Who's your favorite anti-hero?

[MelC]

Originally Posted by WT Sharpe

There were no heroes in that series, anti- or straight-up. The closest folks to heroes in those books were the Vogons, who, without complaint, worked to clear local neighborhoods of slums and improve traffic flow.

Your post made me think about what definition I was using for anti-hero - I had a vague idea that it meant a bad or seriously flawed character that we like despite ourselves and that the story may involve some sort of reluctant redemption moment for that character. On looking it up, the Oxford Concise Dictionary of Literary Terms defines it as:

anti-hero or anti-heroine , a central character in a dramatic or narrative work who lacks the qualities of nobility and magnanimity expected of traditional heroes and heroines in romances and epics .

Interestingly it doesn't seem to matter whether we like the character or not or whether the character ever does anything we would view as "heroic" in the course of the book. Hmmm. I think I can still maintain my opinion though that Zaphod definitely lacks the qualities of a traditional hero and is therefore an anti-hero

Mel

[WT Sharpe]

Originally Posted by MelC

Your post made me think about what definition I was using for anti-hero - I had a vague idea that it meant a bad or seriously flawed character that we like despite ourselves and that the story may involve some sort of reluctant redemption moment for that character. On looking it up, the Oxford Concise Dictionary of Literary Terms defines it as:

anti-hero or anti-heroine , a central character in a dramatic or narrative work who lacks the qualities of nobility and magnanimity expected of traditional heroes and heroines in romances and epics .

Interestingly it doesn't seem to matter whether we like the character or not or whether the character ever does anything we would view as "heroic" in the course of the book. Hmmm. I think I can still maintain my opinion though that Zaphod definitely lacks the qualities of a traditional hero and is therefore an anti-hero

Mel

I’ve never looked the term up before, but rather always worked on the assumption that I knew perfectly well what it means. Every time I’ve encountered it in the past, it referred to a protagonist who had major characters flaws, yet always managed to fight and win the good fight despite those flaws. In short, I’ve always thought of anti-heroes as being defined more by negative attributes they possess rather by positive attributes they lack.

The Wikipedia definition would seem to back this up: “In fiction, an antihero (feminine: antiheroine) is a protagonist archetype whose character or goals are antithetical to traditional heroism.”

But the Encarta dictionary in MS Word defines antihero as “the central character in a story who is not a traditionally brave or good hero.” This seems more in line with the Oxford Concise Dictionary of Literary Terms definition which you quoted.

In short, there is more to the term than I realized, and I stand corrected. You are right, Zaphod Beeblebrox most definitely lacks the qualities of a traditional hero.

[Sparrow]

Patricia Highsmith's Tom Ripley.

[llreader]

How about votes for an "anti-villain". Someone who does express "the qualities of nobility and magnanimity expected of traditional heroes". But is still the villain.

Roy Batty (Rutger Hauer) in Blade Runner?

[DoctorOhh]

It would seem that Dexter Morgan is an excellent anti-hero. I have only read the first two books by Jeff Lindsay and I'm not sure how I would like the books without the influence of the TV series. The screen writers for the show have done an excellent job developing him into a surprisingly likable anti-hero despite the fact he is a serial killer.

[KarateMonkey]

Originally Posted by dwanthny

It would seem that Dexter Morgan is an excellent anti-hero. I have only read the first two books by Jeff Lindsay and I'm not sure how I would like the books without the influence of the TV series. The screen writers for the show have done an excellent job developing him into a surprisingly likable anti-hero despite the fact he is a serial killer.

I thought about mentioning Dexter too, but I left him off because, like you, I'm mostly a fan of the TV series. The first two books were OK if unmemorable. Jeff Lindsay had a good idea and executed it well enough. The third book was just idiotic. There's a fourth one out now that doesn't look too bad. I may pick it up after season 4 of the TV series is over just to get my Dexter fix.

[Solitaire1]

Originally Posted by Elfwreck

My husband & I were talking the other day about possibly the original anti-hero: Sherlock Holmes. Anti-social, drug-using, rude and arrogant man, with friendships with various lowlife & criminal types, who solved crimes as a hobby.

From what I understand, Gregory House in the television series "House" is basically Sherlock Holmes as a doctor. Based on what I've seen, House has a great deal in common with the above description of Holmes ("Anti-social, drug-using, rude and arrogant man" definitely does apply to House).

[ASparrow]

Severus Snape

[GA Russell]

Originally Posted by MelC

anti-hero or anti-heroine , a central character in a dramatic or narrative work who lacks the qualities of nobility and magnanimity expected of traditional heroes and heroines in romances and epics .

Mel

Thanks for that definition, Mel! It confirms my view of Sam Spade.

I'm also reminded of Bret and Bart Maverick from tv. They always ran from a fight whenever they could!

[Solitaire1]

For me, one of the best anti-heroes is Deadshot, a DC Comics villain who is one of the world's greatest assassins. The best way to describe his accuracy with a gun is that no matter how difficult the shot is, he will always hit his target unless he is interferred with.

From an emotional standpoint, he has a strange death wish. He basically doesn't want to die but doesn't care if he does. Ironically, he was a long-time member of the Suicide Squad and was one of the few members not to die (on each mission there was a good chance that some member wasn't coming back).

He's basically amoral, with little concern for anyone outside of the family members he cares about. For him, killing people is just a job and he's good at it. He just goes from one job to the next. But never cross him, or threaten someone he does care about.