#unlikablecharacters

[ubookquitous]

With her unusually short wand, pink cardigan, and annoying 'eh hem', Dolores Umbridge is one of those #unlikablecharacters - in this case one I love to hate #aprilbookshowers

[almacayasso]

My thoughts on unlikable characters.

The thing about unlikeable characters is this, they are the way that they are for a reason. Writers sometimes choose more complex albeit controversial characters because they make the story. Holden Caulfield for example, is often met with dislike because he constantly judges other people but does not self-reflect on his own actions. So he comes off as a hypocritical jerk. Throughout “The Catcher in the Rye”, Caulfield explains that he has yet again been kicked out of school and his parents will not be happy with him at all. So Caulfield decides to stall his news instead of immediately owning up to his shortcomings and uses escapism to cope. He ends up going to New York either way and spending huge amounts of money frivolously on drinks, hotels, food, and cigarettes. 

What most readers that I have asked their thoughts on the book think Holden is just another jaded privileged snob that lacks any ounce of moral fiber and responsibility? But I saw something more than that. I believe that Salinger’s novel brought more to the table than a static protagonist. On the surface he does seem like what the other readers had said but beyond the layers I saw fear. Fear of growing up and moving on. Perhaps a case of Peter Pan Syndrome. The thought of growing up and handling responsibilities must have seemed so abhorrent to Holden and frankly that is relatable. I have often heard it said that unlikable characters are unlikable because they are not relatable but I do not believe that. Not every facet of a person will not be likable, we have flaws. Flaws make us all human. Perfection is not possible for humans and that is okay.

Which is why I appreciate “unlikable characters”. They show me honesty and a myriad of overwhelming behaviors that any and all people have done at least once in their lives. Either to save face or make life more bearable. We all put on our “faces” when situations call for it. We are not always honest with ourselves and others. We are more complex than that because not everything is at all how it seems