What is a “protagonist” anyway?
So, I’ve had this short story bubbling around in my head for a while, and I finally got around to scratching down a few of the details before they become lost to the vanishing ether of this echoing chamber of a brain I’m cursed with. As I was putting together some of the character details, a thought occurred to me. What makes a character the “protagonist” of a story?
This question came to me just as I was attempting to mark one of my characters as the protagonist of my story. I have two characters in this story that are “central” actors. One is the narrator and, essentially, the “main character” in just about every respect. She is a strong female character who grows very noticeably through the story. From her perspective, you understand her thoughts, motives, and reasoning.
However, the other central character is a male who is, for all intents and purposes, the “hero”. In the climax and resolution, he is the character that rights and wrongs and saves the day. But for much of the story, he is an important, yet a purposefully “background” character. His actions are not at the forefront of the story, but they are obvious in the telling of it from the female lead’s narrative. His existence is really only suggested through much of the story. Even though he truly shines at the end, he is never really the focus.
So, which one is the “protagonist”? According to Wiktionary, a protagonist is described as “[t]he main character in a literary work or drama”, as well as “[a]n advocate or champion of a cause, or course of action”. Well, that’s all well and good, but my female lead may be the “main character”, but is in no way a champion of any cause or course of action. My male lead IS the champion, but isn’t really a main character in the strictest sense of the term.
So, maybe I have a unique situation where the two characters together form an amalgam protagonist? Neither one would carry the story independently. It definitely requires both of them. In a sense, I suppose, they are both the “hero”.
Am I picking nits by attempting to label one or the other — or both — as the protagonist? Should I forgo this discussion and simply move on to actually writing the story? Is this even important to focus on? Could my own perception of the definition of a protagonist be essential to my ability to tell a logical and compelling story? Curiouser and curiouser. I’d love to hear other thoughts on this.
My awesome family at Mahoney State Park this past summer. From L to R: me; my oldest son, Caleb; baby Harlyn peeking out from behind mommy's shoulder; my wife, Amanda; my son Alex.
What you’re telling is, essentially, a broken Hero’s Journey. Most humans that are not on the autism spectrum (in contrast with me) have a built-in story-decoding algorithm. When a story deviates from the Hero’s Journey, they literally cannot understand it – this is why Cloverfield bombed.
It starts with the hero-to-be in a broken world (bad home situation, decaying or corrupt city, imperialistic country, backwater planet, etc.). An adventure hook is either ignored or refused, but then accepted. The adventure hook (such as a lightsaber) brings the hero into “the new world,” which could be Hogwarts school, a spacecraft at Mos Eisley, or the latest murder in Las Vegas.
Then comes a Trial By Fire, a Quest To The Oracle, and a Journey Through Darkness.
Finally, the hero grasps the sword that will slay the villain and free the captives; he dons a disguise to enter the Lair of Evil undetected, but is discovered. He flees, taking a Magic Flight – which ends all too soon, and usually badly. He enters the Final Arena alone, and fights the villain – but it’s not enough! Suddenly, a companion aids him! It may be a sacrifice such as diving on a grenade, it may be merely a moment’s reprieve granted by an illusion that keeps the villain at bay, but that gives him enough courage and enough passion to slay the villain, once and for all.
And the people rejoice.
The hero doesn’t need to be the primary viewpoint character; however, it is the hero who must bear the brunt of the sacrifice… if you want to follow the Hero’s Journey.
However, “I’m not really the hero, you are!” moments have been done to good effect. In The Neverending Story, Atreyu bore the weight of the journey, but Bastian lived it, and Bastian gained the hero’s reward at the end.
Another way to deviate is to do what CSI and Law & Order do on a weekly basis: make it clear they’re a team of heroes, and the reader won’t lose track of whom to root for, nor will they be unpleasantly surprised by the deviation from the standard plotline.
If she knows all along she isn’t the hero, that’s good. If the thinks all along she’s the hero, that’s even better.
Short stories usually have a complete Journey, though it seems abbreviated when compared to longer fiction. However, they may use linguistic shorthand to tell the reader that the Journey is already halfway complete (they are in the Quest For The Oracle stage, or the Trial By Fire).
I hope this helps.