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So…I was thinking about a few of my charries, and I thought of a fun discussion!
So, every book has a “villain” of some sort, even if it’s not a specific person, but some books also have antagonists along WITH the villain.
But what’s the difference between an “Antagonist” and a “Villain”?
In my opinion, an Antagonist will more likely have:
- An internal conflict between right and wrong
- Moments of goodness
- Some good beliefs/values
- A sad and tragic past/event that explains why they are the way they are
And of course, don’t forget that many Antagonists will have a Redemption Arc! (not that villains can’t have them…they just more often than not chose to not be redeemed…)
But what do y’all think makes the difference between an Antagonist and a Villain? 😉
@freedomwriter76
But what do y’all think makes the difference between an Antagonist and a Villain? 😉
Interesting discussion. I agree with you on what you said there.
When I think of a Villain, I think of someone who is evil through and through….one who intentionally is looking out for ways to hurt and harm people. Their very nature is wicked and they find pleasure and fulfillment in it.
To me it seems an Antagonist might have a bad influence in their life that they can’t get out from under….for example, in Star Wars, I would consider Luke’s father as an Antagonist….he is influenced by the higher powers for evil but deep down, he still feels love for his son and we know what happens in the end. I think antagonists are often imprisoned by outside forces….maybe threatened? People will do a lot to save their own skin.
That was just a little of my thinking aloud *aka: typing* 😉 🙂 Hopefully it made sense.
Elen síla lúmenn' omentielvo
@freedomwriter76
I think you guys are using Antagonist wrong. You are thinking of Anti-Villian. Antagonist is just the word for whatever opposes the protagonist. It is important to note that Antagonists can actually be good or in a multi-narrative book may also be a protagonist.Through darkness,
light shines brightest@freedomwriter76
Ooo, interesting question.
Hmmmm
I’d say villains are antagonists that the authors chose not to redeem… but villains aren’t necessarily always antagonists. So, people that learned the truth, and to their own detriment, rejected it.
Antagonists by a literary definition are someone/thing that opposes the protagonists. They’re kind of like foils 2.0. Or at least that’s what my literature book said. XD
The way you’re talking about antagonists reminds me of the anti-hero (or is it anti-villain? I get the definitions confused). And while anti-heroes and anti-villains can be antagonists, they don’t have to be. An antagonist is a role, not the character and their struggles. Whereas villain, hero, anti-hero, anti-villain are general types of characters.
Using antagonist as you meant it, I think the biggest difference is over whether they learn the truth and accept versus learning it and rejecting it."...I did not say to the seed of Jacob, 'Seek Me in vain..."
(Part of) Isaiah 45:19@freedomwriter76
Great discussion topic! I agree with a lot of what everyone has said.
I think that the words can be used interchangebly in some cases. Villains definatly can appose the main character and therefore are Antagonists. But like @otherworldlyhistorian said, Antagonists can be good. Whereas I think Villains cannot be in their current state.
What if the protagonist was the Villain of the story? And so the good guy’s would be the Antagonists in that case.
I think that the Villian is someone who does evil on a large scale, despite good intentions or not. And an Antagonist is more objective to different scenarios.
Did that make any sense? XD
Love is patient. Love is kind. Love never fails. -1 Corinthians
And guess what? His is eternal (:@freedomwriter76
Oh, interesting! I tend to think of villains as less likely to be redeemed too. I mean I’ve only get one villain in my story, and he’s basically got a negative character arc into becoming a villain. Whereas my antagonist just needs to learn more about life/mature. I agree with historian’s thought that antagonists can be good, super random but my sister was just telling me about a old his fic movie she saw where the mc turns to greed, tries to kill the other mc, and the side character becomes the protagonist and mc. Kinda interesting, because the side character that came out as the new mc would have been an antagonist previously because he was opposed to greed, which the current mc had fallen to. great topic btw!
へびは かっこいい です！
@freedomwriter76 very cool topic!
as @otherworldlyhistorian said, antagonist is really just any force that is keeping the hero from their goal, they don’t necessarily have to be a bad person.
In fact, it can even be themselves, (leave that one for y’all to think about 😉)
I mean….Corvina is a protagonist and an antagonist.
In truth, most my characters are because they all keep themselves from what they need.
But I often just use Antagonist to describe corvina as it is easier and most understand that.
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#ProtectSebI’d say that an antagonist is the opposite of a protagnoist, whereas a villain is the opposite of a hero. The protagonist is the character the reader’s supposed to be rooting for, and that makes the antagonist anyone who gets in the way of the protagonist’s goals. A hero, on the other hand, is the good-hearted, morally-centered character who wants to do what’s best and serve others in a sacrificial way, and the villain is the one trying to tear things down, protect only themselves, and who doesn’t particularly care what’s right or what’s wrong.
With that definition in mind, I’d say that in The Little Mermaid, Ariel’s father serves as an antagonist whereas Ursula serves as a villain.
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@karissa-chmil. Ooh, I LOVE the way you put that! I think that’s one of the best ways I’ve heard Heroes/Protagonists/Antagonists/Villains defined! Thank you for that! 😀 <3
@godlyfantasy12. @mineralizedwritings. @gwyndalf-the-wise. @princesachronicle22. @orielle21. Thank y’all for the thoughts! I agree with all of y’all, and it’s cool to see how everyone sees it! 😉
@otherworldlyhistorian. Ooh, I see! (I had to go look up what an “anti-villain” was…lol) Yeah, that’s probably closer to the better term for what I’m saying…thank you! =)@freedomwriter76
You’re welcome! =) Thanks for the topic!
By the way…did you change your username or am I misremembering…?"...I did not say to the seed of Jacob, 'Seek Me in vain..."
(Part of) Isaiah 45:19- Rank: Chosen One
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@gwyndalf-the-wise. Oh, you are very welcome! =D
Yeah, I did, lol. XD It was originally “FreedomWriter76” but I changed it to “Freedom”, since a lot of people just call me that, lol.
An antagonist is whatever opposes the MC. It doesn’t mean that the antagonist is evil – that isn’t necessary – the person or force need only deter the MC from his goal.
Whereas, a villain is necessarily evil.
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@whalekeeper. Ah yes, that is a very simple but very true difference between the two!
Thank you for popping onto this topic! =D
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