a story, pause here for a minute and take the time to read Character Motivations: The Key to Crafting Believable Characters.
The Timeline of a Corruption Arc
As with anything, there isn’t a perfect formula for writing a corruption arc.
For my timeline, I’ll be referencing a 12-step story structure adapted from Joseph Campbell’s monomyth structure. However, you might feel like your particular story doesn’t need all the steps, or you want to alter the order of events, or add other steps. The point of this timeline is to break down the major ideas and illustrate how character development happens slowly over time. This timeline is not a strict framework.
Keep in mind that corruption arcs can be playing out alongside other arcs in the story, and could be strengthened by other scenes that break it up and slow it down. The corruption will feel much more integrated with the story if it is laced around other arcs that push characters to solve a mystery, fall in love, go on a quest, or whatever else is appropriate for your story. Those arcs can also draw readers’ attention away from the corruption so the foreshadowing is only obvious in hindsight.
1. Ordinary World
The first step in the arc is to establish what the character is like before the corruption begins.
This is the point where you show the kind of life this character lives, and the kind of person that they are. Highlight what is normal to them, what is important to them, and what they want in life. Be sure to highlight any of their struggles, too. Take the time to introduce them like any normal character, and give them a little time to develop before you start any of the corruption.
Be patient. If you rush this stage, readers won’t be as invested in the arc, and they won’t feel the proper impact from the character’s changing behavior. You can’t expect them to care about a character they just met, after all.
2. Call to Action
The call to action is the point where the character first encounters what will drive their corruption arc later. Think of this like planting a seed that, if nurtured, will start to grow uncontrollably later on.
In this part, the character must be faced with the possibility of solving one (or all) of their problems—but with some strings attached. Their troubles could be genuine and severe, such as financial burden, health problems, threats to their safety, or things along that line; they could be superficial, such as believing they deserve fame and wealth; or they could be purely psychological, such as desiring revenge for something someone else did to them. They may even learn about a new problem for the first time—that may not even involve them—and feel empowered to fix it themself. Regardless, at this point, they encounter something that could potentially fix their problems, and all they have to do is compromise their morals just a teensy little bit.
This solution will depend on what the character’s troubles are. A character struggling financially may encounter a job offer that seems too good to be true, from a company that doesn’t have the best reputation. A character who believes they deserve fame may be told about the possibility of eliminating their competition. A character who is emotionally unstable and feels abandoned by their loved ones may be swayed by some new friends who claim they actually care, regardless of their affiliations.
3. Refusal of the Call
The character must resist the temptation after they first encounter it. Their morals are too strong to be so easily swayed. But remember, the seed has been planted—it just hasn’t sprouted yet.
From the examples above, the poor character may assume the letter is a scam and discard the job offer, throwing it into the trash. The character who craves fame may think they don’t have to rely on dirty tricks to succeed, since they believe it’s only a matter of time before everyone else recognizes their talent. The character that feels neglected by their loved ones may still feel a sense of loyalty to them, and wouldn’t want to betray them.
This initial refusal is important, because it reinforces the strength of the character’s morals, while also foreshadowing the events yet to come. If the character gives in too easily, the corruption would lose some of its impact.
4. Meeting the Mentor
This is the section in which the character encounters something that reinforces their temptation. Think of this like watering the seed that was planted before.
In the traditional hero’s journey, this would be the point in which the hero meets a mentor who is able to say all the right things to convince the hero to finally embark on their mission, while also arming them with information and tools that may be helpful later. In a corruption arc, however, it is more appropriate to consider this person a manipulator rather than a mentor.
This manipulator could be someone who is deliberately trying to lead the character astray, or someone who accidentally expresses a sentiment similar to the character’s temptation. They could be in the same situation, or they could have given in to the same kind of temptation and show the character that it did, in fact, fix all of their problems. Or, they could be a victim of a terribly unjust system, and the only way the character can help them is by engaging in the corrupt solution.
