Is there a way to do this?

Example: Having a stick figure (yeah im a newb..hah) character ina movie. And then, binding the ends of his body to each other. Like having his elbow locked to his upper arm, his upper arm locked to his elbow, etc. This makes it a lot easier to move him and stuff.

Or do I just have to bite the bullet, and just move every little part of his body for every keyframe?

thanks