Book of Medb hErenn

 
Many people are familiar with the literary trope known as the anti-hero, but most are unfamiliar with his opposite, the anti-villain. Yet in many ways, these character types simply represent two sides of the same coin.

The anti-hero is defined as a protagonist who lacks the traditional heroic qualities and attributes associated with the classical hero. Early forms of the anti-hero included protagonists who were timid and passive, even cowardly. Later we see characters like Robin Hood, who robbed from the rich to give to the poor. More later portrayals included Faust, who strove too earnestly after an ideal and succumbed to his own hubris, and Falstaff, a drunken, gluttonous buffoon and liar who nonetheless molds the character of the future Henry V of England for the better. In Victorian literature, you have the Byronic hero, an idealized yet flawed character, often portrayed as dark and brooding. More modern versions include the brooding vigilante and the noble criminal. Three famous examples of anti-heroes include:

• Batman, whose personification as the Dark Knight illustrates his shadowy nature, which puts him at odds with more openly heroic superheros;


• Bilbo Baggins, who cheats during the riddle-game with Gollum; uses a magic ring of invisibility to commit acts of thievery, hide from friend and foe alike, and attack unseen; and refuses to partake in an epic battle to help his friends; and


• Severus Snape, whose dark, brooding, unfriendly nature hides a dedication to good and the protection of his students.

Similarly, the anti-villain can be defined as an antagonist who eschews the traditional villainous qualities and attributes associated with the classical villain. There are two types of anti-villains: those whose goals are wicked while their methods are noble, and those whose goals are noble while their methods are wicked. The latter must not be confused with the so-called accidental villain, whose pursuit of noble goals produces unintended, disastrous consequences. The true anti-villain always knows exactly what the consequences of his actions will be. Nor should he be confused with the anti-hero, who sometimes uses wicked methods to achieve his noble goals. The anti-hero acts contingently, taking what he believes are the correct actions at the moment, but the true anti-villain plans his every move with great care. Even so, the anti-villain can be a sympathetic character, even more so than the protagonist, because his role as villain is dictated by the demands of the plot. In the "Star Trek: TOS" episode Balance of Terror, the commander of the Romulan Bird of Prey sent to test the cloaking device against Federation defenses is portrayed as a professional soldier who questions his orders but does his best to carry them out. For him, duty is everything, and in this he is Kirk's twin; only the circumstances of the story make him a villain. He even acknowledges this at the end of the episode, when he tells Kirk that under different circumstances the two of them could have been friends. Yet when Kirk offers to rescue him and his surviving crew, he responds that he has one last duty to perform, and destroys his own ship.

Probably the best example of a wicked goal/noble method anti-villain is Lex Luthor. While the nature of his goals and methods have changed, to keep him up to date with current times, for the most part he always works within whatever system he is part of to achieve his goals, virtually never going beyond what is considered acceptable behavior, though he will push the envelope as far as he can. While he would like to destroy Superman, he has no desire to kill Superman's friends and associates or innocent bystanders (the one major exception being Gene Hackman's Lex Luthor in the first Superman movie). He would also love to be able to corrupt Superman and bring him under his control, and he has occasionally worked with Superman to protect Earth. Meanwhile, three examples of noble goal/wicked method anti-villains would be:

• Magneto, who wants to protect mutants and their rights, but is willing to start a war with non-mutants to do it;


• Anakin Skywalker/Darth Vader, who wants to bring order, peace, and stability to the galaxy, but is willing to use tyranny and kill innocents to do it; and


• Ra's al Ghul, who wants to bring Humanity into environmental balance with nature, but is willing to kill off most of the world's population to do it.

As is probably obvious by now, the primary characteristic shared by both anti-heroes and anti-villains is moral ambiguity. Whereas the anti-hero frequently resorts to immoral methods to achieve a moral goal, an anti-villain can use moral methods to achieve an immoral goal, or may act in a kind, principled, even benevolent manner while pursuing far more nefarious ends. And in those cases where both the anti-hero and the anti-villain pursue moral goals but use immoral methods, the anti-hero may be even more ruthless or selfish than the anti-villain, but he is still considered to be the protagonist, either because his goal is viewed as more laudable or because he is directly opposed by the anti-villain. In extremely relativistic or postmodern fiction, it can often be very difficult to distinguish the anti-hero from the anti-villain, especially if their respective goals are as morally ambiguous as their methods.

I deliberately developed Medb hErenn to be an anti-hero. She follows a code of honor, but no specific moral code. She describes herself as selfish, treacherous, deceitful, vindictive, acquisitive, and ambitious, and she will not hesitate to commit acts of barbarity, such as kill helpless prisoners or pregnant women in cold blood to achieve her ends. Yet she also always does what is right to her way of thinking, she will not back down from a fight no matter how hopeless, she never lies or goes back on her word, and she will willingly sacrifice her own life to save a friend or defend those under her protection.

Contrarily, I developed her arch-nemesis, Elatha the Fomórach (Fomorian in English), to be a true anti-villain, specifically a wicked goal/noble method type. As a Fomorian, he is dedicated to the advancement of his people and would like to see them rule the world. Yet he does not engage in the abuse of power his fellow Fomorians practice to one degree or another. To illustrate this, Elatha takes on a beautiful form, rather than the horrific or beautiful-but-terrible forms most others take. He also believes in treating subject races kindly and with respect, but not out of any belief in fundamental rights or because he believes it is the right thing to do. He advocates it because he has the power to do so, and for the same reason an owner properly treats a dog or horse: it will do more work and do so willingly if kindly treated. In this way, he is more like Nietzsche's Master or Plato's philosopher king than Thomas Jefferson.

Ultimately, he is Medb's antagonist for one reason only: he opposes her actions, and in time comes to hate her so much he will do whatever he must to destroy her, even if that means destroying the whole world and himself. With Medb, though, the feeling is mutual, and she will not hesitate to take any opportunity to destroy him, though she won't go the extreme he does. Even so, there have been times when they have cooperated to achieve a goal they share, and there is a mutual, if grudging, respect between them.

Another anti-villain in the Medb hErenn universe is Lucifer, litter-brother to Selgach Mór the High Queen of All Cats, with powers equal to her own. He is a noble goal/wicked method type, in that his only aim is to protect Felinekind, but he will ruthlessly and mercilessly destroy any threat to their well-being, or any obstacle to their advancement. While not truly an enemy of Medb, he is the one opponent she truly respects and fears, and while they have cooperated at times, she knows he would not hesitate to kill her should he ever perceive her as a threat to cats, and not even the Cat Queen's patronage and protection would make him hesitate. For his part, he respects her power and honors her for the aid she has rendered to Felinekind.