Lucky at cards, unlucky in love - the gambler, risking all on the turn of a card, and losing all he holds dear in the process. Money talks - he has it, she wants it, and agrees to marry him to get her greedy little hands on it. Never too old to learn - the mature student, having a high old time with the younger students, and the repercussions that follow. Silence means consent - a rape victim. Stolen fruit is sweet - a wife or husband caught up in an affair and torn between loyalty and love.
Time is a great healer - a woman coming to terms with the loss of husband, child or lover.
He travels fastest who travels alone - the loner in whatever setting you choose. Even a worm will turn - the nagged husband, wife or colleague, finally being driven to kill. Power corrupts - a sinister character, intent on taking over a corporation, no matter how he does it, or who he walks over and ruins in the process. But when you're stuck in finding that particular human appeal you want to give your characters, it's an exercise that may well pay dividends. Something as simple and intriguing as browsing through a book of proverbs and quotations can start you off with some wonderful ideas for characters.