What’s So Important About a Protagonist vs Antagonist

Controversy is a must in every tale. Many of literature’s most renowned tales include a protagonist and antagonist in classic form.

Moby Dick is a novel about a man who goes sailing and returns. Harry Potter would be dull for seven years if not for Voldemort. Sanaron and the Ring were essential to the Fellowship’s existence.

For them, it would have been fun. But not for us! To do this, there must be a dispute involving actual individuals.

What is a protagonist?

A protagonist is a story’s main character. The word comes from Greek theatre and means “first actor.” The protagonist is not always good and maybe one of several protagonists.

Every story has a protagonist, who may also be the narrator. When they aren’t, the narrative is told in the third person restricted. If there are several protagonists, the POV frequently changes between first person and third person restricted. It takes a few chapters to figure out who the protagonist is.

Is the protagonist always the main character?

99% of the time. Some distinguish between “protagonist” and “main character,” claiming the former drives the tale along while the latter may be anybody who appears prominently but does not drive it.

In To Kill a Mockingbird, Scout is the primary character. Yet, Atticus is the real protagonist: his actions drive the narrative, while Scout is ultimately an observer. In The Great Gatsby, Gatsby is the really active player in the narrative, whereas Nick mainly watches.

However, “protagonist” and “main character” are almost identical words. A writer may find it useful to conceive about their protagonist only in terms of what they do! If your protagonist is more of a passive main character, you may want to rethink their position and purpose in your narrative.

Also, how many ways may protagonists appear in various stories? Let’s examine the three most frequent protagonist kinds.

Types of protagonists

1. Lonely hero

The lonely hero is the most “heroic” protagonist type. The lonely hero is the only one who can defeat evil and rescue the day. Though aided by a band of supporting characters, the lonely hero bears the ultimate weight of the journey. They must make the greatest sacrifices to achieve their objective.

Examples of lonely hero protagonists:

• Harry from Harry Potter
• Katniss Everdeen from The Hunger Games
• Frodo Baggins from Lord of the Rings
• Matilda from Matilda
• Cooper from Interstellar

2. Group hero

People from different backgrounds are equally engaged in the story’s events and conflict. They may not all have the same purpose or function, but they work together to achieve a common objective. If someone stands out, it’s only because the group helped them get there. (Whereas the lone hero may and does succeed alone.)

Examples of group hero protagonists:

• Romeo and Juliet from Romeo and Juliet
• Violet, Klaus, and Sunny from A Series of Unfortunate Events
• Fred, Daphne, Velma, Shaggy, and Scooby from Scooby-Doo
• Aibileen Clark, Minny Jackson, and Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan from The Help
• The Avengers, from the Marvel comics of the same name

3. Anti-hero

Protagonists may be unselfish, compassionate, and brave, yet they can also be bitter, caustic, and ethically ambiguous. The hero may be an anti-hero, lacking conventional “heroic” characteristics.

An anti-hero typically begins as an impartial party or a minor villain who reluctantly joins in battle with the main antagonist – usually for personal gain. Due to their lack of genuinely evil beliefs usually wind up in more neutral or even nice areas.

Examples of anti-hero protagonists:

• Artemis from Artemis Fowl
• Holden Caulfield from The Catcher in the Rye
• Locke Lamora from the Gentleman Bastards series
• Thomas Covenant from The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant

Can the protagonist be the bad guy?

Yes! The protagonists of their own tales are not as frequent as conventional heroes or even anti-heroes with complicated motives. Here are a few instances of villains:

• Patrick Bateman from American Psycho
• Alex from A Clockwork Orange
• The Grinch from How the Grinch Stole Christmas

Sometimes a wicked protagonist becomes virtuous via a character arc (as with the Grinch). But they can still be horrible (often a sign of sociopathy, as in the first two examples).

A villain doesn’t require a redemption arc to be interesting to readers, so keep that in mind while creating one. Maybe they have a wonderfully warped inner monologue or a hidden vulnerability. Maybe you’re a satirist who wants to test the genre’s boundaries. But your protagonist can’t be boring or dull because readers won’t understand why you’re presenting their tale.

Now that we know who the protagonist is let’s discover who the antagonist is.

What is an antagonist?

The antagonist is the major adversary in a story and the main barrier between the protagonist and their objective. The word comes from the Greek anti and agonist, which means “against.”

The adversary, like the protagonist, may take various forms. Whether it’s a single villain, a group of individuals, a natural force, or even an internal struggle, all antagonists have one trait: confronting the protagonist. Let’s take a look at the four most frequent antagonist kinds.

Types of antagonists

1. Villain

The word “antagonist” conjures up images of a classic villain. This is the classic evil adversary from Dickens to Disney. They aggressively fight against the protagonist’s objectives to achieve their own — typically selfish or evil — desires.

They may hold a long-held resentment towards the protagonist and want vengeance (think Syndrome in The Incredibles). Others want to watch the world burn while the protagonist maintains order (think the Joker in The Dark Knight). Whatever their motivations (or lack thereof), they are undeniably a villain.

Examples of classic villain antagonists:

• Voldemort from Harry Potter
• Darth Vader from Star Wars
• Hans Gruber from Die Hard
• Sauron from Lord of the Rings
• Cruella de Vil from One Hundred and One Dalmatians

2. Group villain

The word “antagonist” conjures up images of a classic villain. This is the classic evil adversary from Dickens to Disney. They aggressively fight against the protagonist’s objectives to achieve their own — typically selfish or evil — desires.

They may hold a long-held resentment towards the protagonist and want vengeance (think Syndrome in The Incredibles). Others want to watch the world burn while the protagonist maintains order (think the Joker in The Dark Knight). Whatever their motivations (or lack thereof), they are undeniably a villain.

