How bad do we make our villains? As a writer, I sometimes find the villains in the stories I read more compelling than the good-guys. What about you, do you agree?
One of the best villains I’ve run across was in Ordinary Thunderstorms by William Boyd. This villain was pretty awful. He was a hired killer, and he was very good at his job. Our hapless hero seemed pretty inept against such a cold-blooded killer. At first I thought the killer was a clear sociopath. He killed without remorse. That’s the nature of sociopaths (Remember Truman Capote’s killers in In Cold Blood?).
The worry I had throughout the book was not for the safety of our hero (even though I did worry about him as well–poor sap) but for the killer’s dog. The dog loved our killer. His neighbor gave him the dog and he had not figured out how to get rid of him. As the book progressed, the dog became a liability for the killer. I’m the kind of reader who cannot ever read about an animal or a child getting killed. I won’t commit such atrocities in my writing nor do I want to read about them.
Unfortunately Boyd’s skillful writing carried me well into this book and it was not going to be easy to put it down and leave it unfinished because I couldn’t stand what might happen to the dog. I did what any self-respecting reader might do in these circumstances. I read right up to where the killer was going to put a bullet through the dog’s brain. Then I closed my eyes (as if watching a movie) and I skipped ahead.
Lo! Once ahead, I realized the dog wasn’t dead. The killer couldn’t do it!!! This man, who would kill his own mother, couldn’t kill a dog. Now, that’s what a call a great villain. If Boyd had allowed him to kill the dog, he would have been an ordinary sociopath. Instead Boyd created a much richer villain.
Thank you William Boyd for saving the dog and for creating a really interesting killer.
Tell me about the villains you’ve found compelling. What works and what doesn’t?
That’s such a great example, Joan (and I would have also closed my eyes while reading, LOL). I can get really absorbed into books and shows that tease out the humanity of a villain. I saw every episode of “The Sopranos,” and would find myself feeling all compassionate for the mobsters… and then shake my head at myself as they “whacked” someone. Geesh!
For me, the appeal is seeing through the crusty exterior of the villain into the human that lies within. Perhaps that gives me a sense of hope and safety in the world. Perhaps it’s my way of addressing the lurking villain within me. It’s hard to stick with an unsympathetic villain, not as compelling. At least to me.
Fascinating topic!!
Hi Martha,
Have you read Serena by Ron Rash? There is another great villain, but she’s just plain evil. The good part, though, is the author never puts us in her point of view. Thank you very much! Boyd puts us in the killer’s point of view. It’s probably easier to create a really evil villain so long as you spare the reader the killer’s POV. What do you think?
No, I haven’t read it, but I agree with you that once we get the villain’s POV, it’s harder to go full-evil! Yet another reminder that we don’t live in a “black and white” world — the grey area makes it much more real.
Serena is a mean woman! I agree with you wholeheartedly!
Yes, Serena will make a my must-read list. Ron Rash did an outstanding job with that book. Martha give it a shot.