The Existence Of Antiheros In Don Draper's

Consider the cognitive demands that televised narratives place on their viewers. With many shows that we associate with ''quality'' entertainment -- ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show,'' ''Murphy Brown,'' ''Frasier'' -- the intelligence arrives fully formed in the words and actions of the characters on-screen. They say witty things to one another and avoid lapsing into tired sitcom cliches, and we smile along in our living rooms, enjoying the company of these smart people. But assuming we're bright enough to understand the sentences they're saying, there's no intellectual labor involved in enjoying the show as a viewer. You no more challenge your mind by watching these intelligent shows than you challenge your body watching ''Monday Night Football.'' The intellectual work is

Don Draper, the lead character in Mad Men, has a mysterious past. In fact, there’s no other character in the series as mysterious as him.

Watching television is such a common part of contemporary society, that most Americans adopted it as a part of their daily routine and watch television for at least an hour a day. Stanley Crouch, a poet, music and cultural critic, writes: “Whenever people pretentiously and proudly announce, “I don’t watch television,” they should follow it up with “I don’t look at America either”” (Masciotra 79). Television has become a part of many people’s lives. When the mass population watches the same television shows, movies, etc. they can all relate to each other, and thus unite them as an American. We look to TV shows to see how other people like us act on-screen. Aaron Morales, the author of American Mashup: A Popular Culture Reader states: “We watch movies, visit websites, and scour online profiles, all in an effort to glean from a variety of sources those traits that we feel best suit how we identify ourselves” (Morales 65). Movie characters can change the personalities and point of views in our society. Movies can inspire and motivate a society to change its social norms. For example, The Harry Potter Series is a well-known book that is popularized over the years through television advertisements. The reason Harry Potter is special is because he is like everyone else, but he is dealing with different problems. People can relate to the aspect of the characters and

This presents a problem in anti-hero stories, where, according to them, moral judgment plays an “insignificant role in antihero liking” (1037). Therefore, ADT, while effective in measuring likeability of heroic protagonists, fails to measure that of antiheroes. To try to measure the enjoyment of antiheroic stories, Shafer and Raney conducted two studies. In the first one, a group of students was split into two groups. One watched and antihero movie and the other a movie with a classical hero protagonist. Through various points in the film, the viewers were asked to rate the protagonist likeliness on a scale from 0 to 50, with 25 being neutral. Here are the results from the study (fig. 1):

“What, exactly, does “antihero” mean? Merriam-Webster traces its first appearance back to 1714 and murkily defines it as “a protagonist or notable figure who is considerably lacking in heroic qualities.” Charles Bartholomew Joseph "Chuck" Bass is a fictional character in the novel and television show Gossip Girl. Chuck Bass is known as the show 's antihero. For example, he cheats, lies or uses the power of money to make his friends happy or get what they want. He isn’t the traditional anti-heroic because he is more relatable to people. His character traits have changed since starting in the first episode to the last episode in season six. During season one Chuck was shy, and unlikeable. Also, he is considered the bad boy. He was only interested in girls, himself and money. In an episode, he says “Why should I be… an usher? I’m Chuck Bass.” This is an example of how his unlikable personality came across to others. Then by the end of the third season he shows us a sensitive side. By the third season, Chuck shows a nicer side and is likable. We see him make a few big and thoughtful gesture to his queen bee girlfriend, for example, surprising her with her dream dress for prom.

Deceit is a theme in "Cyrano de Bergerac," Cyrano himself has deceitful characteristics, the combination of the two male characters created a non-existent person that Roxane fell in love with, and symbolism of the last letter displays the theme of deceit. The theme of lies and deceit was prominent within the play. The play showcased deception from concealed emotions, fake identities, to cruel plots,

Antiheroes: neither villains nor supermen but the tragic heroes of daily life. Discussing the depiction of the ‘male American antihero’ within the framework of this thesis in the cases of Lester Burnham, Frank Wheeler, and Brandon Sullivan refers to white men from (upper) middle class leading a drab, emotionally unfulfilling life in the US – in New York City and suburbs in Connecticut, to be exact. First of all, one needs to clarify what exactly makes and antihero and what distinguishes him from other (stock) characters. To begin with, the Compact Oxford English Dictionary for Students defines ‘antihero’ as “a central character in a story, film, or play who lacks typical heroic qualities” (Soanes 36). Therefore, it becomes relevant also to list the dictionary definition of the words ‘hero’ and ‘heroic’:

As television viewers, we tend to slouch in front of this electrical box after a long day’s work, many of us don’t think or know about how much television programming has changed since our parent’s childhood. In “Thinking outside the Idiot Box” by Dana Stevens and “Watching TV Makes You Smarter” by Steven Johnson, both writers give their thoughts and opinions about how television programming has evolved over the last three decades. These gentlemen recognize that the days of slap-stick comedy were over and replace by more sophisticated stories. This new brand of programs have provide a step stoning for the evolution of television to gain momentum.

