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The central character in a narrative — the figure whose journey, choices, and fate the story primarily follows. The term comes from Greek: protos (first) + agonistes (contestant or actor). The protagonist need not be heroic or even sympathetic; Humbert Humbert in Lolita and Alex in A Clockwork Orange are protagonists who are morally reprehensible. What defines the protagonist is narrative centrality, not moral virtue.
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