This blog will look into the anti-hero culture. It will investigate and summarize the concept of the anti-hero as well as its historical origins. I’ll gather more information to assist me in writing the thesis. Of course, as my research progresses, I will add more information about anti-hero culture.
Anti-Hero:
An antihero (sometimes spelt as an anti-hero) or antiheroine is a main character in a story who lacks conventional heroic qualities and attributes, such as idealism, courage, and morality. Although antiheroes may sometimes perform actions that are morally correct, it is not always for the right reasons, often acting primarily out of self-interest or in ways that defy conventional ethical codes.
An early antihero is Homer‘s Thersites. The concept has also been identified in classical Greek drama, Roman satire, and Renaissance literature such as Don Quixote and the picaresque rogue.
The term antihero was first used as early as 1714, emerging in works such as Rameau’s Nephew in the 18th century, and is also used more broadly to cover Byronic heroes as well, created by the English poet Lord Byron.
Literary Romanticism in the 19th century helped popularize new forms of the antihero, such as the Gothic double. The antihero eventually became an established form of social criticism, a phenomenon often associated with the unnamed protagonist in Fyodor Dostoyevsky‘s Notes from Underground. The antihero emerged as a foil to the traditional hero archetype, a process that Northrop Frye called the fictional “center of gravity”. This movement indicated a literary change in heroic ethos from feudal aristocrat to urban democrat, as was the shift from epic to ironic narratives.
Huckleberry Finn (1884) has been called “the first antihero in the American nursery”. Charlotte Mullen of Somerville and Ross‘ The Real Charlotte (1894) has been described as an antiheroine.
The antihero became prominent in early 20th-century existentialist works such as Franz Kafka‘s The Metamorphosis (1915), Jean-Paul Sartre‘s La Nausée (1938) (French for ‘Nausea’), and Albert Camus‘ L’Étranger (1942) (French for ‘The Stranger’). The protagonist in these works is an indecisive central character who drifts through his life and is marked by ennui, angst, and alienation.
The antihero entered American literature in the 1950s and up to the mid-1960s as an alienated figure, unable to communicate. The American antihero of the 1950s and 1960s was typically more proactive than his French counterpart. The British version of the antihero emerged in the works of the “angry young men” of the 1950s. The collective protests of Sixties counterculture saw the solitary antihero gradually eclipsed from fictional prominence, though not without subsequent revivals in literary and cinematic form.
During the Golden Age of Television from the 2000s and into the present time, antiheroes such as Tony Soprano and Dexter Morgan became prominent in the most popular and critically acclaimed TV shows.
An Archetypal Character who is almost as common in modern fiction as the Ideal Hero, an anti-hero is a protagonist who has the opposite of most of the traditional attributes of a hero. They may be bewildered, ineffectual, deluded, or merely apathetic. More often an anti-hero is just an amoral misfit. While heroes are typically conventional, anti-heroes, depending on the circumstances, may be preconventional (in a “good” society), postconventional (if the government is “evil”) or even unconventional. Not to be confused with the villain or the Big Bad, who is the opponent of Heroes (and Anti-Heroes, for that matter).
Most are to the cynical end of the Sliding Scale of Idealism vs. Cynicism.
There are just as many variations on Anti-Heroes as there are normal heroes. Some common attributes are: rarely speaking, being a loner, either extreme celibacy or extreme promiscuity, parental issues, occasional Past Experience Nightmares and flashbacks relating to a Dark and Troubled Past that can take many forms depending on the Anti-Hero in question; and being able to tell the story of their life through any Nick Cave song. Some won’t Save the Villain, but they will Shoot the Dog, and they will not hesitate to kill anyone who threatens them.
Other characters may try to impress upon them the value of more traditional heroic values through The Power of Friendship, but these lessons tend to bounce more often than stick.
What amoral antiheroes learn, if they learn anything at all over the course of the story, is that an existence devoid of absolute values offers a lot of isolation. Which may be to their liking. Don’t You Dare Pity Me! is common, and gratitude may be repulsed with Think Nothing of It (just to get them to leave them alone).
