Anti-Hero: Difference between revisions

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Most are far to the cynical end of the [[Sliding Scale of Idealism Versus Cynicism]].

Other common attributes are: [[The Quiet One|rarely speaking]], being a [[Ineffectual Loner|loner]], either [[Celibate Hero|extreme celibacy]] or [[Anything That Moves|extreme promiscuity]], [[Freudian Excuse|father issues]], occasional [[Bad Dreams]] and [[Troubled Backstory Flashback|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'' [[Thou Shalt Not Kill|hesitate to kill]] anyone who threatens them.

Other common attributes are: [[The Quiet One|rarely speaking]], being a [[Ineffectual Loner|loner]], either [[Celibate Hero|extreme celibacy]] or [[Anything That Moves|extreme promiscuity]], [[Freudian Excuse|father issues]], occasional [[Bad Dreams]] and [[Troubled Backstory Flashback|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'' [[Thou Shalt Not Kill|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.

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What amoral anti-heroes 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 him alone.)

~~'''~~Anti-Heroes~~'''~~ often crop up in [[deconstruction]]s of traditionally heroic genres. As the [[Tragic Hero|struggling]], [[Mr. Vice Guy|imperfect protagonist]] begins to gain more respect and sympathy than the impressive-but-impossible-to-relate-to [[Invincible Hero|invincible superhero]], "anti" heroes have come to be admired as a perfectly valid type of hero in their own right.

Anti-Heroes often crop up in [[deconstruction]]s of traditionally heroic genres. As the [[Tragic Hero|struggling]], [[Mr. Vice Guy|imperfect protagonist]] begins to gain more respect and sympathy than the impressive-but-impossible-to-relate-to [[Invincible Hero|invincible superhero]], "anti" heroes have come to be admired as a perfectly valid type of hero in their own right.

Sometimes, they are not the "star" (protagonist), but serve as [[The Rival]] or [[Worthy Opponent]] of the [[Designated Hero|protagonist]] and inevitably steal the spotlight. If they are part of a [[Five-Man Band]], they will most certainly be [[The Lancer]].

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 ~~'''~~Anti-Hero~~'''~~ is that he or she is often very literally a ''hero'': Namely; he or she does heroic deeds. But whereas Superman, Wonder Woman, Hercules, and many other [[The Cape (trope)|conventional heroes]] have ''both'' the physical and moral capabilities to do it, an antihero almost ''never'' has both.

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 Anti-Hero is that he or she is often very literally a ''hero'': Namely; he or she does heroic deeds. But whereas Superman, Wonder Woman, Hercules, and many other [[The Cape (trope)|conventional heroes]] have ''both'' the physical and moral capabilities to do it, an antihero almost ''never'' has both.

Antiheroes are spread all over the alignment chart, tending toward Neutral types. It is nearly impossible for them to be [[Chaotic Evil]] or [[Lawful Good]].

[[Classical Anti-Hero|Traditionally, in literary analysis, the meaning of antihero]] was effectively the opposite of the now common usage, lacking the elements that make a hero "cool" rather than the elements that make them "good". [[Death of a Salesman|Willy Loman]] and [[Neon Genesis Evangelion|Shinji]] are archetypes of this form.

[[Classical Anti-Hero|Traditionally, in literary analysis, the meaning of antihero]] was effectively the opposite of the now common usage, lacking the elements that make a hero "cool" rather than the elements that make them "good". [[Death of a Salesman|Willy Loman]] and [[Neon Genesis Evangelion|Shinji Ikari]] are archetypes of this form.

If you've been sent here by a work referring to someone as a "Type-I" antihero (Or so forth), they are referring to the [[Sliding Scale of Anti-Heroes]], which is a sub-page of this one.