Berserk: An In-Depth Analysis (Griffith)
“It seems to me that everyone stakes their lives on a lost cause. Looking at them all from up here I can almost see their hopes and dreams flickering in each little light […] and to ensure that those weaker flames don’t go out, each man casts his own into the strongest fire of them all, a raging fire. That’s Griffith.”
Guts, Season 1, Episode 14
No conversation about Guts is complete without discussing the man who defined and defiled everything so much in his life: Griffith. A sweeping tidal wave of a man in terms of sheer drive, charisma and vision, Griffith is above all else a man with a dream and the will to see it at all costs.
Both men are diametrically opposed in virtually everything, from color scheme, physique, their fighting styles and weapon of choice, their place in the grand scheme of things, the emotions they illicit from others, how they view their comrades and ultimately what they stake their lives on.
The last part is of particular importance when discussing the two men. Literature’s greatest rivals may share many traits, motifs and even desire the same things but their entire conflict can be traced to one fundamental difference. In Star Wars for example, the main rift between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader is in their life’s most crucial moments both men staked their lives on different things: Vader chose the Dark Side, Luke chose the Force. Batman and Joker, regardless of their many similarities, have one fundamental difference: Joker stares at the chaos around him and accepts it while Batman takes up arms against it. Similarly, if we examine Berserk and peel away the layers, we see a simple dichotomy: Guts stands for selflessness and self-sacrifice while Griffith epitomizes selfishness.
Griffith: If I let myself feel regret or remorse it would all slip away.
Ubik: Now you see the truth of who you are.
Griffith: This must be an illusion.
Ubik: No illusion. We are merely holding a mirror to your own consciousness.
Berserk, Season 1, Episode 24
When discussing Casca’s name, I mentioned how she shared her name with the character Casca from Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar. If anything, Griffith is the manga version of a Shakespearean tragic hero, possessing a seemingly divine gift of charm, wit, beauty and leadership that is marred by an untamed ego, selfishness and megalomania. After all, Miura has claimed that Macbeth is one of his inspirations for Berserk. Like many of the great conquerors and tyrants of history like Caesar, Napolean and even Hitler, Griffith fits into the mold of a classic example of a sociopath and even that of a psychopath.
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