The Psychology of The Villain

The villain is the most captivating and intriguing of all archetypes. Much is known about the self-sacrificing nature of the hero archetype, and his courage to accept the call to adventure in order to overcome his worst fears. The hero—as a depiction of perseverance and righteousness, always acquires the spotlight in a story.

However, he would not exist without his necessary counterpart, the villain, who remains in the dark and appropriately represents the hero’s shadow (the unknown, repressed or hidden qualities). The villain reflects aspects of ourselves that we do not dare to acknowledge or confront, but which are present within all of us. There are people with heroic capacities that tragically lose in the battle with their inner demons, this is the fallen hero or corrupted hero, who may become a villain.

The reluctant hero, on the other hand, is one who possesses heroic capacity but is doubtful of himself or herself, and a tragic hero is one who is attempting to do something good yet fails through human error or sheer bad luck. Aristotle conceived tragedy as poetic mimesis, an imitation of things as they could be, not as they are. The aim of a tragic play, is to bring about catharsis or purification in the audience, through the vicarious experience of intense emotions in fictional characters.

By creating the feelings of loss and dread in the audience, the tragic play can then purge these emotions from the audience—serving a therapeutic purpose. The same effect can happen with the portrayal of villains, who, as representations of the darkness that exists within the human psyche, can help us to confront our own fears. The word “villain” derives from the Medieval Latin word “villanus” (farmhand or peasant), which was associated with someone of low birth or social status, often related with rural life.

The word evolved through Old French (vilain) and retained the original meaning but also began to acquire negative connotations related to moral character. Eventually, villain came to signify the antagonist of the main character in a story and represents the obstacles and conflicts that the hero must overcome to attain his goals. It is said that a story is only as good as its villain, because a strong enemy forces a hero to rise to the challenge.

Thus, the absence of the villain, makes a story seem dull and lifeless. Villains are always worthy and formidable opponents often times as powerful if not more powerful than the hero. Villains come in all shapes and sizes.

The oldest predecessor of the villain may be described as a purely instinctual, dark and chaotic force of evil that produces mayhem and destruction without any regard for morality. This hostile force challenges the order of society. Frequently, we see this instinctual force portrayed in stories as monsters, dragons, beasts, and even certain animals.

These lack what Sigmund Freud calls the super-ego, the conventional rules and morality humans must follow, which controls our sense of right and wrong, helping us fit into society. The Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the earliest known works of literature, based on older Sumerian tales, is thought to date from 2100-2000 BC. In the story, the legendary hero Gilgamesh is depicted as a proud and tyrannical ruler.

The gods send the wild man Enkidu, to counterbalance Gilgamesh and humble him, and then they eventually become friends. Gilgamesh and his companion confront Humbaba, a monstrous and fearsome guardian of the Cedar Forest, a sacred and remote place where the gods reside. After they clash and defeat him, the gods are angered.

Afterwards, they slay the Bull of Heaven, who has been sent to attack them by Ishtar, the goddess of love, war, and fertility. The slaying of the bull results in the gods condemning Enkidu to death, representing the mighty hero who dies early. This creates an inconsolable grief in Gilgamesh and becomes the catalyst for his own fear of death, which starts his search for immortality.

In Homer’s ancient Greek epic poem, The Odyssey, written in the 8th century BC, Odysseus and his men enter the cave of the cyclops Polyphemus, and helped themselves to the cyclops’ food while he is away. Instead of leaving however, Odysseus decides to stay and wait for the cyclops, as he might give them gifts as a sign of goodwill—for such is the right of strangers. When the cyclops returns, he is angered, and eats some of his men.

Odysseus devises an escape plan, in which he blinds the cyclops and identifies himself as “Nobody”, when Polyphemus cries out for help, he says that “Nobody” is harming him, allowing Odysseus and his men to escape. However, as he is about to leave with his men, Odysseus taunts the cyclops and boastfully reveals his real name, an act of hubris that would lead him to be cursed by Poseidon. In these ancient tales, emphasis is placed on the hero and his journey, rather than his characteristics, or those of the individuals that the hero comes across.

While there might not be any clear villain figure, the hero is portrayed as a complex character with both positive and negative traits. In other stories, villains are antagonists. For instance, in the Old English epic poem, Beowulf, composed between 700 and 1000 AD, the troll-like monster Grendel has been attacking and devouring the inhabitants of the mead hall of Heorot every night for twelve years, as he cannot bear their sounds of joy and celebration and is seized with hateful jealousy.

