I Could be your Villain - What makes a Hero an Anti-Hero

          Our society today is crawling with heroes. All one would need to do is look at the docket for the upcoming summer blockbusters, Thor, Captain America, and Green Lantern. Each movie is about a muscular, spandex bound super hero parading the streets with his morals and his strong jaw line, hunting down the bad guys and throwing them in jail. They're heroes, they have broad shoulders and are untainted. They have super strength, super eyesight, no physical or mental imperfections. They battle their arch enemy and save their sweet damsel in distress, and they win every time. It is time we stop recognizing the heroes, and start recognizing the little appreciated anti-hero. An anti hero is described as "a protagonist or notable figure who is conspicuously lacking in heroic qualities" (anti-hero). Within Mrs. Watson's English class, my classmates described an anti-hero as someone that was missing the hero package.

          What I found most curious about most personal definitions for an anti-hero focus mainly on physical attributes. I have noticed many of my classmates using these attributes as the reason why their character is an anti-hero. For example, describing an anti-hero solely based on the fact that they can not run fast or perhaps they wear glasses. Since these attributes are not very hero-typical, attributes like this have been cited as the only reason a character is an anti-hero. This is not a bad thing, but many people over look the other attributes that can make a hero an anti-hero.  

          When I first hear the term anti-hero, what came to my mind was a villain. I assumed that because of the prefix, I assumed an anti-hero would be the opposite of a hero, which to me, is a villain. An anti-hero is a some what of a villain! He doesn't have to be a unsuccessful man with curious lucky streak but legs of Jello. An anti-hero can be a bad man, a corrupt man, or woman if it is applicable. In the article titled "What is an Anti-hero?", an anti-hero is described as "...someone with some of the qualities of a villain, up to and including brutality, cynicism, and ruthlessness, but with the soul or motivations of a more conventional Hero" ("What is an Anti-Hero?"). An example of an anti-hero is Rorschach, a character from a popular graphic novel. He is a short, scrappy, ginger haired middle aged man with a disturbing psychological view of the world. While Rorschach borders on the line of hero and villain, he also is great representation of how an anti-hero can be described by his actions and beliefs. Rorschach sees the world in black and white. To him, there are good and bad people, and that is it. He kills the "bad" people, and in his warped sense of justice, is doing a heroic deed. While Rorschach is busy getting rid of the world's criminals with violence and raw anger, a regular hero finds himself apprehending villains and taking them to justice. Rorshach, and anti-hero, brings justice to the criminals. 

          An anti-hero can not be defined only by his physical appearance and lack of spandex pants. The idea of an anti-hero can become far more complex in literature and movies then many people imagine. Now when movie goers are out to watch that summer block buster, they will be able to identify the anti-hero, separate him from the hero, and make sure to separate him from the villain. This can be tricky, as an anti-hero just might masquerade as a villain. 

Works Cited

"anti-hero." Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2011. Merriam-Webster Online. 30 April 2011

"What is an Antihero? ." FlowerStorm. N.p., 15 Mar 2010. Web. 30 Apr 2011.      <http://www.flowerstorm.net/disa/Gallery/anti-explain.html>.