These often crop up in deconstructions of traditionally heroic genres. As the struggling, imperfect protagonist begins to gain more respect and sympathy than the impressive-but-impossible-to-relate-to invincible superhero, “anti” heroes have come to be admired as a perfectly valid type of hero in their own right.
Sometimes, they’re not the “star” (protagonist), but serve as The Rival or Worthy Opponent of the protagonist and are prone to becoming an Ensemble Dark Horse as fans enjoy their interactions with the protagonist. If they are part of a Five-Man Band, they will most certainly be The Lancer. Well-liked ones may become a Deuteragonist or at least get A Day in the Limelight to please the fans.
The term is used more loosely today than it used to be, at least on This Wiki. In one definition of the word, the appeal of an antihero is that they’re often very literally a hero: Namely; they do heroic deeds. But whereas Superman, Wonder Woman, and many other conventional heroes have both the physical and moral capabilities to do it, an antihero almost never has both.
Anti-Heroes are spread all over the alignment chart, tending towards Neutral types (and Good ones if the anti-heroic side of his character is less prominent). While the Knight in Sour Armour or the Classical Anti-Hero aren’t actually morally flawed, and can even be Pure Good characters, the other anti-hero types are never Pure Good, as they tend towards the morally grey zone.
Traditionally, in literary analysis, the meaning of antihero was different from the now common usage, lacking the elements that make a hero “cool” rather than the elements that make them “good”. Willy Loman and Shinji Ikari are archetypes of this form, in contrast to someone like Spawn or Kain.
Compare and contrast this trope with its antithesis, the Anti-Villain. A character who is a Wild Card or a Heel–Face Revolving Door can be capable of being both an Anti-Hero and an Anti-Villain depending on whether or not they are acting for or against the protagonist at the time. For an ensemble of these heroes, see Anti-Hero Team.
Anti-Hero Examples
Example 1: Annalise Keating from How to Get Away with Murder
“Anti” — Annalise Keating is a law professor at a prestigious Philadelphia university who drips seductiveness and arrogance, with just the right amount of like-ability thrown in. These attributes make her similar to fellow anti-hero Don Draper. Annalise has no problem manipulating others to get her way and commits cruel, self-serving deeds without a second thought.
“Hero” — Annalise is the type of morally grey main character that many viewers love to watch, but sometimes struggle to like. While she does a lot of things viewers fundamentally oppose, she has also lived through a number of traumas that inform her crooked actions (hello, Unscrupulous Anti-Hero!). Ultimately, she fights on behalf of the innocent and bounces around the top 4 positions of the anti-heroes sliding scale.
Example 2: Sherlock Holmes
“Anti” — Sherlock is a genius — or “high-functioning sociopath,” as he’s presented in the BBC modernization — and he gets bored easily. Solving crimes gives him something to do with his superior intellect. While Holmes might appreciate the fact that his work allows justice to be served, he’s largely motivated by the novelty and challenge of cracking cases.
“Hero” — At the end of the day, Sherlock helps fight crime. Whether or not he’s doing it for selfless reasons, he has still dedicated his life to stopping criminals, and he does this using noble means. Different depictions of Sherlock also portray his sympathetic side to varying degrees — some allowing audiences to glimpse emotional connections between Sherlock and the crime he solves.
Example 3: Michael Scott from The Office
“Anti” — Michael makes the lives of his employees at Dunder-Mifflin paper company very hard sometimes. He’s constantly distracting them with his need for attention and validation, and he ends up making some very questionable decisions that can harm others in his need to come across as a hero — you could even classify his need to be liked as a tragic hero’s fatal flaw. Oh, and let’s not forget about the way he treats poor Toby.
“Hero” — While Michael can be incredibly selfish, unaware of how his decisions negatively affect his coworkers, and downright rude, he has a good heart and loves (most of) the people who work for him. In the face of major downsizing, he fights for his branch and the job security of the people who work there. Michael has shining moments of kindness (such as the bird funeral), and viewers root for him — and pray for his continuing self-improvement.
Example 4: Veronica Sawyer from Heathers
“Anti” — While the rebellious new kid, J.D., might be the person who starts Veronica down the path of killing her classmates, she doth not protest enough to avoid eventually pulling the trigger herself.
