Protagonist

Describing the Protagonist

No doubt the most well known of all the Archetypal Characters is the Protagonist. As with all the Archetypal Characters, there is a specific "shopping list" or "recipe" of dramatic functions that describes the Protagonist. The archetypal Protagonist is the chief proponent and principal driver of the effort to achieve the story's goal.

At first, this description seems far too simple for even the most archetypal of Protagonists. This is because we see the Main Character most often combined with the Protagonist. We seldom see a Protagonist player representing the archetypal functions alone.

Still, pursuing the goal is the essential function of the Protagonist, and beginning here we can build a network of relationships that describe the remaining archetypes. As a side note, the entire exploration of the Main Character throughline is an independent job of the Main Character. For the Archetypal Protagonist, therefore, we consider only its role in the Overall Story Throughline as just another player on the field (although a crucial one).

So, for our current needs, consider the Archetypal Protagonist as the chief proponent and principal driver of the effort to achieve the story's goal.