Villain
A villain (also known as a "black hat" or "bad guy"; the feminine form is villainess) is a stock character, whether based on a historical narrative or one of literary fiction.
The villain's structural purpose is to serve as the opposite to the hero character, and their motives or evil actions drive a plot along.
[citation needed] The term villain first came into English from the Anglo-French and Old French vilain, which in turn derives from the Late Latin word villanus,.
[4][page needed] Vilain later shifted to villein,[5] which referred to a person of less than knightly status, implying a lack of chivalry and courtesy.
As the common equating of manners with morals gained in strength and currency, the connotations worsened, so that the modern word villain is no unpolished villager, but is instead (among other things) a deliberate scoundrel or criminal.
[7] At the same time, the mediaeval expression "vilein" or "vilain" is closely influenced by the word "vile", referring to something wicked or worthless.
As from the late 13th century, vile meant "morally repugnant; morally flawed, corrupt, wicked; of no value; of inferior quality; disgusting, foul, ugly; degrading, humiliating; of low estate, without worldly honor or esteem", from Anglo-French ville, Old French vil, from Latin vilis "cheap, worthless, of low value".
[8] In classical literature, the villain character is not always the same as those that appear in modern and postmodern incarnations, as the lines of morality are often blurred to imply a sense of ambiguity or affected by historical context and cultural ideas.
However, Shakespeare's incarnations of historical figures were influenced by the propaganda pieces coming from Tudor sources, and his works often showed this bias and discredited their reputation.
In an analysis of Russian fairy tales, Vladimir Propp concluded that the majority of stories had only eight "dramatis personae", one being the villain.
[11]: 60 Examples of characters who display this trait, and interfere with the success of a tale's hero, are the Ugly Sisters in Cinderella who chopped off parts of their feet to fit in the shoe.
[11]: 81 The fairy tale genre utilises villains as key components to push the narrative forward and influence the hero's journey.
During the story's climax, the hero often has to find a way to rectify the agreement in order to defeat the villain or achieve the happy ending.
[citation needed] The traitor is a villain who emphasizes the traits of trickery, manipulation and deception to achieve their goals, which is often to offer or supply information to the protagonist's opposition to halt them on their journey; often in exchange for their own freedom or safety.
Likewise, the Looney Tunes had villains like Elmer Fudd, Yosemite Sam, Marvin the Martian and Blacque Jacque Shellacque.
Shows such as Adventure Time, Gravity Falls, and Rick and Morty range from child to adult cartoons, but are all watched by a largely older audience.
Rather the men, such as Hades and Captain Hook, have motives grounded in wealth and power, giving in to masculine stereotypes and signifying an attachment to the patriarchy.
[16] Other female villains are portrayed as hyper-sexual and powerful beings that are used to juxtapose the beauty or physical characteristics of the heroine; for example, the Lady Tremaine and stepsisters in Cinderella.
Ursula is closely modelled after the famous drag queen "Divine" with her heavy makeup, hair styled in a mohawk, and her nails painted bright red.
In their role as a foil, they exemplify characteristics that are diametrically opposed to those of the hero, creating a contrast distinguishing heroic traits from villainous ones.
[citation needed] Other have pointed out that many acts of villains have a hint of wish-fulfillment,[19] which makes some readers or viewers identify with them as characters more strongly than with the heroes.
"[20] The actor Tod Slaughter typically portrayed villainous characters on both stage and screen in a melodramatic manner, with mustache-twirling, eye-rolling, leering, cackling, and hand-rubbing.
It describes neither Mary nor her executioner as villains (though at the time, it was deemed so realistic that audience members believed an actual woman had been beheaded in the making of that film.)
1990s films had villains like General Mandible in Antz, Dennis Nedry in Jurassic Park, Edgar in Men in Black, Van Pelt in Jumanji, Rameses in The Prince of Egypt, Carrigan in Casper and Shan-Yu in Mulan.
As seen often in animated films, female villains are portrayed with "ugly" appearances to contrast the beauty of the protagonist, in turn associating unattractiveness with evil.
[26] The usage of villain to describe a historical figure dates back to Tudor propaganda, pieces of which ended up influencing William Shakespeare's portrayal of Richard III as a spiteful and hunchback tyrant.
Their intentions may coincide with the ideals of a greater good, or even a desire to make the world a better place, but their actions are inherently evil in nature.
While the antihero often fights on the side of good, but with questionable or selfish motives, the anti-villain plays a villain's game, but for a noble cause in a way that the audience or other characters can sympathize with.
They may be more noble or heroic than an antihero, but the means to achieve their ends are often considered exploitative, immoral, unjust, or simply evil.
American writer Brad Warner has argued that "only cartoon villains cackle with glee while rubbing their hands together and dream of ruling the world in the name of all that is wicked and bad".
