Protagonist
Also known as Main character · MC
The protagonist is the main character, the one whose choices drive the story and whose goal the plot is built around.
Being the protagonist is about role, not morals. It’s the character whose wants get things moving, who makes the big decisions and who has the most to lose. They don’t have to be likeable. An antihero, a con artist or an outright villain can be the protagonist.
The protagonist isn’t always the narrator either. Plenty of novels are told by someone standing next to the main character. Nick Carraway narrates The Great Gatsby, and Watson narrates the Sherlock Holmes stories. The narrator gives you the point of view, but the story is about someone else.
Ensemble novels play with this on purpose. Big fantasy series often follow several protagonists whose storylines eventually meet, and some literary fiction doesn’t have a clear one at all, focusing on a family, a town or a place instead.
Protagonist: common questions
Is the protagonist always the hero?
No. The protagonist is just the character driving the story, and that can be an antihero or even a villain. Whether they’re a hero depends on how they act.
Can a book have more than one protagonist?
Yes. Multi-POV fantasy and ensemble novels often have several, each with their own storyline, that come together as the plot goes on.