tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post1236082436943667249..comments2023-11-03T05:49:10.841-04:00Comments on Storytelling Rules: Morally Ambiguous Heroes(ines)Maureen McGowanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00494408580378817045noreply@blogger.comBlogger7125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-7241336692981339762013-02-20T15:21:05.169-05:002013-02-20T15:21:05.169-05:00Me too, Fia Mac.
It would be spoilerish for me t...Me too, Fia Mac. <br /><br />It would be spoilerish for me to say what, but the heroine in my YA did something really horrible in her past. And the book opens with her killing rats. And she's lying to the people closest to her... But she has reasons.<br /><br />And the 2nd book in the series is pretty much all about moral ambiguity... Maybe that's why the topic is so much on my mind right now...<br /><br />Maureen McGowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00494408580378817045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-1861141220319495712013-02-20T15:17:29.637-05:002013-02-20T15:17:29.637-05:00Brie, That's so true about Lyle and Tara. All ...Brie, That's so true about Lyle and Tara. All that complexity is why I love Molly's books (not to mention Molly) so much. :) <3Maureen McGowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00494408580378817045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-34972149136793794162013-02-20T15:16:19.257-05:002013-02-20T15:16:19.257-05:00I liked this week's Banshee too, Sinead. I jus...I liked this week's Banshee too, Sinead. I just couldn't watch some of that flash back scene in the prison. Or rather I watched through a filter of my fingers. A time-tested self-protection technique developed watching Scooby-Doo ghosts and flying monkeys in Oz. ;)<br />Maureen McGowanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00494408580378817045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-55384859963586819242013-02-20T15:11:27.980-05:002013-02-20T15:11:27.980-05:00I love morally ambiguous heroes(ines). For me, the...I love morally ambiguous heroes(ines). For me, the more ambiguous the better. I find white knights and righteous crusaders not only predictable but also emotionally shallow, and they make weak protagonists. It's too easy to be the good guy when you have an absolute fix on right vs. wrong. I want to see what characters are really made of, and wading through ambiguity is the best way to accomplish that. Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08378098484581038560noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-54187245085873947502013-02-20T13:21:13.354-05:002013-02-20T13:21:13.354-05:00Keeping us guessing and having worse antagonists i...Keeping us guessing and having worse antagonists is part of it, especially in visual mediums like TV and movies. But to me, books are more about internal motivations and character complexity than about the way they compare to others, especially if the idea is to make us like and/or understand morally ambiguous characters. To use your same example, in Can’t Buy Me Love, Lyle is a villain but we see him though Tara’s eyes, and to her, he is a savior. So by the time we get other character’s perspectives, we already see some of the good in him. What redeems Tara, or at least what makes us understand her is when we see her work hard, repent, not make excuses for her mistakes (or Lyle’s for that matter), and her complicated past. And that has nothing to do with Lyle being more evil. Briehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01694232807189281284noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-13658770645831254632013-02-20T12:57:18.915-05:002013-02-20T12:57:18.915-05:00I like somewhat ambiguous characters, too. I do th...I like somewhat ambiguous characters, too. I do think there's a point that can be crossed where the character can't redeem him or herself. I also think that point is different for every viewer/reader.<br /><br />You're right, though. The reason they do things is sometimes as important as what they do. In the cases you mention it's defeat someone worse than they are. It could also be to protect someone more innocent than they are, IMO. I'm sure there are tons more reasons.Eileenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09803986849921870941noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-29864506.post-33855733651975886902013-02-20T12:46:46.690-05:002013-02-20T12:46:46.690-05:00I haven't seen Identity Thief, but I love McCa...I haven't seen Identity Thief, but I love McCarthy and Bateman, and she's pretty appealing over all, so it would be easy to like her. <br />I'm really enjoying Banshee right now, because all the characters are so twisted. No one is good, or bad, and they all lean towards bad, but that main character and it's a combination of the actor and a couple of key scenes, like having him stand up against the town bullies and his friendship with the bar owner, but I'd in. He'd have to go a long way towards making me dislike him right now. <br />But my tolerance for ambiguous characters is high, and the episode this week, I found kind of awesome.. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com