Examples of group villain antagonists:

• The Community from The Giver
• The Capitol from The Hunger Games
• The Republic of Gilead from The Handmaid’s Tale

3. Inanimate forces

Inanimate forces like nature, technology, or the supernatural may also generate obstacles for the protagonist to overcome. As with the group hero’s face/figurehead, this shape is merely a stand-in for the protagonist’s real adversary.

These inanimate forces may be as frightening as cosmic terror or as commonplace as poor weather. In every case, this force stands in the way of the protagonist’s triumph and must be defeated.

Examples of Inanimate Forces as antagonists:

• Nature in Robinson Crusoe
• Technology in the Terminator franchise
• The supernatural in the short story “The Masque of the Red Death.”

4. Intrinsic forces

This kind of adversary isn’t a character but a flaw in the protagonist that prevents them from accomplishing their objectives. Character vs. self-conflict is sometimes seen in tales. Whatever the fault, the protagonist (and everyone around them) must overcome — or cave in to, particularly if the story has a hero-to-villain arc.

Also, keep in mind that the fundamental force adversary may not be the sole antagonist in a narrative. In The Lord of the Rings, Frodo battles both his own desire for the ring and his ultimate adversary, Sauron.

Examples of intrinsic forces as antagonists:

• Elizabeth’s prejudice in Pride and Prejudice
• The narrator’s paranoia in Edgar Allan Poe’s The Tell-Tale Heart
• Henry DeTamble’s uncontrollable time-traveling in The Time Traveler’s Wife

Can the antagonist be the good guy?

The adversary isn’t always as terrible as we assume. A tragic background often explains their behavior. Or they desire to be good but began down the wrong road and now think it’s too late.

To be an antagonist, a character must have objectives that clash with the protagonists. Here are some examples of not-evil-on-purpose antagonists:

• Every other character besides Holden in The Catcher in the Rye
• Javert from Les Miserables

What about anti-villains?

An anti-villain is not the same as a “good” adversary who opposes the protagonist. While the anti-actions villain’s are clearly evil, their motives make us rethink their classification.

Killmonger from Black Panther is the anti-hero. He wants to take over Wakanda to share its riches with downtrodden peoples everywhere. But his tactics are too harsh and will lead to further bloodshed, so T’Challa must resist him.

We’ll offer some important ground principles to help you build a famous fictitious rivalry.

How to write a protagonist

1. Give them purpose

Your protagonist needs a cause to do what they do in the narrative. Whether shallow or deep, they need a spark to get going.

For example, Frodo spent several years in the Shire before deciding to destroy the One Ring. This quest begins his journey and puts the Lord of the Rings events in motion.

2. Don’t make them perfect

Not reading about a protagonist who ticks all the clichéd boxes of a typical archetype is tedious. Yes, you may start with an archetype, but you need to make them distinctive.

A fascinating protagonist must be flawed, like everyone else. These faults can — and should! — influence your protagonist’s actions and choices.

Is your hero overly trusting? Too rash? Too rash? Maybe too open? These are only a handful of the numerous problems your character may face during the narrative.

3. Let them change

Readers dislike characters that don’t evolve throughout the narrative, particularly if it’s a multi-book series. This relates to our prior point since a flawless protagonist cannot develop. But a static character is nothing compared to a dynamic one. Allowing your lead to develop and evolve will entice readers to follow their journey.

How to write an antagonist

1. Give them the backstory

Whence comes the antagonist’s will to thwart What is their endgame? Like your protagonist, your adversary requires motivation — and an explanation. Create a villain to have a villain. They require a reason and a background to be credible.

For example, in the X-Men series, Magneto is the adversary. But his background shows anguish and suffering that caused him to believe mutants are better than humans. His background still serves as the adversary, but it provides the reader a rationale for his actions, making the narrative more interesting.

2. Don’t make them too weak (or too powerful)

Is there a way to beat your fo? The adversary must cause problems for the protagonist, but their strengths and weaknesses must be balanced.

The narrative will be unsatisfying if the adversary is vanquished too quickly. But if they’re too tough to beat, your tale may never finish (or end on an unrealistic note). No character, even your adversary, should be flawless.

3. Embrace unusual antagonists

How does your protagonist’s rivalry push or pull him? Nature and technology are not adversaries that must be conquered. Instead, they illustrate how the protagonist handles conflict.

In The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, his aging is the primary adversary. It can’t be vanquished, but it drives the narrative ahead by causing tension, as shown in Benjamin’s battle.

Keeping this in mind, let’s examine how certain writers immortalized their heroes and villains.

More examples of protagonists and antagonists

1. Pride and Prejudice

Protagonist: Elizabeth Bennet
Antagonist: Her prejudice (particularly against Darcy)
Rivalry: The primary barrier between Elizabeth and Darcy is their pride and prejudice, which they must overcome to be together.

2. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde

Protagonist: Dr. Jekyll
Antagonist: Mr. Hyde
Rivalry: The major issue is that Jekyll and Hyde are the same guy! Dr. Jekyll conducts experiments to separate his good and evil aspects. As a consequence, Mr. Hyde appears. Their story deals with the everlasting rivalry of good and evil, as well as the duality of human nature.

3. Infinity War

Protagonist: A veritable hoard of Marvel superheroes
Antagonist: Thanos
Rivalry: The Avengers, Guardians of the Galaxy, and Wakandans fight Thanos, who intends to kill half the Earth’s population using the Infinity Stones. A collective protagonist is a sure bet for cinematic magnificence!

Whether you have a classic hero-villain relationship or a unique character rivalry, remember to utilize the tension their interactions create to advance your narrative. Composing intricate characters makes it simpler to create an engaging storyline and bring your tale to life.