The protagonist is the main character of a narrative work, who may not necessarily be a “good guy.” They undergo emotional or philosophical changes while facing the antagonist. Protagonists can be complex and detailed, and some narratives have multiple protagonists.
The protagonist of a story is the main character of a given work of literature, theatre, cinema or other narrative work. It’s a common misconception that the protagonist is always the “good guy” in any given story – that’s not necessarily the case, as protagonists can just as easily be evil characters. They are the characters around whom the events of a narrative circulate and with whom the reader should empathize. In many cases, such characters are placed in direct opposition to another character, force or institution, referred to as the antagonist. Protagonists tend to undergo some major emotional or philosophical change in the course of their fights against the antagonists.
A protagonist is, in many cases, referred to as the “hero” or “main character” of a story. While there are no set rules that define what makes an effective protagonist, such characters tend to be complex and detailed. Directly or indirectly, readers become aware of the main character’s emotions and are generally able to empathize with the personal challenges he faces throughout the narrative. While many stories are primarily about events, others use events as tools to shape and change the mental and emotional state of the protagonist. These changes, and not the events themselves, are often the focus of the narrative.
Despite the common usage of the word “hero,” a protagonist need not actually possess heroic or even good traits. Some protagonists are cowardly and weak while others are downright evil. Narratives with protagonists like this can be interesting because they explore the emotions and motivations of characters a reader might not expect to relate to. In narratives with heroic main characters, it is often easy for the reader to perceive the antagonist as a downright evil character with selfish and horrific intentions. A well-written antihero, however, can evoke empathy in the reader, thus humanizing a character who might otherwise be seen as downright evil.
Some narratives actually have several protagonists. This is especially common in stories with multiple subplots, such as most novels in the epic fantasy genre. The main storyline concerning the primary conflict of the entire work may have a primary protagonist. Other characters, who may simply be supporting characters in the main storyline, are often protagonists of their own subplots. Using a supporting character as the protagonist in a subplot allows a writer to develop supporting characters whose emotions, motivations, and other complexities are important parts of the overall narrative.
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