How Safe is your Protagonist?

Ah, protagonists. Those plucky little dreamers, bumbling through the world on their happy adventures with nary a care.

Gilgamesh of Uruk: world's first protag since 2500 BCE. (Thanks, Wikipedia!)

We're not talking about those people today.

We're talking about the people who want to ruin their lives.

We're talking about antagonists.

Understanding Antagonists

When I say antagonist, what are some synonyms that come to mind? Bad guy? Villain? Sure, maybe according to thesaurus.com.

Antagonists don't have to be evil. Antagonist just means opponent. Arch-enemy. Nemesis.

Yeah, so they're usually evil. But only because we usually tell stories about good people who make wholesome, morally upstanding choices.

Your antagonist doesn't have to be evil. Actually, your protagonist can be evil.

Thanks, SpongePedia!

As long as your antagonist is in direct opposition to your protagonist, she's still your antagonist. Even if she volunteers at the animal shelter and her singing voice summons furry woodland critters to her side. (And before you say anything, yes, I understand the irony of tagging this post 'Villains'.)

Your antagonist can also be something abstract, like a harmful idea (e.g., racism) or a natural disaster. This kind of antagonist opposes your protag just by existing.

But how is that different from a concrete antagonist?

Motivation 

Kurt Vonnegut put it quotably when he said, "Every character should want something, even if it is only a glass of water."

Whatever your protagonist wants? Your antagonist should want the opposite. Protag wants a glass of water, antagonist wants protag to not have a glass of water. Antagonist wants to withhold the water. Antagonist wants to take the water away from protag.

Isn't that compelling already? And it's just a glass of water. Introduce complex characters with backstories and real lives and you'll wind up with something unputdownable.

Threaten Your Protagonist

All that advice you read about throwing the worst possible situation at your characters is totally true. Your antagonist should be so determined to kick your protagonist's butt and keep her from getting what she wants that she can't get a break. At all times.

Even if you don't write mysteries or thrillers, your protagonist should be in almost constant danger.

So I'll ask again.


How safe is your protagonist?

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 What does your antagonist want in opposition to your protagonist? Share in the comments!