Personality And Character: Character Vs. Character

"When you choose your friends, don 't be short-changed by choosing personality over character." In one sentence, William Somerset Maugham encapsulates the difference between personality and character. The two words are so similar that they are used as synonyms in everyday conversation, yet beyond colloquial use character and personality are not so alike. While a thesaurus lists personality as the first definition of character and vice versa, the same thesaurus also describes personality as the visible aspect of character, or one 's outward character. Although the words character and personality are often used interchangeably because both terms describe a person 's nature, they differ in how recognizable they are, how they are displayed, and

Even before a baby is born, the child has an individual personality which, although it may grow and mature, does not ultimately change. Traits such as extroversion or introversion, optimism or pessimism, and confidence or uncertainty are already present when a child is young. In his book titled Personality: How it Forms, Henry Kellerman does not make any distinction between character and personality, but he describes this concept of intrinsic personality as one 's "basic personality dispositional silhouette or skeleton," the foundation of one 's personality. Different people have different inborn personality traits which environmental influences can shape through epigenesis, a word which means that "environmental influences can either trigger or inhibit genetic givens or potentials." Conversely, character is developed and built through experiences. While personality is born, and to some extent shaped and grown according to surroundings, character is developed. Character has freedom in how it will grow. Romans 5 declares, "We know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." Trials and hardships build character because true character shines through difficulty. Similarly, Acts 17 explains that "The Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true." The believers in Berea were of noble character because they did not believe Paul 's message blindly; instead, they researched and double-checked Paul 's words to make sure what he said was accurate. Noble or upstanding character is not something that happens by itself; character is a