When we start the conversation about the protagonist and the antagonist, some writers will instantly jump to the conclusion that we are referring to a "good guy vs bad guy" story.

One might ask, "What if I don't have a villain in my story?"

My response: "Not all stories have villains. But all stories have characters striving towards a goal of some sort… and there is always something getting in the way."

It is that understanding of a character's goal, and consequently what is getting in the way, that helps us to understand the protagonist and antagonist for our story.

In today's post, I want to examine what really makes the protagonist the protagonist… and what the role of the antagonist is.

The Protagonist

The term protagonist comes from the Ancient Greek term of prōtagōnistēs, meaning one who plays the first part, or is the chief actor. [1] In other words, the protagonist is the main character. But the protagonist is more than that. The protagonist is the character whose actions and decisions are driving the story.

Consider the traditional Middle Eastern tale of Aladdin and the Sorcerer, originally published as part of Arabian Nights but made popular by the animated Disney film Aladdin.

The story initially focuses on the sorcerer. We see his failed attempts to gain power, including a failed attempt to get his hands on the genie's lamp. If we didn't know better, we would think that this evil man was the main character of the story. But the story quickly shifts to a petty thief and street rat by the name of Aladdin. It is Aladdin whose journey we ultimately follow through to the conclusion of the story. And it's Aladdin's actions (and decisions) that are driving the story as we read it.

Aladdin is the protagonist. Conversely, the sorcerer is just one of many antagonists.

(As a side note, starting a story with an antagonist is a common device within thriller stories. It's designed to give the reader knowledge about the main character antagonist that the protagonist doesn't have to start with.)

Within modern story-telling, it is common to use the protagonist as the narrator of the story (the one telling/reporting the story) or the point-of-view character (the character through whose eyes we experience the action). But it would be wrong to say that this is always the case.

An example of where the protagonist is not the narrator or the point-of-view character can be seen in Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes. In that series, Watson is the point-of-view narrator character. We see everything through Watson's eyes. However, the main character is Sherlock Holmes.

So, what exactly makes Sherlock Holmes the protagonist of the story? Well, it's not just the fact that he is solving the crimes. Sherlock is the character making the decisions that affect the way the story unfolds. Something happens (a crime is committed or a person-of-interest acts in a certain way), and Sherlock is reacting and making choices in the attempt to solve those crimes. He's striving towards a goal.

It's that goal element that really defines the protagonist of a story.

The protagonist is the main character who is making decisions, striving towards a desired outcome, driving the story forward.

So… If the protagonist is working towards a goal, then the natural source of conflict for the story will be anything and everything that is getting in the way of the protagonist achieving their goals.

The Antagonist

It is natural to jump to the conclusion that the antagonist is the "bad guy" of the story, but this is only one type of story. This assumption assumes that the protagonist is the "good guy" (which is not always the case), and that the antagonist is another character (which is also not always the case).

The term antagonist means "one who contends with another," originating from the 16th-century French word antagoniste. [1] But antagonist has its Greek origins too: antagonistēs means "competitor, opponent, rival."

So, if the protagonist is working towards a goal, then the antagonist is getting in the way of the protagonist achieving those goals. But regardless of the definition of the word, even though the antagonist is an opponent or rival to the protagonist, they're not necessarily in opposition.

If we were to go back to our Aladdin example, Aladdin wants to be seen as more than just a street rat. So, he pretends that he is something that he is not with the help of the genie, and eventually wins the heart of the princess—and is ultimately named the successor for the Sultan. But the sorcerer (the main antagonist) wants to control the kingdom. To do that, he has to somehow remove the Sultan from power… and Aladdin seems to be thwarting the sorcerer's every attempt. It is Aladdin's desire to be more than a street rat that is dictating his actions. And it is that desire that is ultimately tested during the climax of the story, when Aladdin faces off one-on-one with the sorcerer (and the genie).

The goals of Aladdin and the sorcerer are not in direct opposition. But their actions are getting in the way of each other.

In this case, strictly speaking, either character can be seen as the protagonist of their own story and the antagonist of the other's story. But because we follow Aladdin through the narrative, it is Aladdin who is given the protagonist title.

The sorcerer is the main antagonist, but Aladdin is also his own antagonist. It's his insecurities about who he is that get in the way of him telling the truth about his background. And when the truth comes out during the all-is-lost moment, he sees himself as inferior and not worthy. In the final act of the story, he has to face those demons to save the kingdom and face the sorcerer.

In The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins, there are multiple antagonists involved, all of whom are getting in the way of Katniss Everdeen surviving the nightmare that she has found herself in. The other combatants from the other districts are a big antagonistic force. But they aren't trying to kill her just to kill her. They have the same goal that she does: to survive. It just happens to be a rule of the games that there can be only one survivor.

Regardless of the nature of the antagonist, it is the role of the antagonist to get in the way of the protagonist achieving their goals, whatever those goals happen to be.

It doesn't make the antagonist the "bad guy". It doesn't even make them a character. In fact, the antagonistic force of a story can be a character, a force of nature, the environment of the world, a societal construct, an idea, or an internal philosophy of the protagonist.

In a future post, we'll take a look at the nature of the antagonist, be it a character, society, nature, or self. However, for the moment, I want you to take the time to think about the characters in your story.

What are the goals that are dictating their actions? And what is standing in the way of your characters achieving their goals? Devise of list of possible protagonists and the related antagonists for your story. Feel free to share those ideas for some feedback in the comments below.

References:

[1] Douglas Harper. Online Etymology Dictionary. (accessed April 2024) https://www.etymonline.com/word/protagonist