2021/11/19
In aesthetics, the uncanny valley is a hypothesized relation between an object’s degree of resemblance to a human being and the emotional response to the object.
As the anthropomorphism of a humanoid object increases, the human perception of it changes. The Valley of Terror is the range where human favorability suddenly drops as the robot reaches the “near-human” level. Humanoids that are active change more than those that are stationary. The valley of terror can be explained by the idea that if an entity is sufficiently ‘less anthropomorphic’, its human-like characteristics will be conspicuous and easily recognisable, creating an empathy effect. On the other hand, if an entity is ‘very anthropomorphic’, then its non-humanoid features become conspicuous, creating a sense of oddity in the eyes of the human observer.
Scott McCloud believes that cartoon characters with a simple structure allow readers to retain their imagination and enhance their sense of identity. Thus, a simple cartoon character allows the reader to vicariously relate to their self-perception; in contrast, if the structure of a cartoon character becomes more complex to the point of being almost photographic, people will feel that it is a ‘him’ far away from them and will find it difficult to perceive.
Appeal in animation characters is a similar parallel with actors having charisma.
A character who is appealing can still be unsmpathetic, a villain or monster.
Appeal is critical in the audience association with the character creating interest and concern.
Appeal lies not only in the design of the character but in the action and deed of the character within the storyline.