Protagonist: definition and examples
A protagonist is the central character of a story, the one whose goals and choices drive the plot and whose fate the reader follows.
The protagonist is the person the story is about: Elizabeth Bennet, Pip, Huck Finn. The word comes from Greek drama, where it named the first actor. A protagonist does not have to be good, likable or even the narrator. They only have to be the one whose wanting moves the story.
The character the story belongs to
Ask what a book is about and the answer usually starts with a name. That name is the protagonist. Remove them and the plot has no engine, because the events that follow are responses to what they want and what they do.
The protagonist is not always the hero. A villain can be the protagonist if the story follows his ambitions. Nor is the protagonist always the narrator: The Great Gatsby is told by Nick Carraway, yet much of the story turns on Gatsby.
Examples
"Lizzy has something more of quickness than her sisters."
Pride and Prejudice, Chapter 1, Jane Austen
Mr. Bennet singles her out in the first chapter. Austen tells us early whose mind the novel will follow.
"So, I called myself Pip, and came to be called Pip."
Great Expectations, Chapter I, Charles Dickens
A protagonist naming himself in the opening paragraph. The whole novel is Pip making and remaking who he is.
"You don't know about me without you have read a book by the name of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer"
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, Chapter I, Mark Twain
Huck steps forward as protagonist and narrator at once. His voice is the book.
"In my younger and more vulnerable years my father gave me some advice that I've been turning over in my mind ever since."
The Great Gatsby, Chapter I, F. Scott Fitzgerald
Nick narrates, but the novel is named for Gatsby. Readers still argue over which of them is the protagonist, a useful lesson in the difference between telling a story and being its subject.
Choosing and keeping your protagonist
If you cannot say what your protagonist wants in one sentence, the plot will wander. Give them a goal the story can test and a reason they cannot walk away. Add a flaw that makes the goal harder to reach.
Keep them at the center as the draft grows. It is easy for a lively secondary character to take over chapter twelve. Record your protagonist's want, fear and arc in [Story DNA](/features/story-dna) so every scene is drafted with the person the book is about in view.
Common mistakes
Assuming protagonist means hero
A hero is one kind of protagonist. Plenty of protagonists are selfish, wrong or cruel. The story is still theirs.
Letting the protagonist react instead of act
A central character who only has things happen to them feels passive. The plot should turn on their decisions.
Common questions
- What is the difference between a protagonist and a hero?
- A hero is a protagonist with admirable qualities who does something brave or good. Every story has a protagonist. Not every protagonist is a hero.
- Can a novel have more than one protagonist?
- Yes. Ensemble novels and dual-timeline books often share the center between two or more characters. Each needs a goal of their own, or the reader will not know whose story to care about.
- Is the protagonist the same as the main character?
- Not quite. "Main character" can mean any important character. The protagonist is specifically the one the story follows and whose choices move it. ---
Related terms
Knowing the word is the easy part
Using it well takes a draft. FeelyWrite writes beside you and remembers the whole book while you do it.
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