Beowulf arrives and slays the monster with his bare hands. Grendel is described as a descendant of Cain, the firstborn of Adam and Eve, and the first murderer according to the Old Testament, who, in a fit of anger and jealousy, killed his brother Abel. In punishment, Cain was condemned to a life of wandering.

In Othello written in the beginning of the 15th century, Shakespeare delves deep into the workings of the villain in the character Iago. He is Othello’s right-hand man, who plots his downfall by using his intimate knowledge of his friend’s fear to engineer his demise. He is a master manipulator and deceiver, who plants seeds of doubt and jealousy, leading to the tragic death of several characters.

Perhaps the greatest villain archetype of all is Lucifer, the brightest and most loved of the angels, who rebelled against God and was thrown out of Heaven, becoming the Devil, the personification of absolute evil. He appears as the serpent in the Garden of Eden, who tempts the first humans to commit an act of pride, leading to the first act of disobedience and the fall from Paradise. In Paradise Lost, published in 1667, John Milton depicts Satan as an ambivalent character whose rebellion against God is driven by a desire for independence and a refusal to submit to what he perceives as tyranny.

He famously declares, “Better to reign in Hell, than serve in Heaven. ” In Goethe’s Faust published in the early 19th century, the villain is Mephistopheles, a demon who appears to Faust in his most desperate moment. He offers Faust a blood pact by which he will show him the pleasures of life in exchange for his soul.

Faust, doubtful of this promise, accepts the contract, symbolising the seductive nature of evil. Faust, however, focused on virtue and improving the lives of the people around him. While he does experience a moment of bliss, his soul is ultimately saved by his actions.

Interestingly, the villain’s persistence to tempt Faust, and Faust’s unwillingness to give in, leads to his salvation. Mary Shelley’s 1818 novel Frankenstein portrays the mad scientist Victor Frankenstein creating a sentient creature through reanimating dead tissue, only to be horrified by the consequences of his actions and abandoning the creature. The creature compares himself with Lucifer, the fallen angel as depicted in Paradise Lost.

He does not understand why he was disowned and alienated from society, and why people are afraid of him and despise him. When he sees his reflection in a pool, he realises his appearance is hideous, and it horrified him as much as it horrified humans. The creature grew fond of a poor family and secretly performed tasks to help them.

Eventually, he approached the family in hopes of befriending them, but he was attacked and had to flee. He becomes enraged by the way he is being treated and loses all hope of ever being accepted by humans, which starts his killing spree. This is the tragic villain.

Bram Stoker’s Gothic horror novel Drcula published in 1897 portrays a classic literary villain. Drcula is a vampire with supernatural powers who preys on innocent people, transforming others into vampires through a bite and the exchange of blood. Professor Van Helsing and his group travel to Transylvania in search of Drcula, who is ultimately defeated.

In Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, published in the mid-20th century, Frodo Baggins, the hero, faces a moral dilemma related to the character Gollum, who is portrayed as a villain throughout much of the story. Once known as Sméagol, he became corrupted by the powers of the One Ring an embodiment of the Dark Lord Sauron’s power and will, experiencing its destructive power and its ability to corrupt the hearts of those who possess it. His entire existence now revolves around his precious ring, which is symbolic of all our potential for corruption, greed, power, selfishness, etc.

Frodo, on his quest to destroy the Ring and save Middle-earth, is accompanied by Gollum. As they reach the precipice of Mount Doom, where the Ring must be destroyed, Frodo hesitates to destroy it. He recognises the parallels between Gollum’s journey and his own.

Both are burdened by the Ring and its corrupting influence. His decision not to kill Gollum reflects his desire to avoid becoming like him and succumbing to the same darkness. Frodo then claims the Ring for himself.

Gollum, however, swiftly bites his finger off and steals the ring but, in the act, loses his balance and falls into the fiery chasm of Mount Doom. His unintentional role in the Ring’s destruction contributes to the overall defeat of the dark power. The tragic villain becomes the hero.

This is perhaps the best example of a eucatastrophe (good catastrophe), a word coined by Tolkien to describe a sudden turn of events in which the protagonist is saved from what seems like an inevitable doom, creating a far more powerful and poignant effect of joy. With the popular rise of the superhero comic book genre in the mid-20th century, fantastical figures of mythology found their way into American culture. However, unlike the epic heroes of the past, who despite being role models for generations occupied a grey area in terms of morality, American superheroes became absolute pillars of justice, righteousness and goodness, while supervillains became not superhuman but by absence of sympathy, conscience, loyalty and good will, inhuman.

