By: Stephanie
Norman
An antihero is
the central protagonist in a literary piece, movie, or comic book who lacks the
conventional attributes of a hero. Unlike a traditional hero, he is
characterized with aggressiveness, clumsiness, dishonesty, or other terrible
habits that make him more flawed and distasteful. Nevertheless, he is still the
hero of the story because his magnificent traits make him more appealing than
loathsome.
Antiheroes are
flawed, just as all people are. The light and the dark sides are in a
never-ending battle, and their souls are the battlegrounds. Of course, the good
in them has to win at some point. Otherwise we would simply call them villains.
A traditional
literary hero is the perfect role model. He is brave, strong, and focused. This
character always does the right thing, no matter how tempting the situation is.
He is Odysseus, Cyrano de Bergerac, and the Little Prince.
Idealistic
heroes rarely work for contemporary readers though. The modern heroic qualities
are somewhat similar to the traditional ones, but they gravitate towards the
dark side too. Readers want to see complex characters that don’t always do the
right thing but are heroes nonetheless.
What’s the first
character that comes to mind when you’re trying to think of the perfect
antihero?
With all that
Star Wars hysteria going around, it’s probably Darth Vader. Some people would
categorize Vader as a pure villain, but the character is much deeper than the
initial impression he gives. Was he always selfish, or was he more complex and
even a man who loved? The stereotypic characteristics make him the villain in
the story, but he is still the one who brings balance at the end. To careful
observers, Vader is a well-conceptualized antihero.
Let’s name few
literary characters that can be classified as antiheroes: Tyler Durden, Jay
Gatsby, Alex from A Clockwork Orange, Huckleberry Finn, Dmitry
Karamazov—the list can go on for pages. All examples prove the same: antiheroes
are pretty awesome. Readers love them because they can understand them and
maybe even relate to them.
How can you
create a flawed character that your readers would love? These 7 tips will help
you understand what is it that readers want to see.
1. Make the character flawed
. . .
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