Watchmen

:For the Canadian band, see The Watchmen.

Character Overviews

Watchmen presents some complex philosophical and ethical issues related to morality and the struggle between good and evil, as well as examining the nature of what it means to be human. The Characters of Watchmen demonstrate different aspects of these questions:

Related Topics:
Morality - Good - Evil

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The Comedian

A cynic, who exhibits nihilistic qualities and believes that most individuals are powerless to affect geo-political realities. Often motivated by his own desires, he is inclined to be autonomous, only aligning himself with others if their motives are similar to his own. A possible sadist, The Comedian often engages in violent activites which he seems to enjoy; rape, and becoming a mercenary during the Vietnam War are some examples of this.

Related Topics:
Cynic - Nihilist - Autonomous - Sadist - Mercenary

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Initially, his "morally correct" actions when fighting crime are contrasted against his abrupt and cruel personality, which portrayed him as a person lacking empathy for others. However, his actions upon his discovery of Ozymandias' "Alien Island" suggest that The Comedian is not merely a selfish egotist, but someone who is concerned for the well being of the many. His conduct could denote a belief in Utilitarianism, suggesting that, in the case of the Vietnam War, his violent conduct was justifable as he was merely acting for his government, and America as a whole.

Related Topics:
Empathy - Utilitarianism

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Rorschach

An extreme example of moral absolutism, Rorschach is uncompromising in his answer to evil: it must be punished, even in the face of Armageddon. His opposition to crime is matched by total lack of empathy for criminals, whom he treats as non-human, and his disdain for conventional law, government, and the police causes him to become a vigilante; he puts right, as he sees it, first. He shows little reverence for "conventional morality", seemingly willing to take drastic measures to achieve his goals, such as the torture or even the execution of criminals. His "law and order" attitude, coupled with Rorschach's readership of The New Frontiersman, make clear he values strongly-held and -expressed views of society; he clearly represents Everyman, with little interest in, or understanding of, economics or foreign policy, only crime and morality. Rorschach is determined not to spend his life as a bystander. Thus, like Batman, crime has driven him to become a crusader.

Related Topics:
Moral absolutism - Empathy - Law - Vigilante - Morality

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Ozymandias

An intellectual elitist, who believes in Utilitarianism, and is willing to murder millions of innocents in the effort to do something that he believes will improve the lives of billions more. While he may be the most outwardly "good" member of the Watchmen as a philanthropist and inventor, like Rorschach he believes himself to be exempt from the limitations of conventional behavioral norms and puts himself beyond that of normal human experience. His behaviour, and self-belief, suggest that he may be a megalomaniac, whilst his idolisation of Alexander the Great leave him with something of a "chip on his shoulder". Not even his huge, multi-million dollar business ventures can appease his desires for greatness. This viewpoint enables him to have an apparently callous disregard for the lives of "ordinary" people (though he later confides to Doctor Manhattan about his responsibility to shoulder the terrible guilt). If Doctor Manhattan is seen as God, then Ozymandias can easily be seen as the Overman.

Related Topics:
Elitist - Utilitarianism - Megalomania - Alexander the Great - Overman

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Doctor Manhattan

After an accident as a scientist, he was tranformed into something non-human, and, throughout the tenure of Watchmen, becomes increasingly detached from humanity as a whole. As the story progresses, he disavows any interest in human affairs, and rejects the validity of any notion of morality. His ability to see the world, in a sense, outside of time, leads him to embrace determinism. Doctor Manhattan is identified as something of a God-figure as Watchmen progresses; after dying and resurrecting himself, he gains near omniscient knowledge and almost omnipotent powers, and in his final scene walks on water and leaves to create human life somewhere else. For all his godlike power, he is as flawed and human as the rest, having difficulties with relationships. He personifies intellect over emotion. Because of his aloofness and somewhat nihilist philosophy, he is hated by several character throughout the book.

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The Silk Spectre II

A reluctant superhero, she was pushed toward the vocation by her mother, Silk Spectre I, a successful crime fighter prior to her birth. Something of a hedonist, she challenges her role as the Silk Spectre, and chooses to engage in a relationship with Dr. Manhattan. The Silk Spectre's indulgent, carefree attitude is exactly the opposite of Doctor Manhattan's pensive wonderings about the future of the human race, and causes Doctor Manhattan to leave Earth after the dissolution of the relationship. Her apparent altruism belies her more hedonistic tendencies.

Related Topics:
Hedonist - Altruism

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Nite Owl II

Something of a recluse, a strong interest in ornithology manifests intself in some of his inventions, which relate to owls in someway. Detached from his parents, he struggles to find purpose with his life, thus glamorizing the notion of being a costumed crimefighter. However, he does not have a resolute purpose, such as that of Rorschach, and is quite contingent, often relying on others to tell him what to do rather than following his own desires.

Related Topics:
Recluse - Ornithology

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