1. Link the Writer

    Link the Writer Flipping Out For A Good Story. Contributor

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    ‘Outcast Characters Who Are Awfully Forgiving to Tormentors’

    Discussion in 'Character Development' started by Link the Writer, Oct 8, 2017.

    DISCUSSION TIME!!

    So, um... this will require backstory.

    Basically, I’m playing a game called ’Horizon: Zero Dawn’ where you play as a woman outcast from society from birth for reasons she’ll have to investigate. Throughout the prologue and even in the main storyline, various people treat her horribly, calling her ‘Motherless Outcast’ among other things. There’s even a scene where a bunch of kids throw rocks at her when she was eight years old.

    As you can imagine, this is making my creativity churn with questions: I keep wondering why the game doesn’t let her commit violent acts like burning down villages and laughing as she does so, or when she meets NPCs (Non-Playable Characters) asking for help, she doesn’t act cruel and calloused about it. Basically letting the players decide just how vindictive and evil she wants to be in lashing out toward the people who hurt her.

    I suppose it stems to the problem I have with fiction in general that centers around this sort of theme: You’ve got this outcast, this reject of society and bullied as such but they never lash out violently. They never ‘dabble in the Dark Side’ as it were. At the very least, ACT like “Well, why should I help you? You’ve never helped me — you want my help, I expect payment up front otherwise not my problem.” They seem awfully forgiving to the very people who used to torment them for being what they are. You see this with Harry Potter, Naruto, or even Zelda: Ocarina of Time to name a few.

    Thoughts? What drives these ‘outcast characters’ to not want to give in to their darker urges as I would imagine they’d want to?
     
  2. Lemie

    Lemie Contributor Contributor

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    No self confidence/esteem. If everyone thinks you're worthless, why shouldn't you start to believe them?

    While it might be more fun as a player to lash out, I think covering and losing once self-worth is a more believable reaction. Though I guess that depends on the person.

    While I am in no way an outcast and never gets stones thrown at me - I still am the kind of person who lets people walk over me instead of react. Because if I react there will be consequences and if I bite my tongue I will be the only one to suffer. And having been depressed/suicidal for most of my teen and all my adult life, taking on more suffering feels like the lesser pain. It's not very healthy, but that is beside the point here.

    ...so I think the reason why a character wouldn't lash out is either because they think they're worth it (the crap they're put through) or that they don't think fighting back would be worth it. While it's understandable and might work in books - it makes for hell of a boring game. When I play I'm there to put the murder on them!
     
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  3. Link the Writer

    Link the Writer Flipping Out For A Good Story. Contributor

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    Fortunately the game more than makes up for the lack of 'Aloy murdering everyone' department. :p Still, there are most likely plenty of books out there that shows exactly what happens when a character gives into their urges and wipes out whole villages. I mean, you kind of have to be careful not to teach readers that violence toward assholes is the answer. :p :3
     
  4. Lemie

    Lemie Contributor Contributor

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    Yes, I might be the savor of this city/world, but if I make a back up save-file I can kill you over and over again!
    Though that rarely happens in real life, or in books for that matter ;)
     
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  5. Link the Writer

    Link the Writer Flipping Out For A Good Story. Contributor

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    Yeah, pretty sure Aloy burning down settlements would make her quite the villain. :p
     
  6. Surcruxum

    Surcruxum Member

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    Well I'm not exactly an outcast or a society reject but i have been bullied and made fun of for 7 yrs, and from personal experience i can think of 3 reasons:

    1. If they fought back they can make things worse than it already is, so they just suck it up with their current treatment.

    2. Some lonely people desire attention, and it doesn't matter if it's negative attention, like Naruto. People made fun of me a lot whenever i tried to hang out with them and i put up with it cause otherwise I'll end up alone, and the thought of being alone was worse at the time.

    3. Because some truly believed that all people are good inside (Either it was a point in time or a life belief) , and believed that they can someday change for the better or the possibility that they treated them badly because they had a bad day themselves and they were just taking out their anger to them (Since you talked about outcasts that are discriminated almost everyday i imagine that the latter is not the case)

    After looking at these reasons i think it all depends on whether or not the outcasts are passive and their patience. Patience has its limits, it's just some people are more patient than others. I reached my limit when the belief that i spoke about disappeared, and "unsavory" thoughts and behaviors started to surface.
     
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  7. Link the Writer

    Link the Writer Flipping Out For A Good Story. Contributor

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    ^ And (1) probably goes a long way to explain why people like Naruto don’t just up and turn evil. Not only would they risk shaming those who do care about them (Can you imagine him having to explain to his best friends why he just straight up wrecked that village?) They would also risk having the Law (with the capital ‘L’) chasing after them which would really put a wrench in the whole ‘save the world’ gimmick they’ve gotta do.

    While some characters do go evil, I would imagine a vast majority of them figures that a few seconds of tormenting their bullies isn’t worth the guilt/horror that follows.
     

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