How do you make a character likeable despite being a d*ck?

Thank you It's late where I am, so if you don't see me there, I shall join you in the morning

 

No we won't I am not sorry ;-)

 

Sorry @MythMachine I didn't realize you hadn't been a member long enough.

 

I just posted one?
But back to the topic, as Partridge mentioned earlier, the only way to make a rapist likeable is to not reveal that he is a rapist right away. Perhaps drop hints that he had done some pretty bad things. This might even be better, as the final reveal of his deplorable actions might have the readers questioning themselves in the end. "He's a rapist!? How could I like someone like that!"

 

... That was a joke about debating whether or not to start a debate thread

 

Well if it needs to be deleted, since I haven't been here long enough, here is the link.
https://www.writingforums.org/threads/debate-the-predominance-of-good-vs-evil-or-bad.153744/
Sorry again >_<

 

But I just posted in in.

I don't think you have to hide that from the reader to make him likeable. Like what if he was raised in a right messed up society where things like that were, if not normal, then expected behaviour. If he doesn't really know he's doing something wrong and doesn't understand why, then having him go through the process of learning that it's wrong, why it's wrong, and then trying to redeem himself, he could grow as a likeable character. Kind of like Terminator II

 

Wait, is there an actual rule about this?

 

Me too. Maybe they'll let it stay as long as we don't treat it like a debate and instead as a discussion (which so far I think is all we want anyway).

90 days of membership for the debate room. That's why it's in the lounge.

 

I did not remember that rule

 

Me either until you said that and I went on a search.