We as humans have a tendency to model ourselves after others. The ways we think, speak, the feelings we feel and how we express them. All of these things are in some way brought from our experiences with the world, but more importantly, with others. These others can be those we meet, those we read, those we see in television or film. Where the issue with our experiences with others comes in though, is idolization.
An idol has many forms, religious, or more importantly for this essay though is that of the individual who is greatly admired, revered, or adored. Idolization is not in term a negative word, it does not carry a negative connotation. Idolization becomes negative when we start to hold those with evil characteristics as ones to admire. When I first think of this, I think of characters like Patrick Bateman, Tyler Durnen, or Thomas Shelby. These characters as of recently have been deemed “sigma,” a term meaning one who is a lone wolf, who achieves for themselves. So called “sigmas” are also rebellious towards societal norms and expectations. That is why young men today are idolizing them, they a change from their “normal,” and potentially boring lives.
Evil Characters Idolized
Bateman and Durden are meant to be satire, completely. Bateman is a satire of toxic masculinity. and consumerism he has also become the idol of young men wanting to better themselves. An idea of one wanting to better themselves is not wrong. We strive as human beings to be better, that’s our nature.
The issue with Bateman, the main character of the Book and Film American Psycho is the fact that he is quite literally a satire. He is not meant to be a model. He is a murderous adulterer who cares more about what each person is wearing, using, thinking, rather than caring about their emotions, feelings, or statements. Rahim Hamid describes Batemen in the best way in his article ” American Psycho and the Death of Satire” He says “He (Bateman) holds nothing but contempt for minorities of any sort, anybody who does not occupy his social class and conform to the Kafkaesque standards of presentability they engage in. Any deviance in race, sexuality or class is cause for bitter hatred in the form of slurs, cruel treatment or murder.” This is not the mindset we want to impress on young men and the fact that its the type of mindset that they fall victim to is not a reflection of the art, or the artist, but instead that of the viewer.
Durden again is a satire of masculinity but also a satire of violence. He comes from the book series and Film Fight Club Durden starts off as our main character’s best friend in Fight Club. As the plot of both the book and Film develop we learn how violent Tyler is. Encouraging the Narrator to “hit me as hard as you can,” after the Narrator refuses to, Tyler pushes him to do it, retaliating after being hit. This is where a group of violence was born. This is where Fight Club begins. Durden Later develops Fight Club into Project Mayhem. Another violent group dedicated to bringing down a capitalist and consumerist world and causing general mayhem. The Narrator by this point realizes he must put a stop to Fight Club/Project Mayhem after a friend of his is killed while working for Durden. Tyler develops into the main antagonist of the film and is eventually killed by the Narrator.
We find these two (Durden and Bateman) in specific put on a pedestal by young men today and it is affecting not only their mental health but their interactions with others.
Thomas Shelby is the lead character in Peaky Blinders, a television series. He is not satire but instead, Shelby is evil characterized. We learn very earlier on in the Series that Shelby is a veteran of the Great War. Faced with PTSD, Irish Heritage, and a changing time in Britian, Shelby turns to a life of crime in his gang “The Peaky Blinders.” He does a number of things that are not only morally questionable but truly evil. He cheats on a partner with an ex and then discards the ex without getting rid of the partner. He sacrifices the innocent for his own gain, and he gets his family arrested so that he can escape.
Yet these are the men that people idolize? Because they are successful? Because they are masculine? Because they are strong? We must remember that these men are also evil.
Young men are naive, its part of our nature. We see something that interests us and potentially seems masculine and we wish to model ourselves after it (in most cases). With characters as violent as these however, fascination with their evil and idolization of them is a fine line that must not be crossed.
Finding Good Idols
We may insert ourselves into fictional characters, its natural to try to relate to something. When that relation is based on evil rather than good though, that is where we fall victim to misunderstanding.
To relate oneself to an antagonist in a story is not per se a bad thing, antagonists are not always evil they simply drive a story and create conflict. But when an antagonist is evil and we wish to be like them, we too become evil. The lines between antagonist and pure evil blur and we are distracted by the good while falling to the bad.
If we are unhappy with ourselves and want change, Idols are the easiest way to do so. We find someone who shares similar struggles as us and subsequently overcame them. I am not saying that a good idol is someone who is perfect, quite the opposite. Imperfections add to the humanity of an individual. What I would like to remark is that when a person is too imperfect or too perfect stressing ourselves to be like them is detrimental to our health, mental and physical. Find an idol who has achieved great things, one who is confident in themselves, their abilities, or their works. But do not become them, become inspired by them.
“Be yourself; everyone else is taken” – Attributed to Oscar Wilde
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