So I am usually fine with third person POV( or narrated by a person who is mostly an observer, like Wuthering Heights’ use of narrator) that have unlikable main characters but for some reason if the story is first person POV and have a really unlikable trait I would find reading through the story a bit harder (although I usually do still finish the book).
what about you guys, if a main character has an unlikable personality would it affect your experience with the story ?
by QuietFoundation5464
32 Comments
If the protagonist is unintentionally unlikeable and it bothers me, I drop.
If the protag is intentionally unlikeable/interestingly flawed, this might be engaging as a character study if executed well. I see why first person POV can be harder because you’re immersed in their head, but it hasn’t been a big problem for me yet.
Basically, self awareness from the author about their character is important to me.
I actually prefer unlikable and unreliable main characters and narrators.
I literally do not care about liking characters. They just have to be interesting. I get why people feel otherwise, but I don’t read to imagine the characters as my friends or someone I would hang out with IRL, I read to explore characters and situations unlike my own.
Literature would be profoundly less interesting if all main characters were paragons of humanity. I thought Wuthering Heights was brilliant.
Unlikable? No. As long as the character is compelling.
Compelling characters doesn’t necessarily means people you would like or would want to hang out with.
Sand Dan Glokta is an amazing character, but I would avoid him at all costs.
I threw the first book by Donaldson, in the Thomas Covenant series across the room mid-way through chapter 3.
Not only did I not finish that book, but I resolved then to never read another word he wrote.
Depends what you mean by unlikeable.
Unlikeable meaning they are a bad or even terrible person, usually not. Some of the most compelling and page turning chapters I’ve read have been horrendous characters as the PoV.
Unlikeable meaning it is painful and unfun to read, then yeah, that has an impact.
Now I haven’t read a book where I didn’t like the protagonist yet. But I did play a video game where I found the protagonist extremely unlikable. That is, Days Gone. The game is praised by fans and whatnot. And the gameplay was good. But I couldn’t stand Deacon nor did I find any qualities of him enjoyable. So I quit playing 10 hours in.
So I imagine if I read a book where I didn’t like the protagonist (and they don’t necessarily have to be a hero or good or whatever), I’d probably put it down.
Edit: actually, seconds after posting I remembered Steven Kings book from last year. “Fairy Tale”. I didn’t care for that teen kid whatsoever. I appreciate the whole story of him caring for the old professor dude and his dog. And his mom dying or whatever (it’s been a year since I checked it out), but I found him annoying as hell and I stopped reading halfway through. Which was the first King book I read that was written in the first person. Maybe it was that? I dunno. It seemed lame to me.
I prefer likeable main characters, but unlikeable is acceptable if there is a reason for it. If not, I am not going to subject myself to reading about someone I find unpleasant.
Characters are defined by their flaws *but they are vindicated by their virtues.*
If your character is unlikable and your book is horrible people doing horrible things, I’m dropping the book and giving it a one star. But if your character is unlikeable but exhibits virtue nonetheless, even if only in ways that are invisible to everyone but the reader, I’m down for the ride.
I do admit I get turned off by super unlikable main characters that you can’t even have any sympathy for. I have to gaf about what’s going to happen to them. There was one series I just couldn’t…. she was being so dumb and putting herself in situations that she could easily get herself killed. I had no sympathy for her and wouldn’t care at all if she died.
All depends. Perfume and The Talented Mr Ripley have truly horrible main characters but they’re both great books
As long as they aren’t boring. That’s the real character killer.
I will usually push thru. Awhile back I read a series by Mike Resnik. Tales of the Galactic Midway. The protagonist is running a carnival on Earth. By the end of the first 60 pages I had developed such a loathing for him if I could I’d have driven across traffic and up on the sidewalk to run him over and then back up to be sure I got him. By the end of the series I’d have pushed him out of the way of a speeding truck even if I got hit instead.
That was an amazingly well written set of stories.
Really depends on what “unlikable” means in this context–there are main characters who are morally repugnant who I would strongly dislike irl who are enjoyable to read. There are characters who are pathetic, mean, cruel, hypocritical, flawed, whatever who are enjoyable to read.
But if a character is inconsistent (not just in a hypocritical way but in a “the author clearly doesn’t know what they’re doing way) or flat or boring? Yeah, I’m not reading that unless the plot is INCREDIBLE. Though, the supporting cast will need to bring it. Because main characters can be awful ifthe people they’re bouncing off of are great.
“Unlikable” is such a vague term but “uninteresting” is very applicable nd where my concerns lay.
You could search for the last time this question was asked on this sub. I think it was maybe a week ago.
Not if it’s well written. Take Bateman or Humbert, for instance. Just because they’re utterly detestable doesn’t detract from the book–in fact, that’s kind of the appeal.
No. One of my favorite books of all time is Necromancer. The lead character has few redeeming qualities, and it’s brilliant.
Usually, I’m fine with an unlikable MC, but there are limits. Thomas Covenant (Lord Foul’s Bane) is the only one that immediately comes to mind as making me nope out almost immediately.
It’s why I quit reading nausea by Sartre. Protagonist was insufferable
Yes. Absolutely. If I can’t connect in some way with the character I’m supposed to be rooting for I’ll have a hard time enjoying it.
If it’s unintentional I’d drop but if there’s a purpose absolutely not
I think Harry Potter can be unlikable, yet I read the books; so, now. I used to read the Flashman novels of George MacDonald Fraser. The central character is a complete scoundrel. So, again, no.
No but if I don’t like the characters names it bothers me
No, sometimes the Author just want to tell a story of a person you normally wouldn’t like. And it’s okey.
Like Princess insomnia who is a little bit snoby… but it’s her way to deal with her illness, that drive her slowly into madness. But would I meet her in real life without knowing what’s going on, I would just not bother to talk to her.
It’s a tricky balancing act but I love an unlikable protagonist. It can be really fun to see them rationalize being awful. Confederacy of Dunces is one of my favorite books.
I love to hate unlikeable characters when they’re written well. By that I mean when you understand their thought process and actions because of their background or situation even when you don’t agree with them or like what they’re doing
I think it really depends on what’s “surrounding” the character for me, if that makes sense? I read a book called “Disenchanted & Co.” that I DNFed. While the character was unlikeable, she *was* sort of interesting (she was internally misogynistic if not openly, she thought everyone around her was stupid, didn’t believe in magic in a magic-based society and focused on scientific explanations, goes undercover as a man when simply being a woman bars her from entering certain areas). Unfortunately, every side character I met was somehow *more* interesting than she was. Like, she was flat, and her friends were nuanced and had interesting facets. I could somehow tell that she wasn’t going to change at all and I was more interested in her friends and their storylines. Even the setting was more interesting than she was, and I was frustrated with the way the character described everything going on around her because there was an edge of disdain to it.
Oh and also the author made anti-indigenous racism somehow worse and the main character just accepted this as normal. I literally snapped the book shut and tossed it in the trash when I realized this was going to be a core facet of the book’s society. Would it have changed if I kept reading? Well I’m never going to find out.
Case in point–Lord Foul’s Bane by Stephen R Donaldson.
Noped right out after a violent rape of the MC’s rescuer. 🤮
No. ‘Eileen’ was a wholly unlikable character and I still enjoyed the book, as twisted as it was.
It depends. There is a difference between a character that’s suppose to be unlikable and a character that isn’t suppose to be but for whatever reasons I find them intolerable. Characters that are meant to be unlikable I usually end up liking, if the latter then I usually DNF
Sometimes that’s the point. See Wuthering Heights, Gone With the Wind, Noone is Talking About This etc