At the Shadow of Heroism in V for Vendetta: Complicity and the Concept of Anti-Heroism

Abstract

Since the late 20th century, pop culture introduced a significant rise in so-called antiheroic figures. However, their theoretical conceptualization has not been realiced with the same dynamism. Given this situation, this study aims to contribute to the construction of a characterization of antiheroism through a descriptive literary and philosophical analysis based on graphic narrative. This contributes to the conceptualization of antiheroism. To this end, a concise literary overview and philosophical reflection are proposed to outline heroism and, from this, propose a characterization of antiheroism based on various examples of graphic narrative. This construction will be applied to the graphic novel V for Vendetta to consider its viability. Finally, it is reflected on the questions surrounding antiheroism in relation to the complicity of its audience and the narrative and extra-narrative dynamics of such figures in relation to the formation of political unity.