Brief/Proposal Update

Why do we sympathise with bad characters?

Reflecting back on where my brief based on my favourite books is headed (so far American Psycho and Frankenstein) makes me consider how the books relate to one another. One thing I've noticed is how we generally feel sympathetic towards these bad characters. For example Frankenstein. 

The monster in Frankenstein has been created and instantly neglected by the human race because of his appearance. Although, the monster starts and soft and upset at the fact he cannot make acquaintance with people. This eventually turns into rage when his creator aborts the making of the monster's female companion. The monster kills three people close to his creator so that he can feel the same way as him. But is this right? We feel bad for the monster because of his initial innocence and childlike nature. Similarly with serial killers. They receive sympathy because they were abused as a child etc. 

Similarly, with American Psycho. Although it doesn't give a background story to his life, it is clear he has anxieties about not being noticed or of importance to anyone. His life seems like a constant battle with who can be the seen as the most successful man (which results in him killing Paul Owen who everyone idolises). As well as his girlfriend cheating on him with a more charismatic man. Patrick Bateman seems entirely robotic throughout the book but occasionally shows glimpses of vulnerability. Less sympathetic than Frankenstein, but still sympathetic nevertheless. 

This is also the case with other books that I have written on my 'fave books' list, such as The Great Gatsby, Catcher in the Rye and The Clockwork Orange. I plan on covering at least 3 of these over the remainder of the module.

https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/40206392.pdf?refreqid=excelsior%3A96495dec097e2dc65198139ccd45d9a9