@wolfe63 saidThe trope you're referring to is usually known as the 'Everyman'.
I agree.
In fact the James Bond character does not fit my OP's intended definition of an "anti-hero".
Perhaps I should have titled the thread: "Favorite Nice Guys and Loveable Losers". That would have been better. 🙂
Some additional Anti-Hero Icons that I had in mind were:
- Jerry Lewis (The Nutty Professor; Cinderfella; The Bellboy)
- Jack Lemmon (The Apartment; ...[text shortened]... to fit the bill precisely. Like, Dirk Gently and Ignatius J. Reilly. I'd never heard of them before.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Everyman
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@badradger saidAlex is a complex metaphor for feral youth, thug, and victim, all rolled into one. Alex is definitely anti-, especially anti-social. Not sure he’s a hero in any sense though. I read the book ages ago but don’t remember how it ends. Does he ever find peace, or is he ultimately a broken figure, like Winston Smith (1984)?
the ultimate anti-hero Alex (clockwork Orange)
@moonbus saidin the final chapter of the book Alex turns away from violence and has a wife and child, Kubrick left the last chapter out saying it was a cop out and very very british.
Alex is a complex metaphor for feral youth, thug, and victim, all rolled into one. Alex is definitely anti-, especially anti-social. Not sure he’s a hero in any sense though. I read the book ages ago but don’t remember how it ends. Does he ever find peace, or is he ultimately a broken figure, like Winston Smith (1984)?
@moonbus saidMost anti-heroes are broken to some degree. It comes with the territory, I think.
Alex is a complex metaphor for feral youth, thug, and victim, all rolled into one. Alex is definitely anti-, especially anti-social. Not sure he’s a hero in any sense though. I read the book ages ago but don’t remember how it ends. Does he ever find peace, or is he ultimately a broken figure, like Winston Smith (1984)?
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-Removed-Yeah, I got that bit of "self-reflection", ho-ho... Interesting concept, and the archetypal story of good and evil residing in one body was, of course, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, by Stevenson, but he didn't write that until 1886. One wonders if perhaps he was inspired by the story (particularly that scene) of Frankenstein.