Returning to the examples, the poor character could meet someone else who took the job offer and is now living comfortably. The character who craves fame could meet someone they look up to who insists that sabotage is the only way to succeed in the industry. The character who feels neglected could turn to online forums, where the entire user base acts as their manipulator by reinforcing the idea that their friends are terrible and the character deserves better friends.
Though the section is named for a mentor, this encounter doesn’t have to be with a person at all. The character can encounter anything at this point that reinforces the original temptation. The only requirement is that it builds off of the call to action, and makes it seem more reasonable and rewarding.
5. Crossing the Threshold
This is where the character makes the first decision in favor of corruption.
There are many ways this step can play out. Maybe the character gets an opportunity that they’ve always waited for, and it is worth whatever compromise they must make to achieve it. Maybe a character’s desperation reaches a breaking point and they decide to steal a fancy watch from a friend and pawn it off behind their back. Another character could resell a prescription medication. Someone else may indulge in an illicit substance for the first time.
If we return to the examples from before, the poor character could be faced with losing their house, and they decide to dig that job offer out of the trash and set up an interview. The character seeking fame could face a brutal defeat from a competitor, and vow to make sure they never go through that again. The character who feels abandoned by their friends might hang out with the wrong crowd… just once… just to see what they’re like.
Though the character may not know it yet, this is the point where they start to turn their back on what they know in favor of something new. Once they get away with this first choice, they will feel emboldened to continue seeking the benefits of that behavior, whatever those may be.
6. Conflict
Now, right as it seems like the character is on the precipice of change, have them pause. Give the character a moment of clarity, and an opportunity to question if what they are doing is really acceptable. Up until now, they may not have even realized just how bad they had gotten.
This is often where other characters in the story also take notice and get involved. You could have different groups trying to influence the character one way or another. Some would try to keep the character on the right path, while others would encourage indulging in corruption. Both should seem like convincing points of view in the way they are presented, complicating the character’s internal struggle. Keep in mind that the character’s original morals are still relevant, and if someone’s argument plays off of those ideas, the character will have a harder time defending their actions—both to their peers and within their own psyche.
Internal conflict is your secret weapon in a corruption arc, and you should use it generously. Showing the character’s attempts to justify their actions despite knowing deep down that they are wrong not only gives readers necessary context for understanding how this development can happen, it also makes the character seem more pitiful and relatable. The spiraling thoughts of a person on the brink of desperation makes for good entertainment, too.
Let’s look again at the long-standing examples.
The poor character has gotten hired by the company and received their first paycheck. They are able to pay rent and feed their family comfortably, with money left over. They always had a sense that the company’s dealings were shady, but when they discover explicitly illegal business practices taking place, they begin to question if the money is really worth it.
The character seeking fame and power has sabotaged their competitor, and cannot shake the deep sense of guilt that follows their own success. They feel undeserving, and perhaps fearful that someone will find out what they have done. Maybe they even swear to never do something like that again.
The character who feels neglected may get approached by their old friends who express concern over the new people the character has been hanging out with. The character lashes out at them and accuses them of being the root of the problem. Later, however, they cannot stop mulling over the words exchanged in the argument, and they wonder if their old friends are truly right about the situation.
For more insight regarding conflict in stories, you can check out my other article: The 4 Main Types of Conflict in Stories (And Variations!)
7. Approaching the Ordeal
Ultimately, the character must reach a decision and emerge from this conflict with renewed conviction. This can come after a period of trying to return to their old life only to be reminded again and again that things are not working out, or they could encounter information that confirms the doubts and biases they have been clinging to. They may fall for lies and honeyed promises, or be dazzled by what they can achieve. They may encounter information that proves to them that their original morals were apparently flawed. Regardless of how it happens, the character must pledge to commit to their new way of life.
The character will not reach this decision without a lot of justification. Be sure that you consider how the character rationalizes their choices, even if you never show their thoughts explicitly to readers. The character may also fail to realize just how far they have fallen at this point, and still assume they are more of a victim than a perpetrator.
