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Post by girlyesterday on Nov 19, 2009 16:02:00 GMT -5
I talked about this a bit in my writing blog but I was curious on what everyone else thought about this question and how you come up with your villains. Do they have weaknesses? Are they inherently evil or was it a matter of circumstance? Did your villains used to be heroes? Are they, at the center of their being, a good person just trying to do the right thing or are they so jaded by the world around them that they've decided that it's better to hate the world and lash out before the world lashes at them first?
* * * For me, a villain has to have a reason for what he's doing. I tend to like villains more than heroes because they see the world in varying shades of grey; there is no right and no wrong for them, there is only the ends justify the means. And thinking more about it, everyone has the capacity for evil, it's whether they act on that capacity or not that distinguishes them as a villain or a hero.
My villains rarely start out as villains, they're just an ordinary person usually that end up where they are because of circumstance and a need to make the world a better place. They just happen to go about it the wrong way to the detriment of the other people around them.
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Post by raquelaroden on Nov 19, 2009 16:49:21 GMT -5
This is such a good question. I'm taking some classes in criminology, and one of the courses is on criminological theory--and it is so interesting because some theories of criminality believe that criminals are distinctly different from the rest of us. Other theories stress how much like us criminals are (and how often we ourselves commit crimes, where the difference is just the magnitude of the crime). I am more drawn to those theories that look at the similarities between our motives and criminal motives, so I think I find the villains acting with understandable motives but questionable strategies to be the most interesting. Most people aren't all good or all bad, and I find that to be one of the most fascinating things when I see it explored well in a character.
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Post by thelunarfox on Nov 19, 2009 17:43:06 GMT -5
I have spent a lot of time trying to reflect on this after reading some of the stuff you've posted and the links you gave.
I do have one character that I consider to be a villain. We actually haven't met him yet, but we will sooner or later. So I've been looking at him very closely.
I think with villains, they shouldn't be comical or one dimensional. It's they're just going to be like Cobra from GI Joe, they're just a joke and boring to read.
Villains are complicated. I don't believe that all villains have a good reason for doing what they do. I mean, they have a reason, it's just not always a good one. It might only makes sense to that character.
Which then brings me to Rachel's stuff. Fascinating! I did a little research on Sociopaths thinking my character might qualify as one, and he does have almost all of the warning signs.
All the stuff on sociopaths I read suggested that the criminal mind is actually truly different. Sometimes they simply don't have a reason. They might have come from a really good home, and still they were out in the backyard killing neighbor's pets as a kid.
But I do think there has to be something to taunt the readers with. I think a villain who can possibly be charming, can tease the readers into thinking that he might possibly be reformed one day or that he isn't completely a bad guy is a great villain.
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Post by Stacy on Nov 19, 2009 22:34:05 GMT -5
I am rather obviously in love with mine. I'm not even sure if he's a villain though. I guess he is, in that he goes around killing the other characters. But I don't know - I think of him more as the main character. To me, he is Valley. He's one of the three tags that stand out above the others on LJ. He is such a lovely person. So many layers and so complicated and so many motivations built upon motivations. I don't think I created him. I think he just chose my brain in which to manifest himself. Thinking of villains in general - I like ones that have some sort of motivation. Like Voldemort didn't really work that well in Harry Potter, but Umbridge - good lord. Now there's a villain. She made my skin crawl. I was going to go around pointing out what I think are bad examples of villains in the general legacy story, but I am trying to learn to not be all negative and overbearing like that so I won't. I think in general some sort of motivation beyond "I'm a bad person and I want to hurt people." is good. I mean, even Ledger's Joker in the Dark Knight had a whole philosophy behind his wanting to hurt people.
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Post by mdpthatsme on Nov 27, 2009 18:15:49 GMT -5
Villians are my favorite people...things...characters, whatever they be. My villians come in all shapes and sizes, willingness, and demands. Some want revenge, domination, fear, or to express their power. Others not so much. They just want a name, a spot in the history books sort of thing.
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Post by sb on Dec 4, 2009 4:10:31 GMT -5
villains and heroes....
doesn't the definition depend on what you're writing? Or whose point of view it might be?
Stacy's 'villain' does do awful things, like going around killing people. On the other hand, heroes go around killing people.
We have very few real villains in our work. We have people who are selfish, narcissistic, controlling, arrogant, petty, mean, self indulgent, spoiled and spiteful. At any point, any of them might also be guilt ridden, deluded, immature, totally pissed off, or madly in love with the wrong person. Sometimes the roles change and the villain may look like the hero. Villains who are just 'evil' come off like Sauron in LOTR A big boogy man. Stacy's example of Voldemort is perfect. What was up with him? He sat down one day and decided, I want to be evil?
There are some wonderful examples of true villains in literature, and most of them are driven by pride, and her bloody sister Insecurity, but they are never one-dimensional.
Great topic!
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