□Zhou Zihan (Chongqing University)
Recently, the character Wei Yanwan in "Ruyi's Royal Love in the Palace" has aroused heated discussions. Although she is only a "vicious female supporting character" in the play, netizens have seen her strong will to fight against fate. The audience no longer pays for the perfect but thin protagonist's character, but instead focuses on the supporting characters who have no "protagonist halo" but create their own glory.
’s so-called “protagonist halo” refers to the fact that in a story, the protagonist is often so capable and morally flawless that they are almost invincible and almost all attention is focused on them. This aura often dwarfs other characters and becomes a dull background foil. But what the audience is eager to see on the screen is no longer those idealized heroes. Their eyes have also fallen on supporting characters outside of the "halo".
No character should be marginalized or belittled in order to highlight the protagonist. The struggle, misfortune, and anger of the "little people" should not be simplified and blurred in order to highlight the protagonist, and become only a carrier of emotions. The three-dimensionality of the plot does not rely on the rigid "antagonism between good and evil", but on the emotions, anger, sorrow, and joy of each individual with reasons and logic. Weakness and darkness are not the original sin, nor are they the reasons for being criticized, but the necessary prerequisites to fill the character with flesh and blood. No one is a saint. What is truly attractive is the endless tenacious will to fight against unfair fate and complex human nature.
Wei Yanwan was recognized precisely because the audience abandoned the "protagonist perspective" and reflected on and examined the value of the traditional protagonist's halo. The characters may not be perfect, but they are more human. This authenticity resonates with audiences, allowing them to become more deeply immersed in the characters' worlds. The audience hopes to see characters with different backgrounds and experiences on the screen receiving equal treatment and sufficient space for development. This also reflects people's increasingly strong demand for diversity and inclusion.
The audience's re-discussion of the character deconstructed the author's "absolute control" of the character to a certain extent and gave the character a "second life." Subjectively, the author may deliberately obscure the supporting characters in order to highlight the protagonist; objectively, the characters may be more multi-dimensional than the author imagined. As audiences begin to reinterpret and re-create a character, they may discover hidden traits, underlying motivations, or sides of the character that have not been fully explored.
These new discoveries may breathe new life into the characters, giving them a second life in the minds of the audience. This kind of re-creation not only enriches the connotation and meaning of the characters, but also enhances the interaction and participation between the work and the audience, making the characters have richer and more diverse vitality in literary or film and television works. At the same time, it can also promote the further development of literary and artistic works, follow the guidance of the times, and reflect the value orientation of society.
It is not only the "absolutely perfect" protagonists who are praised and put on the screen. The "imperfect supporting characters" outside the halo and you and me in daily life are all living individuals with shining points worthy of being seen. Everyone is the protagonist of their own life. The charm of the protagonist does not lie in the luck bestowed by the "halo", but in the heroism of being brave in the face of injustice.