“Hero” — While Veronica does murder a student, she’s portrayed for the most part as an impressionable and bullied teenage girl who gets carried along by the sinister doings of J.D. Still, for much of the movie, she can definitely be considered a Hero in Name Only, as she’s absolutely complicit in the homicides. In the end, we see a glimmer of humanity when Veronica stops J.D. from bombing his school and reunites with her social outcast friend, Martha.
Example 5: Tony Soprano from The Sopranos
“Anti” — A number of things put the “anti” in Tony’s label as “anti-hero”: murderer, thief, con artist, extortionist, to name a few. He is the capo di tutti capi (the “boss of all bosses”) in the crime world.
“Hero” — Apart from being the protagonist of the TV series, things like his unshakeable love for his family, his kindness to his friends, and the occasional pang of guilt or moment of vulnerability let viewers glimpse Tony’s human side. What solidifies his status as an anti-hero, however, is the fact that his enemies are portrayed as being far more evil and sinister than he is.
Sub-tropes and related tropes:
Character types particularly prone to anti-heroism (though many have their share of straight-up heroes, and villains too) include:
- ’90s Anti-Hero: A specific anti-hero from The ’90s, usually from the comics. They are portrayed as Darker and Edgier in contrast to heroes like The Cape.
- Anti-Antichrist: A supposedly anti-Christ (or similar) character willing to save the world from the forces of evil.
- Anti-Hero Substitute: A ruthless anti-hero takes the place of the pure hero.
- Anti-Hero Team: A group that consists of anti-heroes.
- Black Knight (when not evil)
- Blood Knight: Some anti-heroes enjoy the thrill of fighting.
- Byronic Hero: A type of anti-hero who is melancholic and brooding, has a Dark and Troubled Past, and is terribly flawed, yet sympathetic.
- The Chessmaster (when heroic)
- Classical Anti-Hero: An anti-hero who suffers from flaws and hindrances.
- Combat Pragmatist: A anti-hero who isn’t above playing dirty or outright cheating to get the job done.
- Cowboy Cop: An anti-heroic cop who doesn’t play by the rules and lives by their own.
- Creepy Good: The hero appears quite scary to their enemies, perhaps because of their actions and/or personality.
- Dashing Hispanic: Many Dashing Hispanics have a quite vengeful outlook which puts them squarely in Antihero territory.
- Designated Hero: The narrative says that they’re heroic, but their actions doesn’t prove it.
- Even the Loving Hero Has Hated Ones: They may be loving and heroic, but they despise certain people who are worthy of hatred. May fall under Good Is Not Soft.
- Exalted Torturer: Where a torturer is presented as heroic.
- Femme Fatale: She’ll steal your heart, as well as everything else.
- The Fighting Narcissist (when heroic)
- Friendly Pirate
- Fully-Embraced Fiend
- The Gambler (when they’re the hero)
- Gentleman Thief (when they’re the hero)
- Good All Along: An anti-hero initially believed to be a villain, but is actually working on the side of good the whole time.
- Good Is Not Nice: A straight-laced hero who is a Jerkass.
- Good Is Not Soft: Even straight-laced heroes can get brutal when dealing with evil.
- Grumpy Bear: Some anti-heroes are cynical when in an idealistic world.
- Hardboiled Detective: Some anti-heroes can be this due to their rough and cynical personalities and personal issues.
- Heroic Comedic Sociopath: An anti-hero whose bad deeds are Played for Laughs.
- Heroic Seductress: A seductress who uses sex to achieve a good goal.
- Hero with an F in Good: Has good intentions, but fails at being good.
- He Who Fights Monsters: A character’s anti-heroic qualities can lead them to become just as bad as the villains, or in the worst cases, becoming a villain themselves.
- Hidden Heart of Gold: You won’t see the good side of this Jerkass anti-hero, but it’s there. Just don’t tell anyone.
- Hunter of Monsters: These characters fight to protect humanity, but are ruthless when dealing with the supernatural. Especially if their motivation is vengeance.
- Jerk with a Heart of Gold: An anti-hero has a nice side beneath their unpleasant front. For the sake of simplicity, this is as close to kind-heartedness as they get, without being exactly polite by default.