Perhaps this is the consequence of a world devastated by war, poverty, and injustice. Superheroes came to represent the triumph of good over evil. Hope, optimism and fearlessness became the guiding lights of humankind.

During this time, the hero’s adventures became less important, and emphasis was put on the character’s personality. “In a secular, scientific rational culture lacking in any convincing spiritual leadership, superhero stories speak loudly and boldly to our greatest fears, deepest longings, and highest aspirations. They’re not afraid to be hopeful, not embarrassed to be optimistic, and utterly fearless in the dark.

They exist to solve problems of all kinds and can always be counted on to find a way to save the day. At their best, they help us to confront and resolve even the deepest existential crisis. ” With the passing of time, villains slowly acquired a more complex and multi-layered personality.

Just as the hero could help resolve our existential crises, the same might be said for the villain. Not all villains are sinners and all heroes saints. Many characters go beyond this narrow classification.

In recent times, villains can even become sympathetic, and possess redeeming qualities, making some of them oddly likeable despite their malicious intent and immoral actions, thus challenging our traditional notions of good and evil. This type of villain has never existed to the degree it exists in the 21st century, symbolising a major change in the collective unconscious—which speaks to a psychological experience that is common to us all. This figure is called the antihero.

The antihero is more of a morally ambiguous character than the villain, with the difference that he may actually be the protagonist of a story. The antihero behaves much like a conventional hero, but is usually a misfit, nonconformist, lacks courage, has a touch of cynicism or a wounded quality. He can be an outcast or villain from the point of view of society, but whom the audience or reader may sympathise with.

We have all felt like outsiders at one time or another. The antihero desperately wants to belong, and tends to be motivated by a desire to be accepted, to be loved, to be part of a group. He also usually has some redeeming qualities that makes him relatable.

The Russian writer Fyodor Dostoevsky is a master at portraying anti-heroes. In Crime and Punishment, published in 1866, the anti-hero Raskolnikov is a sickly and poor former student unable to pay for his studies and take care of his family. He goes through mental anguish and moral dilemmas.

Since he believes that God is dead, he must become God himself, which aligns with his idea of being an extraordinary man who can trespass the moral boundaries without a guilty conscience. He decides to kill a wicked and wealthy old woman who takes advantage of others, as he does so, however, her half-sister walks in, and Raskolnikov, shocked, kills her as well. The rest of the novel enters into the psychology of what a murder entails.

The anti-hero enters periods of delirium and has a series of disturbing dreams. Along with the murder, he has also killed a part of himself. The modern villain typically has some sort of physical or psychological trait that sets him apart: a unique appearance, a menacing laugh, a sinister smile, a tragic backstory, etc.

Villains typically have scars, which are not just physical wounds, but also an ever-present reminder of their difficult upbringing, and psychological pain and trauma they had to go through and must learn to live with, an inner division in one’s soul. It’s hard to feel anything, when one has only known pain. This may lead them to believe that only by exerting control over others can they find a sense of security and redemption.

Villain characters can cause one to experience an emotional rollercoaster ride, one may despise them and later come to sympathise with them as the story progresses. We have all, at one time or another, grown happy, sad, fearful, or even angry at a character based on his or her choices and actions. Such emotions can become powerful and convincing enough to make us feel as though we, ourselves, were the ones partaking in the story.

One of the most well-known villains in popular culture is the Joker, who embodies humour and chaotic fun, albeit in a maniacal fashion. Recent interest in this figure, however, has changed the spotlight from the typical hero’s journey. In Alan Moore’s Batman: The Killing Joke, the Joker – before becoming the Joker – is a stand-up comedian struggling to provide for his pregnant wife.

He blames himself for his inability to financially support his family, and participates in a robbery as the Red Hood. When faced with difficulty in life, one is forced to make a certain choice, that might go against social norms and morality. When Batman arrives, the terrified comedian falls into a tank of chemical waste, disfiguring him.

This, along with his pregnant wife’s accidental death, results in the birth of the mentally unstable Joker. Many times, people choose comedy as a defence mechanism to remove suppressed feelings of rage and aggression—this is the sad clown paradox. Victims of mistreatment may use comedic expression to cope with trauma and mental problems.

The Joker tells Batman: “I’ve demonstrated there’s no difference between me and everyone else! All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy. That’s how far the world is from where I am.

Just one bad day… you had a bad day once, am I right? I know I am. I can tell you had a bad day, and everything changed!

