Would you be a Hero or Villain?

[XRIMO]

I know there is a thread about this already, but I don't feel like reviving it, plus I want to phrase the question differently.

Were life a narrative, and you had to choose to be the savior of people or the one wishing to destroy it all, which would you be?

I would be a villain. Why you ask? While villains do seek to bring about mass amounts of chaos and death to the world, I think that without them, the world is left in a stale state, taking all things for granted. Take for instance Lord of the Rings, how would Middle Earth be if Sauron not revived and sought to destroy the world of man. The many races would have continued to segregate themselves and bicker amongst themselves, Aragorn would not have been able to unite Middle Earth without the threat of Mordor. The villain in some ways do more good by giving the hero the cause to act. Also, villains get to have so much fun.





The hero is important, don't get me wrong. Without the hero, the villain has no opposition to their plans. The hero grows to be the pinnacle of light for those being tormented by the villain. However, the hero does not just have the power to stop the villain like that, the hero must grow and find things to protect. The villain's job is to threaten the things the hero holds dear and to spur the hero into action. The villain is more complete in their role, while the hero has little to do once the villain is thwarted.




Here is a quotation I love to describe the relationship between the hero and villain:
Villain to the hero, "Good, is that suppose to be some kind of joke; if people were good, they wouldn't need you now would they?"

Anyway, what are your thoughts? Remember, this isn't about good vs. evil, its about the characters' perspectives.