opponent, adversary
the protagonist's adversary or opponent. Anyone who is competing with the protagonist for the same goal (Truby, 2007, p. 52), or who opposes the protagonist necessarily becomes the opponent or antagonist (Egri, 1960, p. 113). The antagonist of a story is the opposing force, the "difficulty" that actively resists the protagonist's efforts to achieve the goal. These two opposing forces form the conflict of the story. (Howard & Mabley, 1993, p. 28) By creating conflict for the protagonist, the antagonist creates an environment in which transformational change is necessary and relevant [the protagonist must develop in order to achieve the goal] (Marks, 2009). If the antagonist is evil, or capable of cruel and criminal actions, he or she is called the villain (Abrams & Harpham, 2012, p. 294). In those works in which the protagonist is represented as evil [i.e. an antihero], the antagonist will often be a virtuous or sympathetic character, as Macduff is in "Macbeth". (Baldick, 2001, p. 12) Also see protagonist, villain.
