How to Redeem a Seemingly Irredeemable Villain in Fiction
Does his (male as default, a villain can obviously also be female) redemption actually flow well as a part of your story?, Why do you want a villain to redeem himself?, Determine how redeemable your villain really is., Why did your character became...
Step-by-Step Guide
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Step 1: Does his (male as default
Does it have major or minor importance in relation to the story at large? Also, whether you ponder some specific themes or are more about 'vicariously living through characters and their adventures'
-entertainment (like Indiana Jones, Batman, Savage Dragon etc.), along with whether the narrative is more plot-, character- or world-centric, affects your way of execution. -
Step 2: a villain can obviously also be female) redemption actually flow well as a part of your story?
What are you aiming to demonstrate? Sometimes this may be unplanned, coming as a natural course of action. , The key to possibility of redemption is the right kind of a personality.
Look at a villain's personality structure and explore it.
It's also recommendable to do some exploration of various different personality types in real life.
If your villain is a remorseless, thrill-loving psychopath with a planet-sized sadistic streak that would frighten Hannibal Lecter, redemption is implausible.
Psychopathic personalities overall are a kiss of death for it, because psychopaths are incapable of empathy, guilt, remorse, regret or shame and can't form genuine emotional connections to anyone.
Likewise, a petty, deceitful, power-seeking bully, who's had absolutely no problem lying, conniving and backstabbing during the whole story, or a tyrannical sadist, who's delighted in making others suffer, makes for an unbelievable redemption story, just to give a few examples.
It goes better for more ambiguous villains (who might even have a sympathetic reason for doing what they do in the first place), ones who've had serious second thoughts about their path in life or ones with a strong honorable streak despite their evil nature.
What redeeming qualities does your villain have? A soft spot for another villain? Genuine suppressed affection for one of the good guys? A small thing like berry pie? A moral boundary they'd never cross no matter what? Make sure they fit his character seamlessly, not look tacked on.
The less obvious, the better.
Even better to have the bits of their hidden blooming goodness gradually come to surface.
Furthermore, if they're supposed to be a supernatural, mythical or religious personification of evil like Satan
- forget it! Redemption's just not going to be convincing. , This may never come to play in an actual story or may just be referred to, but it helps you better understand your villain. , Even if they understand what they do is wrong, they have a driving reason.
Perhaps they honestly believe that what they do is good, just necessary evil to achieve larger good, justifiable or something that can be shrugged off for some reason. , Dig deeper.
What events, things or even developed personality traits would have given him such beliefs? What would be required to get him to replace these beliefs with different ones? , Pay attention to , This could be done with a growing sense of unease on the villain's part; with a small, persistent voice at the back of their head; or with an all-out brawl over the villain's soul. , That being said, it's not the only option.
What would his path of atonement be like? -
Step 3: Why do you want a villain to redeem himself?
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Step 4: Determine how redeemable your villain really is.
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Step 5: Why did your character became evil in the first place?
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Step 6: What do they think of their own evil?
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Step 7: Explore why he believes like you discovered.
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Step 8: Even if they have a single turning point somewhere
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Step 9: chances are they've been traveling there for some time.
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Step 10: Set up a struggle between the good and evil parts of the villain's heart.
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Step 11: If you're willing to kill your villain
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Step 12: you could always have them sacrifice themselves to save someone/something.
Detailed Guide
Does it have major or minor importance in relation to the story at large? Also, whether you ponder some specific themes or are more about 'vicariously living through characters and their adventures'
-entertainment (like Indiana Jones, Batman, Savage Dragon etc.), along with whether the narrative is more plot-, character- or world-centric, affects your way of execution.
What are you aiming to demonstrate? Sometimes this may be unplanned, coming as a natural course of action. , The key to possibility of redemption is the right kind of a personality.
Look at a villain's personality structure and explore it.
It's also recommendable to do some exploration of various different personality types in real life.
If your villain is a remorseless, thrill-loving psychopath with a planet-sized sadistic streak that would frighten Hannibal Lecter, redemption is implausible.
Psychopathic personalities overall are a kiss of death for it, because psychopaths are incapable of empathy, guilt, remorse, regret or shame and can't form genuine emotional connections to anyone.
Likewise, a petty, deceitful, power-seeking bully, who's had absolutely no problem lying, conniving and backstabbing during the whole story, or a tyrannical sadist, who's delighted in making others suffer, makes for an unbelievable redemption story, just to give a few examples.
It goes better for more ambiguous villains (who might even have a sympathetic reason for doing what they do in the first place), ones who've had serious second thoughts about their path in life or ones with a strong honorable streak despite their evil nature.
What redeeming qualities does your villain have? A soft spot for another villain? Genuine suppressed affection for one of the good guys? A small thing like berry pie? A moral boundary they'd never cross no matter what? Make sure they fit his character seamlessly, not look tacked on.
The less obvious, the better.
Even better to have the bits of their hidden blooming goodness gradually come to surface.
Furthermore, if they're supposed to be a supernatural, mythical or religious personification of evil like Satan
- forget it! Redemption's just not going to be convincing. , This may never come to play in an actual story or may just be referred to, but it helps you better understand your villain. , Even if they understand what they do is wrong, they have a driving reason.
Perhaps they honestly believe that what they do is good, just necessary evil to achieve larger good, justifiable or something that can be shrugged off for some reason. , Dig deeper.
What events, things or even developed personality traits would have given him such beliefs? What would be required to get him to replace these beliefs with different ones? , Pay attention to , This could be done with a growing sense of unease on the villain's part; with a small, persistent voice at the back of their head; or with an all-out brawl over the villain's soul. , That being said, it's not the only option.
What would his path of atonement be like?
About the Author
Timothy Ramirez
Specializes in breaking down complex lifestyle topics into simple steps.
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