I have been writing a Christ-like antagonist. Heâs meant to oppose the mc for personal reasons in which theyâre after the same zero-sum goal, but the story around him is that he is respected by the very same leaders who once persecuted him and continue to persecute his people. This is meant to reveal his motivations to the mc (who, btw, is coded Arab/Muslim since thats my own background). Knowing this, do you think a Christlike antagonist can be anti-Semitic? (1/2)
This might seem like a strange question since Christ figures are associated w Christianity, but it feels different when you antagonize him, plus I donât include any Christian symbols like martyrdom or crucifixes, which are usually included in a Christ *figure* trope
Christ-like Antagonist; is this antisemitism?
Thank you for considering this. I think youâre right, most people would automatically think of Christianity, but there is potential for anti-Semitism here.
My first question is how close your antagonist is to actually being Jesus? Because lots of stories have a character who is a metaphor for Jesus in some way, and while that makes the story a bit less interesting to us and can be used as Christian propaganda to our detriment, the character is seldom read as an anti-Semitic portrayal of a Jewish character. Sure, theyâre based on a historical/Biblical figure who was Jewish, but the character themselves is Christian.
Assuming the parallels are more literal than for, say, Aslan from The Chronicles of Narnia or Jack from Room, then yes, you have a Jewish character with all the associated responsibility. Since your character is an antagonist, youâll need to make sure they donât fall into negative stereotypes. Youâll also need to have some good Jewish characters to avoid the implication that Jews are just bad people.
The main stereotypes Iâm worried about here are string-pulling, since he has befriended the leaders, and possibly money-grabbing, depending on what the goal is that he wants to reach before the MC and why he wants it.
The idea of a Jewish character befriending the leaders who continue to persecute his people is a little troubling to me. When I reflect on Trumpâs relationship to Jewish people, it seems to me that he likes to surround himself with a certain type of Jewish person: those who can help him with finance, since thatâs what Trump thinks Jews are for. Meanwhile, he has no qualms about using anti-Semitic tropes to boost his popularity, or empowering white supremacists who want to kill us. Does this sound like your Jewish characterâs relationship with those in power? Why do they suddenly like him, if they used to hate him and still hate his community? Is there a power imbalance, and if so, who holds the cards? Is it fair that your Jewish character is the antagonist, or does the blame really belong with the bigoted leaders? These are questions you should be able to answer confidently without invoking anti-Semitic stereotypes. It sounds like you will be walking a fine line between suggesting that the Jewish character is covertly controlling the leaders, and blaming him for the storyâs conflict when really he is a victim of the leadersâ control.
Itâs harder to talk specifics about the money-grabbing stereotype as we donât know much about the goal he is trying to achieve before the MC. You say he wants it for personal reasons. As long as these reasons arenât to do with being greedy, materialistic or miserly, you should be fine. The more humanising his motivation, the better.
Finally, about the good Jewish characters. Its totally up to you how you do this, but I personally would love to see an Arab Muslim MC, like yours, with some trusted Jewish friends! Iâve always been blessed to have many Muslim friends, but white Christians will sometimes make it sound like Jewish and Muslim people are always enemies, or like you canât care about protecting both groups simultaneously. Fiction definitely needs more Jewish/Muslim friendships based on love, respect and good times!
