Character and Archetype

In this essay I will be looking at antagonists, or more commonly, Villains. An antagonist is, by the oxford dictionary definition, a person who actively opposes or is hostile to someone or something[1]. This someone or something is usually the protagonist, so it is the Antagonist who usually provides the conflict for this character.[2] In some cases the protagonist and antagonist are more closely linked, and may or may not be a physical being. Often a cause of conflict within a narrative will be a manifestation of a dark or evil trait from inside the hero, like a personal demon that the hero has to face on their own.
One such example of this comes from the graphic novel series adapted into a 2010 film Scott Pilgrim vs the World. 

Figure 1 [3] NegaScott character sketch for the movie, 2008. For original click here: http://scottpilgrim.wikia.com/wiki/NegaScott

Figure 2 [3] Michael Cera as NegaScott for the film adaptation, 2010. For original click here: http://scottpilgrim.wikia.com/wiki/NegaScott 

Despite having to physically defeat Ramona’s seven evil ex’s, Scott’s main battle is himself, in the form of Nega Scott. NegaScott is Scott Pilgrim's alter ego and dark side, and represents his forgotten past mistakes. NegaScott is the manifestation of all of Scott's callousness, spite, faults, and flaws, and rather than accepting them and himself, he runs from them, thus creating this physical persona [3]. After his final evil ex battle with Gideon Graves, Scott is faced with his own personal battle with an enemy that represents his inner demons. This is an enemy meant only for Scott, after all this antagonist is technically just a dark side of the main protagonist.
A similar enemy to this one comes from the 1995 film Jumanji. 

Figure 3 [4] Sam Parrish, Alan's father, as played by Jonathan Hyde in Jumanji, 1995. For original click here: http://lotacharm.angelfire.com/moviemain/jkl/galimgs/gjuman05.jpg

Figure 4 [5] Van Pelt, Alan's jungle hunter, also played by Jonathan Hyde in Jumanji, 1995. For original click here: http://jonathanhyde.net/index.php/nggallery/page/2?page_id=34 

The board game is ultimately responsible for every bad thing that happens in the story [6]. However, although the physical obstacles come from the board game it could be said that our protagonist’s main enemy is his rocky relationship with his father. Their argument before young Alan is sucked into the game has enough of an effect on their relationship that the psychotic hunter character of Van Pelt within Jumanji is also played by the same actor as Sam Parrish, Alan’s father. This link between the two characters reveals a lot about Alan’s opinion on his father and I believe that this similarity in their appearance stands for the fear and malcontent that was brought up in their spat.

Figure 5 [7] Scrap yard fight scene from Superman III, 1983. For original click here: http://s3.amazonaws.com/auteurs_production/images/film/superman-iii/w1280/superman-iii.jpg

A similar example of this ‘personal enemy’ idea comes from a slightly older film, Superman III. In this film an adversary of Superman creates a synthetic version of kryptonite, his famous weakness. In this case, the mineral turns Superman evil and eventually splits him into two people. Bizarro and Clark Kent, the embodiment of Superman's remaining good qualities, engage in an epic battle at a deserted junkyard, where Clark emerges victorious and Bizarro fades from sight [8]. This is an enemy that only Superman can defeat, himself.
So in more than one case it would appear as though a physical antagonist is not the only threat. As in real life it would appear as though sometimes our worst enemies are the ones that only we can face. Personal demons and internal struggles are as real as the ‘wicked witch’ or the ‘evil overlord’. 

References

[1] OxfordDictionaries.com
[2] TVTropes.org
[3] ScottPilgrim.wikia.com, 2015.
[4] lotacharm.angelfire.com
[5] JonathanHyde.net
[6] TVTropes.org
[7] S3.Amazonawas.com
[8] Superman.wikia.com

Bibliography

Jonathan Hyde. 2015. Image of Van Pelt. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://jonathanhyde.net/index.php/nggallery/page/2?page_id=34

Lotacharm.angelfire.com. Image of Sam Parrish. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: 

http://lotacharm.angelfire.com/moviemain/jkl/galimgs/gjuman05.jpg

OxfordDictionaries.com. 2015. Definition of antagonist. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://www.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/antagonist

ScottPilgrim.wikia.com. 2014. Both images of NegaScott and character information. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://scottpilgrim.wikia.com/wiki/NegaScott

Superman Wiki. 2013. Superman III. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from:

http://superman.wikia.com/wiki/Superman_III

S3.amazonaws.com. 2015. Image of scrap yard fight scene from Superman III. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://s3.amazonaws.com/auteurs_production/images/film/superman-iii/w1280/superman-iii.jpg

TVTropes.org. 2014. Definition of Antagonist. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/TheAntagonist 

TVTropes.org. 2015. Film: Jumanji, used for information and dates. [Online] [Accessed from 2015] Available from: http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Film/Jumanji