Protagonist or Antihero? A reader’s response to No Country for Old Men

 

The obvious choice for the protagonist of No Country for Old Men would be Llewelyn Moss, a man who out hunting found a briefcase with worth 2.4 million dollars from a drug deal gone wrong. Llewelyn decides to keep the money, which turns out to be a grave mistake. The owners were none too pleased and hired the psychopathic murderous hitman Anton Chigurh. Chigurh goes to great lengths to track down Moss. Meanwhile Moss has sent his wife into hiding and has been running himself from Chigurh and others after the 2.4 million dollars. Moss is the clear guy in the novel along with the sheriff but is he truly the protagonist? Or does Chigurh take that title? Anton Chigurh’s character is much more developed character by McCarthy compared to Moss and far more interesting. No one can argue that Chigurh was a good guy. However, no one can argue that Chigurh is not an intriguing character. Anton is a bad ass in simple terms. He is a psychopathic sociopath but a bad ass nonetheless. He kills with no remorse doing anything and everything possible to do his job. He even goes as far to murder Moss’s wife after Moss’s murder by Mexican gang members. Chigurh leaves her fate to a coin flip, much like Two-face (Harvey Dent) in The Dark Knight. Chigurh also uses a unique and frankly cool weapon in an air powered shut gun type thing that can be used to kill as well as blow open locks increasing his characters appeal. I even found myself rooting for him for most of the book.

A protagonist might not be the best term to describe Anton Chigurh. Antihero might be a better description of Chigurh. An antihero is a central character who lacks heroic qualities. In essence, an antihero is a bad guy who the reader sees as the main character who may be the bad guy. In terms of Anton Chigurh as an antihero he really reminds me of another antihero, Frank Underwood, the main character of House of Cards. Frank Underwood much like Anton is a psychopath. Underwood is murderous, selfish and does whatever necessary to promote his well-being.  Despite all these flaws the viewer of the show cannot help but root for Frank Underwood. Frank is an antihero much in the way that Anton Chigurh is in No Country for Old Men. In conclusion, I would argue there is no true protagonist in No Country for Old Men but Anton Chigurh is the main antihero.

 

Protagonist or Antihero? A reader’s response to No Country for Old Men

From Jay Pisowicz

The obvious choice for the protagonist of No Country for Old Men would be Llewelyn Moss, a man who out hunting found a briefcase with worth 2.4 million dollars from a drug deal gone wrong. Llewelyn decides to keep the money, which turns out to be a grave mistake. The owners were none too pleased and hired the psychopathic murderous hitman Anton Chigurh. Chigurh goes to great lengths to track down Moss. Meanwhile Moss has sent his wife into hiding and has been running himself from Chigurh and others after the 2.4 million dollars. Moss is the clear guy in the novel along with the sheriff but is he truly the protagonist? Or does Chigurh take that title? Anton Chigurh’s character is much more developed character by McCarthy compared to Moss and far more interesting. No one can argue that Chigurh was a good guy. However, no one can argue that Chigurh is not an intriguing character. Anton is a bad ass in simple terms. He is a psychopathic sociopath but a bad ass nonetheless. He kills with no remorse doing anything and everything possible to do his job. He even goes as far to murder Moss’s wife after Moss’s murder by Mexican gang members. Chigurh leaves her fate to a coin flip, much like Two-face (Harvey Dent) in The Dark Knight. Chigurh also uses a unique and frankly cool weapon in an air powered shut gun type thing that can be used to kill as well as blow open locks increasing his characters appeal. I even found myself rooting for him for most of the book.

A protagonist might not be the best term to describe Anton Chigurh. Antihero might be a better description of Chigurh. An antihero is a central character who lacks heroic qualities. In essence, an antihero is a bad guy who the reader sees as the main character who may be the bad guy. In terms of Anton Chigurh as an antihero he really reminds me of another antihero, Frank Underwood, the main character of House of Cards. Frank Underwood much like Anton is a psychopath. Underwood is murderous, selfish and does whatever necessary to promote his well-being.  Despite all these flaws the viewer of the show cannot help but root for Frank Underwood. Frank is an antihero much in the way that Anton Chigurh is in No Country for Old Men. In conclusion, I would argue there is no true protagonist in No Country for Old Men but Anton Chigurh is the main antihero.

 

A Reader Response to A Game of Thrones from Jay Pi.

A Game of Thrones is the first in the epic A Song of Ice and Fire book series

written by George RR Martin. The first novel in the series follows the journeys and

stories of many of the noble families in the land of Westeros. While many are named

and are talked about in A Game of Thrones four main noble families are at the center

of the action. The Starks who are the Wardens of the North ruled By Eddard “Ned”

Stark and are represented by a direwolf. The Starks are the major protagonists in

the novel. The Lannisters, who are the richest of the noble families, include the

Queen Cersei, Jamie Lannister “The King Slayer,” and the Imp or Tyrion Lannister

among others and are represented by a lion. The Targaryans are the ex-royal family

who were overthrown by Robert Baratheon and Ned Stark and live on in exile

through Dany Targaryan and are represented by a dragon. Lastly is the new royal

family, the Baratheons who are lead by King Robert and are represented by a crown

What makes A Game of Thrones truly a unique novel is the manner in which

it is presented. The story is told in third person multiple with every chapter a

different character is the limited voice. The uniqueness of this is intriguing and fun

to read. It allows the reader to engage more with the characters and relate to their

perspectives. The use of this kind of story telling blurs the lines between who is

good and who is bad and the interpretation of what is occurring. All four of the

major houses are represented by at least one character except for House Baratheon.

Jon Snow, Ned Stark, Arya Stark, Sansa Stark, Bran Stark, Catelin Stark, Tyrion

Lannister, and Dany Targaryan all have chapters with their own unique

perspectives. This leads to a truly unique experience reading the novel. For example

one arc in A Game of Thrones was that Catelin Stark abducted Tyrion Lannister

under suspicion that he conspired to murdering her son Bran. While I won’t reveal

whether he was innocent or guilty the arc culminates in the Imp winning his

freedom through a trial by combat in the Vail. During this particular arc the

chapters rotated between Catelin and Tyrion. Reading in the minds of Tyrion then

Catelin and back again to Tyrion really allows the reader to be completely engaged

and more connected to the characters in turn blurring the lines of good and bad.

There are chapters where Tyrion is one of my characters even though he is a

Lannister and they are supposed to be the main Antagonist in Westeros. While,

there are others where Sansa and Catelin Stark are my two least favorite characters

due to their stubbornness and ignorance.

Overall I would suggest anyone who enjoys violence, sex, and a lot of complex

characters to give A Game of Thrones a try. It is a quicker read than 660 pages sound

and is truly an enjoyable read.