The essay, “No Sympathy for the Devil”, written by Heather Havrilesky, is about the concept of antiheroes, and how much of an impact they have made on modern media and the characters hollywood choose to create. For many years, most of the TV and movies made had a cookie cutter, almost perfect hero(s). But as of late, the entertainment industry has come to the realization that people with pros and vices, are much easier for the audience to relate to. Heather’s goal is to dive further into these antihero characters, and unravel what exactly makes them so relatable. In the process of explaining to us all of these different, complex characters, Havrilesky seems to get lost in her topic from time to time. However, the evidence she uses to back all of her claims is both plentiful, and very strong. The overall tone of the essay is not excessively opinionated, yet she does not sound

This leads to their death in most cases; the only truly honest figure in the whole play is Horatio, he always tells the truth and in fact he is the only one surviving in the end.

In the reading, “Why We Love TV’s Anti-heroes” by Stephen Garrett, he points out that anti-heroes are becoming more popular than the traditional hero. Garrett states, “the word hero is abused in the news, the sports reports, and even in conversation” (318). For example tabloids recognize someone who battles a drug addiction and overcomes it or a substitute kicker for the football game kick the winning field goal (318). You see he argues that traditional heroes are “boring” and that there are no longer any more real heroes (318-321). Anti-heroes are characters or people who are just evil but still get the viewers to like

Anti-heroes do not solely exist in the fictional world. There are people in the real world, everyday who fit the anti-hero description. They are… the Mob. In ancient times loyalty was purest form of respect. It was a way of life. One was loyal to his or her family, govern, king, and God. Hand in hand with loyalty, comes the right to revenge. The Mob is one of the few “societies” that has reserved that tradition. For example: when a family member is assassinated, it is not only the right, but also the duty of the surviving family to avenge that death. This loyalty to one’s own, coupled with the fierce determination to protect them, are incredibly heroic qualities. Organized crime families are oohed and ahhed by the press and pop culture, and have their own fans. While these people are not ideal role models, they possess heroic qualities worthy of aspiration.

The Dichotomy of Truth and Deceit and its Effect on the Narrative of Hamlet. Human interaction lies on a plane wherein actions are continuously influenced by forces outside of conscious control. In order to find acceptance, humans submit to their tendency to fall into the realm of untruths, of deceit, and of the insincerity that comes with having to appear a certain way, rather than pushing forth their true selves. Since literature always reflects the nature of the human condition, it is therefore natural that this theme would cement itself within its many facets. A very famous example of this theme at play can be found within Shakespeare's work, Hamlet.

The original hero archetype greatly contrasts the modern anti-hero archetype. A hero is someone who displays little to no flaws and is widely liked by the majority. This character presents its storyline with exceptional traits. The anti-hero archetype is completely opposite of the hero archetype. “Unlike the traditional hero who is morally upright and steadfast, the anti-hero usually has a flawed moral character” (Michael). Modern anti-heroes lack in grace, power, and social success (Neimneh). They deal with issues and insecurities such as alcoholism and infidelity (Michael). Anti-heroes make unpleasant moral compromises, in contrast to the desired, in order to reach something. They want to create order where it is impossible and put the protagonist to ‘justice’. Traditional hero characters often succeed when trying to complete their quests, which contrasts the extremely grimm success rate of anti-hero victory. Anti-heroes also do not let their inner thoughts influence their actions while original or traditional heroes seek self-definition (Teleky). Traditional hero characters often succeed when trying to complete their quests, which contrasts the extremely grimm success rate of anti-hero victory. The faultless ways of the hero archetype sets it apart from people in society, making it extremely unrelatable to the mass amount of humans today, allowing the anti-hero archetype to prevail through.

An anti hero is said to have flaws, he is gritty, and he often looks for redemption or for his own revenge satisfaction and sometimes for the greater good of society. One more significant point is that unlike tragic hero who thinks of what is a right or a moral thing to do at times, an anti hero does what appears to be right to him. He is often misunderstood by the society; he could perhaps be called as a noble criminal or a vigilante and their mostly motives are fulfilled by breaking the law a.k.a “the ends justify the means”. The last characteristic of an anti hero is his increased moral complexities and rejection of traditional