Why else would you dress up like a flying rat? … You have to keep pretending that life makes sense, that there’s some point to all this struggling. ” The Joker wants to transform the world in his image, he seeks to make the world comprehensible by transforming it into a twisted parody of himself.

Perhaps he doesn’t realise, however, that he is the twisted parody of the world, and unconsciously projects his own experiences onto everybody else, especially Batman—to whom he points out that he too exhibits “crazy” behaviour that must have been brought about by one bad day, and that Batman too, surely has lost somebody important—both of the remarks happen to be true. Batman, witnessing the murder of his parents, swore to rid Gotham City of crime. Batman offers a way out of the life of crime Joker has been living and tells him that it may be the last chance, or their antagonism would lead to the death of both of them.

The Joker refuses, and offers an analogy in the form of a joke to explain why he cannot stop himself from doing what he does. He tells of two lunatics in an asylum who break out and try to jump across the rooftops to escape. The first inmate makes the jump, while the second one is too afraid to cross.

So then, the first guy has an idea, he says that he’ll shine his flashlight across the gap between the buildings, and that he can walk along the beam of light to join him. The second guy just shakes his head, and says, “What do you think I am? Crazy?

You’d turn it off when I was half way across. ” In this beautifully bittersweet moment, the Joker and Batman finally connect when they both realise their relative insanities and share a laugh at the tragic inevitability of their downward spiral together. Here lies the Joker’s key trait: hyper-sanity.

Rather than being insane, as commonly thought, the Joker has a heightened awareness of reality—which is nevertheless still regarded as a mental defect. The Joker exists to solve what he deems a wide-spread social problem – the lack of awareness of the grand joke of life, and he thereby turns reality upside down and challenges the conventional notions of good and evil. “You either die a hero, or live long enough to see yourself become a villain.

” Villains are often associated with the dark: the Dark Lord Sauron in the Lord of the Rings, the Dark Lord Voldemort in the Harry Potter series, and Darth Vader in Star Wars who masters the Dark Side of the Force. These villains all hold something in common: destruction, domination, and the search for power. There is something fascinating and alluring about the dark side which takes complete control of one’s mind.

We may see Sauron as a representation of evil incarnate. Sauron is the archetype of a dark and malevolent force. Tolkien, while denying that pure evil could exist, stated that Sauron came as near to it as possible.

While Sauron is not a constant physical presence, his force and influence is always felt. This is symbolised by the Eye, which is not a physical but a metaphysical representation of Sauron. Voldemort is marked by a lack of empathy and a lust for power since childhood.

He was born out of a manufactured love induced by a love potion, and ended up in an orphanage—which could explain his inability to feel love. Darth Vader, on the other hand, is a more complex villain. Originally known as the Jedi Knight Anakin Skywalker, his fall from grace is fueled by an attachment and fear of losing his loved ones, by the manipulation of Emperor Palpatine, the Dark Lord of the Sith, by a desire for power, by anger and frustration, and by losing in a duel with his former mentor and friend Obi-wan Kenobi which severely injures him.

With these combined factors, he succumbs to the Dark Side of The Force. Darth Vader is a tragic villain, as is later seen when he decides to save his son by defeating his master, leaving him with mortal wounds. Just as we have the hero’s journey which was popularised by American writer Joseph Campbell, so do we have the villain’s journey.

Both heroes and villains experience a significant trigger event, encounter obstacles, receive help from sidekicks, and experience success and setbacks during their quests. The villain’s journey usually begins with an estrangement from one’s community, which creates an emotional wound. Throughout a series of trials, the villain chooses self over community, betrayal and cruelty instead of friendship and heroism.

From his point of view, the villain is the hero of his own myth or story. A villain may speed up the hero’s acceptance of the call to adventure by threatening or harming someone close to the hero, sweeping aside all hesitation to leave the comfort of the Ordinary World and enter into the Special World, which is surrounded with traps, obstacles and checkpoints. How the hero deals with them is part of the testing.

Thus, the villain is not only the danger that exists outside the hero, but also the danger that exists within the hero, in the unconscious. When fighting the villain, the hero is, in turn, overcoming his or her darkest fear. The villain gives the hero a reason to enter into a journey with the goal of attaining a psychological death and rebirth, gaining new insights about oneself, other people and the world.

Heroes and villains represent our virtues and vices respectively. While Superman uses his superhuman abilities to serve others, Lex Luthor uses his genius and wealth to arrogantly serve his own ego. While Sherlock Holmes uses his extraordinary deductive reasoning to solve complex criminal cases, Moriarty uses his genius to orchestrate and organise criminal activities, and while Luke Skywalker uses the Force to protect the galaxy, Darth Vader uses the Force to dominate the galaxy.

