Antagonists. At the very base level they are the character that prevents your main character from reaching their desired target, which results in the dramatic conflict the propels the protagonist – and in turn, the story – forward. It is for this reason that this character needs to be given some attention by you, the writer, in order to make sure that your main character doesn’t have an easy time achieving their intended goal.
At the root of the word, “antagonist,” is the word “antagonize,” and the dictionary definition of this root word is: “to incur or provoke the hostility of,” or “to act in opposition to.” Either one of these works in describing the main reason for his opposing character’s existence in your story. They are there to initiate the change that turns your main character’s world upside down.
This doesn’t mean that this character has to be some egomaniacal supervillain, especially if you are writing a real-world story. It just means that this particular person’s actions must be contrary to your main character’s in order for there to be conflict throughout your narrative.
When you begin to dig deeper into your antagonist, I would suggest using the basic formula presented a couple posts ago, but placing the antagonist in the “hero” spot. What does your antagonist want? What is their goal in the story? Why does the main character oppose what they are doing and what their goal is?
By giving depth and dimension to your antagonist, you can make them and their goals feel more real to the audience. Yes, we are supposed to be rooting for the main character, but you as a writer need to get inside the opposition’s head and find out what makes them tick, makes them want what they want, and who they were before the story began.
I feel it’s a cop-out to spend tons of time on your main character and then just toss in an opposing force that is one-dimensional with no real development as a character. Even if you don’t dig into the antagonist’s backstory in the narrative, you still need to know for yourself why they are how and they are and why they are doing what they are doing.
Wednesday, we will continue this conversation as we explore more about developing a strong antagonist for your story.
