Breaking Bad, Joker, perhaps Infinity War… some stories just nail the psychology of “the bad guy.”
Why are we so fascinated by bad guys? Why do we insist that stories have “three-dimensional” or relatable villains?
Simply put, bad guys who are bad just for the sake of being bad aren’t interesting and, deep down, we know they’re unrealistic.
But I think this desire for a realistic villain implies something about our psychology.
It means that villains “make sense” on a deeper, human, even archetypal level. I’d suggest to you that villainy is something inside us all. Each one of us has the potential to end up as the bad guy.
If that’s true, then we each have something to learn from villains, if for no other reason than to make sure we do not become one.
Let’s dig in.
What is a Villain?
First, let’s define what a villain is.
Villains are the bad guys: They go against the grain in society so much that they become counterproductive to its structures and aims (moral or otherwise). However society has defined “good,” the bad guys go the other direction.
Usually, this is because the traditional structures and morals have failed them.
Of course, there are varying degrees and arenas where someone might become the villain. Some villains simply oppose one person. Others wish to destroy an entire civilization.
The way that they go about those goals may ultimately be what makes them a villain. After all, someone who wants society to change because they think the change is beneficial is simply liberal or progressive in their views. But if they want to make change with violence or coercion… then they’ve truly corrupted.
Let’s use Star Wars as an example.
The far, far away Galaxy of Star Wars does numerous flip-flops as its characters vie for control.
The man who would become the Emperor plays a political game trying to destroy the slow, inefficient democracy that is in place. Eventually, he wins. But his game was more than political. He was underhanded and sadistic, willing to kill and destroy to obtain and preserve the power that he sought after. He used violence and coercion to get his way, rather than taking the agreed-upon process of democracy.
Bullies Make Bullies
Some today try to make their political opponents into villains, but this is overly simplistic and borderline fascist. Ironically, it could create villains, since it attempts to isolate, invalidate, and coerce. Ultimately, it dehumanizes.
One of the fastest ways to turn someone against you (and whatever you stand for) is to dehumanize them.
For some people, the world’s structures don’t work. Or even if they agree with the world in theory, things don’t work out in practice. People screw them over but never face justice. They do all the right things in their marriage, but it doesn’t work out. They work their butts off, but the boss gives the promotion to someone else. Add these things up, and you may have someone seriously jaded and resentful, perhaps with little to lose. That’s a prime recipe for villainy.
With resentment of society, its structures, and its people, comes the desire to change them or, at the very least, try something different.
Or, simply burn it to the ground.
And since “justice” or some other societal structures or morals don’t seem to be working, it becomes time to take things into their own hands.
Thus, a villain is born. Or at least the seeds of villainy have begun to sprout.
“Be Killing Sin, Lest Sin Be Killing You”
While those seeds could grow into full-on vengeance or evil, there is also opportunity for redemption of various kinds.
Bruce Wayne doesn’t go full villain, though his vigilante approach to justice may be questionable at times.
When someone’s desire for personal justice corrupts and becomes absolute, or is oriented against humanity as a whole and not merely the person or party that committed the injustice, that’s perhaps the point of true villainy. Reason is gone, as are other parts of their humanity. Sometimes, like in the case of the Joker perhaps, the villain’s story has come to actual psychosis and insanity.
But that’s the point: it was originally a desire for some form of justice or a generally positive outcome that has become corrupted. No doubt this change was incremental and, perhaps, barely perceptible. This is why humility is so important and narcissism so dangerous. The former will take criticism and avoid the victimhood mentality the latter may never let go of pain, desire to avenge, or desire to succeed no matter the cost.
In the end, we’re all just as capable of this transformation should we let bitterness or anger or lust or addiction take hold of our hearts. Like Gollum, we can become so attached to the ring that we can’t help but let it consume us.
This is why real villains are relatable. You have the same human faculties that they do. You can get resentful, and you want justice and fairness of some kind and to be respected in society.
The potential of villainy is simply human.