Though hero and villain are external characters, representations of good versus evil, in a deeper sense, they are archetypes, deposits of the constantly repeated experiences of humanity. That is to say, inherited patterns of behaviour of the collective unconscious. Psychologically, the villain is not a force to be defeated, but rather an integral part of the hero’s existence, one cannot live without the other.

Despite their disdain for each other, they unconsciously understand that their antagonism gives them purpose. The concept of Otherness, of the quality of being different, is important to be integrated. The self and the Other are to be simultaneously accepted, which unveils the monster as none other than oneself.

When the hero bases his entire identity and reason of being as hunting down the villain, once this objective is achieved through the death of the villain, the hero may experience a loss of purpose and a crisis of identity, resulting in disquieting feelings of fragmentation and worthlessness. Thus, when the hero has a chance to defeat the villain, he hesitates—contradicting his desire to kill the villain until this point. The hero’s greatest desire is not to defeat the villain, but for the villain to be redeemed—leading to the integration of the villain archetype.

We all have the potential to become either heroes or villains. The very same experiences that create a hero can also create a villain. In fact, heroes and villains endure the same journey and the same trials.

So, what is the main difference between them? The hero is selfless and the villain is selfish. This is brilliantly portrayed in the third episode of the Star Wars films, where Anakin has a conversation with Palpatine: “Palpatine: The Sith and the Jedi are similar in almost every way, including their quest for greater power.

Anakin: The Sith rely on their passion for their strength. They think inwards, only about themselves. Palpatine: And the Jedi don’t?

Anakin: The Jedi are selfless. They only care about others. ” When faced with temptation, a hero will reject it, while a villain will succumb to it.

This voice of temptation is as old as humanity itself, represented by the serpent in the Garden of Eden. The villain is hurt by the world and hurts it back—perpetuating the cycle. “Since the world is messed up”, he says, “it might as well burn.

” Just as a cracked mirror will make things appear distorted and fragmented, so those who are broken inside see the world as broken. It is important to heal this wound within. The hero, on the other hand, is hurt by the world but never wishes pain upon others, he or she transforms suffering into healing, becoming a wounded healer.

In the Harry Potter fantasy novels, both Harry and Voldemort were lonely orphans who did not receive much affection or comfort—thus, they longed to be discovered and recognised for their true value—both developed their own distinct ways of dealing with this, and became polar opposites. In a game of chess, someone has to take the black pieces. Freedom is what you do with what’s been done to you.

“We cannot change the cards we are dealt, just how we play the hand. ” It is also often true that the world is ripe with unfairness, and many times it is not nature but nurture that makes a person become evil. In this case, villains are not born, they are made.

They are products of a decayed and corrupt society. That is why we sometimes secretly admire or relate to these characters, because they are archetypal rebels thumbing their noses at an unjust society, breaking social norms and challenging authority. Some of these are disillusioned by society’s corruption, and have become outlaws, operating in the shadow of law and order.

It is wise to understand someone’s motivations rather than judge his or her actions. We can do this by putting ourselves in their shoes and imagine what they had to suffer to commit atrocious acts. Every villain’s redemption arc begins with their origin story.

Often times, when we look at troubled people’s past histories, we see someone who is lonely, hurting, and scared. When we see life through a lens of pain, we see enemies everywhere. Villains help us to examine our psyche and decide what we would have done in their place.

Despite how much one may be influenced by others in a negative way, one may say that one’s greatest enemy has always been oneself, and until one conquers that, one can go no further. That is the journey of self-discovery. “If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles.

” The villain is often a mirror of the dark aspects of humanity, embodying qualities that are evil, harmful, greedy, selfish, and destructive. Many of us read the stories of villains with great interest, and we find them both terrifying and fascinating. That is because they represent certain contents of our unconscious.

It is much easier to project evil on others and deny our capacity for evil. It is common for a person or group of people to believe that they are the good guys and project evil unto others, nullifying any non-aggression by the opponent. The other is necessarily the enemy or villain, who must be defeated through whatever means.

This, of course, is too one-sided, as psychologically, we have both good and evil qualities. The Russian writer Aleksander Solzhenitsyn states: “The line dividing good and evil cuts through the heart of every human being. And who is willing to destroy a piece of his own heart?

” Evil cannot be killed; it cannot be destroyed. For it is nothing more than that which lies within each and every one of us. Duality is a characteristic of human nature; thus, one-sidedness is a form of dehumanisation.

