In this society there is a hero in all literature, but no matter what, the hero is in the spotlight. So it’s only fair that someone bring light to the dark side of literature. This dark side of literature is the counterpart to all heroes; the instantly disliked individuals that serve as the counterpart in every piece of literature that has ever seen the light of day. Of course these individuals are more commonly referred to as the villains. The necessary evil required to make any good story. But what makes a villain? Is it simply the most vile, depraved, wicked, despicable, or abominable individual thought up by some author for their story. Every author or director imagines what their villain will be like, but most only spend a tiny iota of their thoughts on these individuals. In fact most creative individuals base their villain’s backdrop entirely on the character of the hero. The more upstanding the hero the better the story, that’s the motto of our society, it has been for a while. Villains are not always evil by choice; they are who they are to fulfill their purpose.
Today there is not much room left to argue the morality of villains with most people in the world. The exception would be classes in schools or colleges, but the general consensus would most likely lead to most of the bodies in the class siding with the hero. The students, like most people have a presumptuous understanding of villains that they are to be despised. It’s not their fault, the blame lies on the authors and writers who leave no room in their stories for an opposing view of villains then that which has been established.
Once I sparked an argument with my manager over the character of Ben Wade played by Russell Crowe in 3:10 to Yuma. Russell Crow played the wanted outlaw in the West who was the head of a gang. In the story Ben Wade gets caught and is to be transported to a town called Yuma to be tried. The hero in the movie Dan Evans played by Christian Bale is a rancher...