According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, a protagonist is “the principal character in a literary work (such as a drama or story).” Essentially, the protagonist is the focal character of the literary work — the hero that readers come to root for as the narrative develops.
While the likability of a protagonist can be influenced by general characteristics such as compassion or loyalty, it is ultimately dependent on each individual’s perception of the character. Typically, individuals resonate more with characters they perceive as similar to themselves, characters that they morally approve of, and characters that they empathetically engage with.
Interpersonal attraction is influenced by similarity, and attraction to characters in literary works is no outlier. As research has found, there is a higher possibility of individuals relating to and forming parasocial relationships with characters that appear similar to them. A 2009 study on the role of perceived similarity and character attributes in wishful identification with television characters found that participants reported higher levels of wishful identification with characters they deemed similar to themselves.
The idea that perceived similarity plays a role in protagonist likability is corroborated by research conducted by Andsager et al. (2006) and McKeever (2015). They found that perceived similarity was correlated to likability, as well as to perceived morality. As such, the likability of a protagonist can be attributed to the perceived similarity between the reader and the character.
The moral character of a protagonist also influences their likability to a reader. Studies have shown that when characters hold or act upon the same norms and values that are upheld by participants, the participants are more likely to identify with the character. Raney (2004) suggests that, because audiences are consistently evaluating a character’s morality, they are more likely to identify with the character if they view their goals as morally justified .
As such, they would also be more likely to view the character as likeable. Moreover, Teasdale et al. found that the level of moral approval of a character’s behaviour was highly correlated with the participants’ ability (or willingness) to identify with the character and their dilemma. Participants were more engaged with characters whose actions they approved of, and as such, they viewed them as more likeable characters . Therefore, there is evidence for the impact of a protagonist’s perceived morality on their likability.
Furthermore, empathetic engagement with a character also influences the character’s likability, as elaborated by Coplan (2004). “The emotional component of empathy involves the empathizer’s imaginative adoption of the target’s emotional state. Thus, when I empathize with another, I imaginatively experience his or her emotional states,” she writes.
Empathising with a character can therefore lead to deeper identification with a character; the reader mirrors the character’s emotional and cognitive states, thus gaining a deeper understanding of the character’s actions and motives. Consequently, the character becomes more likeable to the reader. Therefore, empathetic engagement with a protagonist also affects their likability.
To conclude, the likability of a protagonist is closely linked to the reader’s identification with the character, and as such, is a matter of the reader’s perception of the character. Perceived similarity to the character, perceived morality, and empathetic engagement with the narrative are key attributes of an individual’s perception of a particular character, and can therefore be considered integral to making a protagonist likeable.
References:
Andsager, Julie L., Bemker, Victoria., Choi, Hong-Lim., Torwel, Vitalis., “Perceived Similarity of Exemplar Traits and Behavior: Effects on Message Evaluation”, Communication Research 33:1 (2006): 3-18. https://doi.org/10.1177/0093650205283099
Cohen, Jonathan. “Audience Identification with Media Characters”, Psychology of Entertainment. Eds. Jennings Bryant, and Peter Vorderer. London: Routledge, 2006: 183-197
Coplan, Amy., “Empathic Engagement with Narrative Fictions”, The Journal of Aesthetics and Art Criticism 62:2 (2004): 141-152. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1540-594X.2004.00147.x
Hoffner, Cynthia. and Buchanan, Martha., “Young Adults’ Wishful Identification With Television Characters: The Role of Perceived Similarity and Character Attributes”, Media Psychology 7:4 (2005): 325-351. https://doi.org/10.1207/S1532785XMEP0704_2
van Krieken, Kobie., Hoeken, Hans. and Sanders, José., “Evoking and Measuring Identification with Narrative Characters — A Linguistic Cues Framework”, Frontiers in Psychology 8:1190 (2017): 1-16. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2017.01190
Launay, Jacques. and Dunbar, Robin I. M., “Playing with Strangers: Which Shared Traits Attract Us Most to New People?”, PLOS One 10:6: e0129688 (2015): 1-17. https://doi.org/10.1371%2Fjournal.pone.0129688
Maslej, Marta., Oatley, Keith., “Creating Fictional Characters: The Role of Experience, Personality, and Social Processes”, Psychology of Aesthetics Creativity and the Arts 11:4 (2017): 487-499. https://psycnet.apa.org/doi/10.1037/aca0000094
McKeever, Robert., “Vicarious Experience: Experimentally Testing the Effects of Empathy for Media Characters with Severe Depression and the Intervening Role of Perceived Similarity”, Health Communication 30:11 (2015): 1122-1134. https://doi.org/10.1080/10410236.2014.921969
Raney, Arthur A., “Expanding Disposition Theory: Reconsidering Character Liking, Moral Evaluations, and Enjoyment”, Communication Theory 14:4 (2004): 348-369. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-2885.2004.tb00319.x
Teasdale, Ben., Maguire, Laurie., Budelmann, Felix. and Dunbar, Robin I. M., “How Audiences Engage With Drama: Identification, Attribution and Moral Approval”, Frontiers in Psychology 12:762011 (2021): 1-11. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2021.762011