The simple fact is that we are all capable of evil, but most of us choose not to do evil. In the villain, however, evil, dehumanisation, and unilateralism complete and enable each other. This would explain his characteristics for power, pride, selfishness, etc.

Similarly, a one-sided view of heroic characteristics (courage, compassion, humility, etc. ), does not signify the whole spectrum of human experience. Our goal is to balance these dualities within ourselves.

The Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde portrays the duality of human nature, showing the two sides of the same man. Those people that appear outwardly good sometimes have a shockingly evil nature. Dr Jekyll, a well-mannered man, has spent his entire life putting on a persona (social mask) and repressing evil urges that are frowned upon by society.

He creates a potion in an attempt to eliminate this hidden evil from himself. However, in doing so, he transforms into Mr Hyde, a personification of all of his evil urges. Eventually, this dark side of his psyche becomes so strong and overpowering that Dr Jekyll must rely on the potion to regain the awareness of his conscious self.

Mr Hyde represents the villain or shadow archetype within all of us. He states: “I am not evil. I am no more evil than you.

We are the same. ” While Mr Hyde represents the villain or personal shadow, the personification of absolute evil is the collective shadow or the Devil. Swiss psychiatrist and psychologist Carl Jung writes: “With a little self-criticism one can see through the shadow—so far as its nature is personal… it is quite within the bounds of possibility for a man to recognise the relative evil of his nature, but it is a rare and shattering experience for him to gaze into the face of absolute evil.

” Integrating our personal shadow can lead us to become conscious of the collective shadow and not fall prey to it. However, one must be careful. Nietzsche writes in Beyond Good and Evil, “Whoever fights with monsters should see to it that he does not become one himself.

And when you stare for a long time into an abyss, the abyss stares back into you. ” Every light casts a shadow, and every hero has a villain. In Ursula’s K.

Le Guin’s A Wizard of Earth Sea this idea is made literal by the young wizard Ged having to fight a shadow that was brought into the world by him, a product of his darker, uncontrolled side. The shadow attacks him and scars his face, until it is driven away. This scar hurts whenever the shadow is near him, just as Harry Potter’s scar from Voldemort.

Ged rejects the shadow and spends most of his adventure running from it, instead of learning from it. Eventually, however, he confronts his shadow, and acknowledges it as a part of himself. By doing so, he merges with it, heals and becomes whole.

It is a clear literary example of how the integration of the shadow marks the first step towards individuation, the path towards psychological maturation and wholeness. There is perhaps nothing more satisfying than a redeemed villain, one who is damaged by life and consequently hurts others, but eventually undergoes a change of heart and transforms into a better person. The villain redemption arc is not just a captivating storytelling device, but also shows us what is possible within ourselves, allowing us to visualise our ultimate potential.

Villains often show their attractive side before their repulsive one. They are capable of mirroring what is seen as most charming in society in order to win people over and accomplish their goals. The psychology of the villain can best be explored in the so-called Dark Triad traits: narcissism, Machiavellianism, and psychopathy.

The term narcissism originates from Narcissus, a figure in Greek mythology known for his beauty. Upon looking at his reflection in a pond, he fell in love with his own image. Narcissism is a personality disorder which includes an inflated sense of self-importance.

Such people feel themselves superior to everyone else, are preoccupied by grandiose fantasies, and typically exaggerate their achievements and talents. Narcissists need constant attention and admiration from others, and react negatively to criticism. They are prideful, arrogant, and have a lack of empathy.

A Machiavellian is one who uses clever but often dishonest methods to gain power or control. If there is one defining characteristic of this personality, it is manipulation. This psychological trait was named after Niccolò Machiavelli, one of the great villains of history, who is best known for his political treatise The Prince, which suggests that immoral acts are justified if they can help achieve political glory.

Those who are Machiavellian are not just characterised by manipulation, but also an indifference to morality, a lack of empathy, and a strategic focus on self-interest. For Machiavelli, an effective ruler should not strive for goodness and justice, but rather on maintaining his power. It is the strong person who imposes his will on others, and that is the definition of justice.

He famously states that one should be feared and loved; but if one had to choose, it is safer to be feared than loved. What one must avoid at all costs, however, is to be hated, as that would lead to being overthrown by the people, thereby losing one’s power or leading to death. Thus, Machiavelli tells us that one must appear to be good to people.