8. The Ordeal
The ordeal marks the point of no return. This is a big event in which the character is faced with an ultimatum. They are forced to choose between their old commitments and their new ones. Think of this like a dramatic scene in which a character is forced to choose between saving their old friend or leaving them to die in order to clear the way for their own success. The ordeal in your story doesn’t have to be quite that dramatic, but the stakes should be similar. The character must face a choice with enormous repercussions—and make the wrong decision.
This choice has to create or involve some kind of obstacle that officially obstructs their path back to redemption. Regardless of what the character even wants, the circumstances they have created for themself—whether that be legal implications, obligations, tethers, or backlash—leave only one way forward. They must feel as if they have no other choice.
Prior to this point, the character may have believed they could have everything at the same time (you know, like that old idiom of having your cake and eating it too). Now, however, they understand that nothing can be gained without some kind of sacrifice, and their new ideals must take precedence over all other things. They must be willing to give up anything—family, friends, morality, respect, or whatever else—in the name of what they believe is more important.
The means by which they must achieve their goal no longer matter. As long as the goal succeeds, nothing else is important.
9. The Reward
At this point, the character can fully reap the benefits of their new lifestyle. If they were seeking wealth, this is the point where they can cash in. If they wanted power, this is where you would show their rise through the ranks of whatever organization they admired. If all they wanted was peace and safety, then they should have it. Reward the character for believing they can have anything they want as long as they are willing to compromise their integrity to get it.
10. The Road to Change
The character’s success is maybe not as sweet as they were hoping. At this point, you should show how their reward falls slightly short of their expectations, leaving them unsatisfied. Feed their growing obsession, and have them strive for more to make up for this disappointment. A desperate attempt to realize a goal that was flawed from the start will slowly degrade whatever is left of the character’s guiding moral principle.
Additionally, have the character face off directly with the consequences of their way of life. Show how their rewards come with strings attached, and they now have to deal with some things they didn’t actually want, such as added responsibility, regret, or other challenges. The honeyed promises that swayed them in the beginning fall apart when the reality of consequence catches up to them.
11. The Transformation
This is the point at which the character reaches acceptance. They understand and accept the consequences, the drawbacks, the obligations, and everything else that comes with their new lifestyle. There is no more uncertainty—they fully understand the implications of their deeds, and they accept all the conditions.
12. The New Beginning
In the traditional story structure, this part would mark the end of the story and the point where the hero returns to life as usual. In a corruption arc, however, this is more of a new beginning than a return to the old life.
Here, you will want to draw parallels between who they are at this point and who they were at the beginning of their arc. Many things would be in conflict with their former life, but some things would remain the same. Routines, habits, preferences, and many other aspects of a person’s character would resist change, even if the circumstances or environment change drastically. Sure, the character may have different goals and morals than they used to, but they still may want the cup of chamomile tea they’ve had every night before bed for years. A character isn’t going to forget their favorite book, the way they make their oatmeal, or how to sing the intro song to their favorite television show word-for-word from memory.
Remind readers of who this character used to be, and who they still are to some extent. Contrast is always fantastic, but it’s the similarities that make a corruption arc feel genuine. Deep down, this character should still fundamentally be the same person they were before—even if every other aspect of their life is different now.
The Path Back to Redemption
In some stories, corruption is only half the battle. Just as someone can experience a fall from grace, they can also pick themself up again and start down the path of redemption.
You can read up on redemption arcs in my other article Writing Redemption Arcs: What You Need to Know, but there’s something else you’ll need to consider if this is your ultimate goal after the character experiences a corruption arc: The character will never again be the person they were before their corruption.
Even if the character is able to make amends, change their behavior, and work to undo any harm they had inflicted, they cannot go back to being exactly the way they were before. They would have seen and experienced too much, and they would forevermore carry the guilt from their previous way of life.