- Jerkass Woobie: Sympathetic in spite of their anti-heroic behavior.
- Justified Criminal: An otherwise good person forced by circumstance to break the law (i.e. stealing to live).
- Knight in Sour Armor: Cynical and pessimistic, but does the right thing anyways.
- Knight of Cerebus: Contrasting a more ideal hero acts, an Anti-Hero’s more unscrupulous acts can darken the mood and morality especially in lighthearted works.
- Knight Templar: Some anti-heroes can be self-righteous and extremist in achieving their goals.
- Lovable Alpha Bitch: The Alpha Bitch can be an anti-hero.
- Lovable Rogue: Breaks the law for their own benefit, but is eager to help others.
- Mad Scientist (non-villainous versions): A morally questionable scientist who wants to do researches via any means possible.
- Magnificent Bastard (when heroic)
- Manipulative Bastard (when heroic)
- Military Maverick
- Monster Knight
- Moral Sociopathy: Some anti-heroes care about doing what they think is right while lacking empathy towards others.
- Mr. Vice Guy: The hero who has a constant character flaw (i.e., pride, wrath, etc.)
- Neighbourhood-Friendly Gangsters
- Noble Bigot: An anti-hero has prejudiced views.
- Noble Bigot with a Badge: An anti-hero serving in law enforcement has prejudiced views.
- Noble Demon: Some anti-heroes have a dreadful reputation to maintain, but they have lines they don’t cross.
- Nominal Hero: An anti-hero who only does good deeds for their own self-serving motivations.
- Pay Evil unto Evil: Some heroes prefer to do to villains what the villains did to their victims.
- Polite Villains, Rude Heroes: When the hero in question is ruder and meaner than the villains he faces.
- Politically Incorrect Hero: Some anti-heroes have controversial beliefs.
- Pragmatic Hero: Some heroes prefer doing questionable deeds to achieve a greater good.
- Punch-Clock Hero: They’re only a hero because it’s their job, not because they want to be one.
- Rebellious Spirit: Anti-heroes are not good with authority.
- Red Is Violent: Some anti-heroes are associated with the color of red to highlight their violent and aggressive personalities.
- Reformed, but Not Tamed: The anti-hero used to be a villain.
- The Rival: Some anti-heroes have a rivalry with The Hero.
- Stock Shōnen Rival: Anti-heroes serve as the equal and polar opposite to the Stock Shōnen Hero.
- Rude Hero, Nice Sidekick: When an anti-hero has a sidekick who is more pure and compassionate than they are.
- Satisfied Street Rat
- Serial-Killer Killer: A serial killer who targets serial killers.
- Shadow Archetype: In heroic examples, the anti-hero is what The Hero would be if they lack the proper qualities of a pure hero.
- Shoot the Dog: Anti-heroes are known for doing morally questionable deeds because they need to be done.
- Sociopathic Hero: An anti-hero who has sociopathic characteristics, but fights on the side of good.
- Sociopathic Soldier: Non-villainous versions. A morally questionable soldier of their country.
- Sympathetic Murderer: Dwelling on the extenuating circumstances that make it more understandable why the character would resort to criminal behavior.
- Most subtypes of Terror Hero
- This Loser Is You: The anti-hero can be someone who reflects the negative qualities of the audience.
- Token Evil Teammate: While not evil, some anti-heroes can be part of the group of pure heroes.
- Tragic Hero: An anti-hero whose flaw becomes their downfall.
- Unfazed Everyman
- The Unfettered: Some anti-heroes are willing to do anything to achieve a goal.
- Unscrupulous Hero: A hero who fights ruthlessly, but is ultimately driven by a heroic goal.
- Unsympathetic Comedy Protagonist: The hero is a jerk, but the audience finds it hilarious.
- Vigilante Man: A hero who puts the law into their own hands.
- Villain Killer: In settings where the Thou Shalt Not Kill mentality is expected for heroes, these anti-heroes stand out for their willingness to defy it.
- Worthy Opponent: Much like the anti-villains, its possible that anti-heroes may rudely demean others at times, but can have the same formula of respecting their enemies, and treating them rather kind-heartedly.