Behind closed doors, however, one may construct all sorts of machinations, backstab or deceive others. The closest thing in real life approximating an ideal villain would probably be a psychopathic criminal. Psychopathy is the most recent of the dark triads, and includes high impulsivity and thrill-seeking along with low empathy and anxiety.

Psychopaths are characterised by antisocial behaviour, selfishness, and remorselessness. They do not have true love nor friends, as they lack empathy and are cold. Despite their diverse origins, the personalities composing the Dark Triad overlap.

All three entail a socially malevolent character with behaviour tendencies toward self-promotion, emotional coldness, duplicity or deceptiveness, and aggressiveness. Now we will look at some of the most common archetypal images of the villain. The Tyrant is a cruel, unjust and authoritarian leader who has an insatiable appetite for power, which can appear in any person but is exemplified in dictators, cult leaders, crime lords, religious fanatics, corrupt politicians, etc.

The problem is that power is insatiable, it is an unquenchable thirst. No matter how much power one gets, one will always be dissatisfied and want more. The Tyrant’s people are but pawns to him, and he ruthlessly conquers and crushes his enemies.

He is the opposite of the humble or benevolent leader. The despot’s strength is goal-orientation, whatever he aims for, he will achieve. He stays focused and is decisive, and can solve a dilemma within minutes.

However, this also causes stubbornness. Sometimes he is so focused on the mission before him that he loses track of when a cause is lost. Even when a battle is over, he may continue to fight.

Thus, quick decisions without reflection can lead to his downfall. The Tyrant is unsympathetic and does not care about people’s woes. He is irritated when decisions are not made the right way.

A blow to his pride can lead him to irrational conduct. Pride is a mask for self-loathing, the Tyrant says, “If I don’t achieve it, I deserve to suffer. ” He is motivated by a secret fear—the fear of losing control over his rulership, which may also manifest as a determination to control everyone around him.

His thirst for power may be a compensation for his inferiority complex. Failure is a part of life. The hero accepts it with dignity, the tyrant fights against it.

Without humility, one quickly becomes arrogant. Self-love and humility go hand in hand. The hero is self-sacrificing, a quality which the tyrant lacks.

The refusal to this selfless submission is what makes tyrants. Joseph Campbell writes: “The hero of yesterday becomes the tyrant of tomorrow, unless he crucifies himself today. ” Another type of villain is the Resentful One, whose main characteristic is that he burns with resentment, and longs for revenge.

Sometimes he is an older sibling of a child more loved by his parents. He is jealous and envious of the affection shown by his parents to his sibling, and darkly schemes to show his parents that he is worth more. Perhaps he was the black sheep of the family, The favourite child was born lucky, is smart, pretty, and receives all the attention.

The other, was “lucky to be born. ” This may be because of intergenerational trauma, whereby the dysfunctional family dynamics are passed from one generation to the next. Dysfunctional families and the lack of positive role models or supportive relationships can fuel villainous tendencies.

The Resentful One likely comes from a house of abuse, neglect or rejection—and develops trauma or a negative complex (an emotionally charged group of ideas or images). He may also have experienced the loss of a loved one or personal betrayal. These negative experiences can create deep-seated unresolved emotions that ignite feelings of anger and a desire for revenge.

A person’s villainy becomes an outlet for one’s unresolved emotions, a way to externalise one’s inner turmoil onto the external world. The Resentful One proudly announces his rebellious dealings against the unfairness of life. He is independent, bold, and has a strong conviction in his beliefs and values.

He never forgets and though only resentment remains, he carries his grudge with pride—a desperate attempt to gain a sense of importance in a world that has failed him. He can be tough and mean but also charismatic, and is usually street smart. His vulnerabilities are his pessimism, bitterness, volatility, and especially, his jealousy.

The Traitor is the villain who betrays those who trust him most. He is a manipulator or Machiavellian figure. Despite supportive smiles and sympathetic ears, he plots the destruction of his friends.

No one suspects the evil that lurks in his heart. That actually helps him succeed. He can also fake being empathetic, listening to others and seemingly caring about them, making others like him.

The Traitor’s greatest asset is the trust people place on him, as he seems trustworthy. His vulnerabilities are his loneliness, remorsefulness, self-doubt, paranoia and emotional turmoil. Sometimes a mentor turns into a villain or betrays the hero.

In Norse mythology, the dwarf and blacksmith Reginn adopts Sigurd, who would later become a legendary hero and dragon-slayer. Reginn helps his foster son to reforge his broken sword and convinces him to kill the dangerous dragon Fafnir. When the dragon is slain, however, Sigurd learns of Reginn’s intentions to betray him and keep the treasure for himself.

