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I was thinking about this the other day. Throughout literature, film and other media, the antagonist is MUCH more likely to have qualities that are identifiable with the mindset of republican conservatives, whereas the Protagonist has qualities that are much more connected to liberal ideas.
Antagonist: Controlling, greedy, violent, abusive, manipulative, evil, restrictive of freedom, tribalistic and so on and so on.
Protagonist: Freedom supportive, open, generous, kind, honest, fair, inclusionary etc...
Even in most, if not all, children's books and movies, the antagonist is reminiscent of the republican conservative mindset.
I was watching Balto 2 with my 3 year old the other day and the "bad" wolf reminded me so much of a Dick Cheney or a Donald Rumsfeld, that it got me thinking about this.
Think of Harry Potter, Star Wars, Lord of the Rings, all Disney movies. Even in the Western and War movies, the "bad" guy is more associated with the ilk of the republican party than liberals.
So why, if republican conservatives who enjoy these stories, remain so disconnected from the mythologies that rule their lives? How can they support the struggles of Luke Skywalker against the forces of evil, or even the John Wayne character type, yet then go out and act like the antagonists they despise in the movies... I simply do not get it.
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