If We Were Villains

Through Oliver’s eyes, James is “the handsomest of us (Meredith once compared him to a Disney Prince” (25). Considered the best-looking man among the fourth-year Dellecher acting students, James is classic leading-man material. He is also thought to be the best actor of his group, intense, methodical, and capable of “childlike depth of feeling, onstage and off” (25). Oliver and James are roommates and clearly have deeper feelings for each other, though these feelings remain unacknowledged much of the novel. James is often frustrated by Oliver’s deliberate naivete and annoyed by Richard’s habit of hogging the limelight. He also feels trapped by the teacher’s tendency to typecast him as the romantic hero. It is partly these desires that drive him to agitate Richard.

When Richard hurts James, James does not make it public. The group has established James as the tyrannical king, and James wishes to destabilize this power structure. Though Oliver thinks of James as perfect, James, like anyone else in the novel, is a flawed character. His obsessive tendency to immerse himself in roles leads him to unexpectedly dark places. He is repeatedly violent towards the others, and ultimately lets Oliver take the fall for him. However, he’s also initially desperate to save Richard, and is consumed by guilt after Richard’s death. As neither hero nor villain, he symbolizes the novel’s theme of the ambiguous nature of morality.

Staggeringly beautiful, Meredith is a successful TV actor in the present. At Dellecher, she is the most attractive woman among the fourth-years, and for that reason, is typecast into the role of the temptress or the femme fatale. Oliver, too, is infatuated with her. He describes her according to these stereotypes, calling her “uniquely designed for seduction, a walking daydream of supple curves and skin like satin […] there was something merciless about her sex appeal” (24). Meredith herself may use her beauty as a tool but feels trapped by the weight others assign it. In Gwendolyn’s class, she admits her biggest insecurity is that people don’t take her seriously because of her sex appeal. Like the others, it is not clear if Meredith’s promiscuous, flirtatious behavior is her genuine self or an act . As she tells Oliver, “Treat a girl like a whore and she’ll learn to act like one” (268). She raises important points about the problematic treatment of female sexuality and beauty.

At the beginning of the novel, Meredith and Richard are a couple, but they begin to come apart because of Richard’s violent rage. Meredith often upbraids Richard for his bad treatment of his friends and takes a stand against him, prompting Oliver to think she is brave, “crazy”, or both. As the plot progresses, Oliver begins to see more depth in Meredith’s character, acknowledging her bravery, dynamism, and vulnerability. She is often a source of comfort and love for Oliver, though he doesn’t often treat her with equal consideration. Meredith is also more insightful than Oliver thinks. She can see that Oliver is in love with James and calls him out for leaving her hanging. She also realizes that James caused Richard’s death.

The villain of the novel, if there must be one, is Richard. Just like Meredith, he is trapped in his physicality. Standing six-foot-three, he is “pure power [...] carved from concrete, with sharp black eyes and a thrilling bass voice that flattened every other sound in a room” (23). Richard’s physical appeal, as well as his gift for playing impressive or intimidating characters, make him the star of the group, in direct conflict for the position with James. While Meredith and James dislike being typecast, Richard has ceased to see the distinction between real life and his roles. The praise and fame set him up for failure: he believes he will always occupy center stage, and shatters when that illusion breaks.

Richard’s ambition and his inability to separate real life from drama trigger his downfall. Along with James, Richard speaks the most in Shakespearean quotes among all the friends. When Meredith asks him where he’s going, he responds, “Weary with toil, I haste me to my bed” (Shakespeare, Sonnet 27). Richard is accustomed to Meredith and Wren’s adoration. When Oliver and James begin to distract them, and James receives “his” roles, Richard grows unhinged. He hits James, Meredith, Oliver, and Wren, nearly drowns James, and emotionally and verbally abuses most of his classmates. Richard is as much a Shakespearean device as he is a person, casting his long shadow on the proceedings after his death. Much like the ghosts of the murdered in Shakespeare’s tragedies, he haunts his classmates, palpable even in his absence. He becomes a manifestation of the guilt his friends feel.

Wren is the antithesis of Richard. Typecast as the "ingenue" (a young, naive girl), Wren's gentle, delicate nature contrasts with Richard's loud, attention-grabbing presence. Despite this, Wren acts as the unintentional catalyst for several major events throughout the novel. As James grows close to Wren, Richard, unused to being out of favor, grows more violent. Likewise, it is because of Wren that James goes after the drunken, irate Richard on Halloween night, a well-intentioned request that leads to Richard's death. Wren's relationship with James also impacts Oliver, who constantly, jealously observes them both even while dating Meredith.

After Richard's death, Wren, like James, shows signs of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Despite his violence, Wren cared deeply for her cousin, and her complicity in his death takes a physical toll on her. Ultimately, Wren never truly recovers. In the present, Oliver doesn't expect to speak with her ever again.