One shouldn’t blindly follow all the teachings of one’s mentor, it is healthy to question a mentor’s motives. There is perhaps no worse villain than the Sadist, who enjoys cruelty for its own sake, and is amused by or takes pleasure in, the psychological or physical suffering of others (including animals). He or she uses violence and aggression to control and dominate others, and enjoys instilling fear, or shame in people.

The Sadist humiliates people in the presence of others, treats someone under his control harshly, and lies for the purpose of inflicting pain on others. The Criminal Mastermind or Evil Genius loves to show off his superior intelligence. Those who are intellectually inferior are contemptible to him, which includes almost everyone.

He makes elaborate puzzles, traps, and experiments—the game is always rigged in his favour. The Mastermind is analytical. He does not rush things, but thinks before he acts, and methodically solves every piece of the puzzle.

The main motivation of his actions is to prove that he is smarter than everyone else, that everyone is wrong and that he is right—and that he is the best at a particular skill or talent. Perhaps this is because his genius is unappreciated by others, laughed at by his colleagues, or because he was the class nerd that everyone picked on. Serial killers are often criminal masterminds, finding a thrill in not being caught and getting away with murder.

Such as seen in the case of Jack the Ripper. The archenemy of Sherlock Holmes, Professor James Moriarty is a criminal mastermind. He does not commit the crimes himself, instead, he uses his intelligence and resources to provide criminals with crime strategies and protection from the law, in exchange for a fee.

Another cunning mastermind is Hannibal Lecter in the Silence of the Lambs. He is a brilliant psychiatrist, charmful, and highly sophisticated, with refined tastes in art, music, and cuisine—who also happens to be a cannibalistic serial killer. The Mad Scientist is a similar figure to the Mastermind, as both are intellectually brilliant.

The Mad Scientist’s motivation, however, is different—it is his thirst for knowledge and experimentation that drives him, and often leads him to violate ethical boundaries or ignore the potential consequences of his actions. He may either construct destructive technologies, or conduct experiments whose results terrify him, as is portrayed in Frankenstein. The Jester or Trickster thrives on chaos and mischief.

Loki in Norse mythology is known for his deception and trickery. His ability to shapeshift allows him to achieve his goals. He causes the death of Baldur, the most beloved of all the gods, and plays a significant role in bringing about the events of Ragnarök, the downfall of the gods and the destruction of the entire cosmos.

Stepmothers are frequently portrayed as villains in fairy tales, as well as witches—who depict the Terrible or Devouring Mother archetype (Hansel and Gretel, Cinderella, Snow White, Rapunzel, etc. ). In Greek mythology, Medea is known for killing her own children as an act of revenge against her husband.

This villain is the opposite of the nurturing mother. She is abusive, controlling, avaricious, has no empathy, and is usually open about her need for power. One of the most popular female villains is the femme fatale (literally, “fatal or deadly woman”).

She is akin to a black widow spider who lures her victims to mate in her web and then consumes them, or as in the Lorelei in German myth, a beautiful water spirit or siren who sings to seduce and lure men to their death. This villain tries to get the ideal man as her lover, and does not care about the noble qualities of the hero, but rather superficial needs that can distract and divert her, and give her a false sense of worthiness. Whenever she is bored, she moves on to her next victim.

In the Old Testament, Delilah seduced Samson, and managed to cut his hair, thereby depriving him of his strength, and leading to his downfall. Another figure is Salome, who dances so beautifully that she is granted a wish by the king, upon which she asks for the head of John the Baptist on a platter. The femme fatale uses seduction and manipulation to get what she wants.

While we should not completely excuse villains, we should not completely ignore them either. Rather, we should consider villains simultaneously with heroes. Not as foils or dichotomies, but as two sides of the same coin.

The villain represents the yin which is a necessary counterbalance to the yang. Wholeness is achieved by the union of opposites. The villain archetype expresses our shadow side, and can serve a cathartic or therapeutic purpose.

The redemption of the villain within is inevitably linked with the integration of our shadow, which constitutes the essential first step towards self-realisation, and may be why the villain redemption arc is so powerful, as it expresses our ultimate potential for wholeness. Seeing ourselves as purely good and ignoring our capacity for evil, will, as Solzhenitsyn puts it, “destroy a piece of our own heart. ” When people strive for perfection, they base their whole worldview on a lie.

When we accept the reality that we are all flawed, and accept both the good and the bad that life has to offer, we are able to fully experience what it is to be human, and become whole.