Media literacy 101, part 3, Protagonsits, antagonists and point of view

The roles of protagonists and antagonists are to drive a narrative forward. The distinction of protagonist and antagonist has been used to describe and define the main characters since ancient times. Today I will discuss how these two terms function and how it can help you analyze and enjoy fiction more deeply.

By analyzing the expected point of view can we learn more about the underlying themes that the text is presenting, as well as how these themes are supposed to be interpreted

Protagonist

The protagonist or protagonists are primarily defined by the character that is trying to achieve something or pull the narrative forward. The most simple example of this is the hero that works towards saving the words from destruction. In other words, the protagonist is someone that is working towards something.

Protagonists are often heroes or in other ways morally good and often represent the “good guys”. This is not always the the case. Here is where the term anti hero, or anti villain is copied. The anti hero often refers to a character that while acting immorally or evilly is still working towards a goal that would often be described as heroic or good. For example the violent vigenlantie the Punisher. Anti villains are similar characters that while often acting sympathetic and or morally good way, still often aim towards things that are considered villains.

The protagonist is also the primary point of view character in most fiction and are as a result often the point of view character for the audience. As a result it is quite common for the viewers to be expected to take the protagonists point of view, and to root for them. Here is where I once again reiterate that the protagonist is not necessarily either a hero, or morally just. To bring up an example that most of my viewers are familiar with is the Imperium of mankind from the warhammer 40k series often posed as the protagonist of many of the settings stories, and as I have discussed earlier, are far from what one would call heroes of the setting.

Warhammer in general is interesting since the primary protagonist often changes depending on the text, and while the Imperium of Mankind is often the chief protagonist, is this far from always the case? The codexes, books that describe how to play each faction in the tabletop game, is a prime example of having protagonists that are not part of the Imperium of mankind.

Antagonist

The antagonist is the protagonist opposite, and someone that is trying to stop the narrative from proceeding, often in the form of an adversary to the protagonist. For example, would Sauron be the antagonist of Lord of the Ring, as he is trying to stop the protagonist Frodo from destroying the ring and saving Middle earth.

The antagonist is often the villain or in other ways a character, entity or set of characters that represents the wrong side. This is far from always the case, and in most cases the antagonists are simply someone that is on the opposite side of the protagonist. A good example of these would be a romantic rival to the protagonist, or a general on the other side of a war where both sides are equally right or wrong.

The antagonist is as a result more difficult, but they can be thought of as the forces that, if it would win, would end the story. At the same time the antagonist drives the narrative forward much in the same way as the protagonist does, and are as a result vital to many narratives.

Furthermore, does the antagonist not need to be a character at all, the antagonist in many disaster oriented survival stories for example, have the environment take on the role of the primary antagonist. While these stories often have secondary antagonists, the primary obstacle is often storms, earthquakes or a virulent disease. The antagonist can, in this way, be the primary obstacle that the protagonist needs to overcome.

Another prominent quality of the antagonist is that they rarely, if ever have the role as point of view character for the audience. The antagonist is always seen through the eyes of the protagonist, and rarely has their point of view shown. If a villainous character is presented from their point of view, are they most likely a protagonist with morally evil intentions, rather than an antagonist.

Conclusions

Both the protagonist and antagonists are needed for the drive of most narratives, while they are not always needed are they incredibly common in all narratives that revolve around a central conflict. The protagonist can be said to lead the conflict forward, the one that sets out on the adventure, tries to save their home town from destruction or tries to marry their childhood love. The antagonist is likewise the force that tries to stop this goal to be achieved, be it a dragon at the end of the adventure, an evil oil company, or a romantic rival.

The protagonist is also the point of view character, and often the surrogate for the viewer in the narrative itself. This role as audience surrogate is played, regardless if the protagonist is sympathetic to the audience or not. For example, the protagonist in American Psycho is a truly detestable and horrifying human, but the audience are still forced to see the world through his eyes, because of his role as protagonist.

Understanding why a certain character acts as the narrative’s protagonist can help us as readers to understand what the text is trying to achieve. By presenting the viewers with a clear point of view does the text create an implicit line between what the audience can come to understand the primary conflict of the text, as well as how it can, or can not come to be solved. Even with texts like Warhammer 40k, and American Psycho that have highly unlikable protagonists, are they not chosen at random. TheImperium is often used to discuss themes of evil to fight bigger evils, and American psycho asks the audience if Patrick Bateman or the system that allows him to flourish is the true monster.