Protagonist or Antagonist?

Use this forum to discuss the October Book of the Month "McDowell" by William H. Coles.
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Re: Protagonist or Antagonist?

Post by fernsmom »

That is one of the reasons the book was so interesting to me. Hiram fit both roles the protagonist, and the antagonist. In the first part of the book Hiram is only portrayed as selfish, at times evil (his friend left on the mountain to die). The second half that starts to change in Hiram's thoughts and actions.
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Post by Ijeoma Kikelomo »

I think Hiram is both. He is a protagonist and also an antagonist. The man had different sides to him.
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Post by T_stone »

He both protagonist and antagonist in the book. He was selfish in the first part of the book and in the second part, he became a changed person seeking redemption.
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Post by Sweet Psamy »

McDonald's is both the protagonist and the antagonist in the story. He had to conquer himself and make amends with the past.
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Post by DorcasToo »

Hiram is like a coin when you flip you can find a head or a tail. An instance like when he betrayed Michael yet, he runs a charity.
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Post by sarahmarlowe »

I believe that Hiram is certainly a protagonist, even though he is not very likable in the beginning of the book. He is a tragic figure, much like lead characters in Shakespeare's tragedies. But, unlike those characters, Hiram starts off full of hubris and becomes more selfless as the story goes on.
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Post by HollandBlue »

To me, Hiram is the protagonist because he is the main character. I also think he is his own worst enemy before he goes through some self-evaluation and changes his outlook and behavior towards others.
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Post by capricornius16 »

I definitely think he's both. We see him first as a cold man to his family and colleagues who eventually ended up a changed man.
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Post by Radiant3 »

He is definitely both. He has to overcome one in himself to become the other.
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Post by Ayat paarsa »

A single character based story, the protagonist was married as well, no antagonist, no villain, wow!!! It's having a different storyline.
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Post by writer808 »

I have mixed feelings on this one. I think he is both. Protagonist due to the soft corner for his family members but antagonist in the sense that he wont hesitate to cause damage to people at certain circumstances.
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Post by Jeremy0 »

It's complicated, I'm never rooting for him so I guess he is the antagonist.
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Post by Cristina Chifane »

Both the protagonist and the antagonist of the novel, Hiram McDowell is undoubtedly a powerful presence making us to hate him at first and even to relate to him toward the end of the story.
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Post by Fozia-Bajwa »

McDowell should be an antagonist rather than a protagonist.
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Post by Dael Reader »

By definition, McDowell is the protagonist, because he is the leading figure of the story and the one around whom all the actions of the story revolve. But his personality pegs him as a villain in the lives of just about everyone he encounters.
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