Teens as Antagonists in YA

Spy_on_the_Inside

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In most fantasy/sci-fi YA, we usually see adults as the antagonist to the teen hero. People say this formula works because it plays off the classic struggle as kids vs adults, old vs young. And we see this in some of our favorite books like Harry Potter or The Hunger Games.

But I wonder about also is how a YA story could play out if the big epic antagonists were also teens. Some of my favorite biographies to read about are ones that take place during the Cultural Revolution. During that period of history came the advent of the Red Guards, junior high and high school kids who were given marital power by the government and turned loose on the public.

What I am wanting other people's opinion is would you be interested in a story that had teens vs teens instead of teens vs adults, and what would be the most effective way to play out this dynamic?
 

JustSarah

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Well lets put it this way, who is the main POV? They could be a villain protagonist, but depends largely on how you've constructed the point of view.

Like it seems like a first person POV of an adult, observing teens as villains seems more like adult fiction to me.

Kind of like how Death Note is definitely YA.
 

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Teens vs. teens is definitely okay, IMO.
 

Roly

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Yeah this does happen quite a bit in YA. It's helpful to read lots in the market to see the different types of conflicts/antagonists etc.
 

The_Ink_Goddess

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Teens vs. teens would definitely be okay, but the main reason that a lot of epic-scale conflicts stay away from it is that it can seem a little...melodramatic? I don't know. While I'd definitely love to see something Red Guard-ish in YA, stay away from the pitfall of making it seem like this huge government relies solely on its teen population, which is a problem some people had with Katniss's role in THG.
 

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I love teens vs. teens. I think it creates a more sympathetic antagonist--after all, they're just a kid, struggling with the same growing-up issues as the protag. There's a lot of gray area to explore, e.g., do we damn Draco* for being a magical-racist and an agent of Wizard Hitler, or do we damn the parents who forced him into this life? Draco certainly does terrible things, but I was always waiting for him to grow, learn, and change, as teens are wont to do. I was rooting for him, goshdarnit! Whereas with Snape... I mean, Snape is a divisive issue, but he was a teacher who abused his students. I never expected him to realize the error of his ways, and I wasn't all that affected by his sudden martyrdom. The conflict between Harry and Draco was much more nuanced, because kids can get away with a lot more than adults can.

(Voldemort was Wizard Hitler, and therefore zero-percent sympathetic imo. If teens vs. teens can reduce the number of Wizard Hitlers in YA, I'm all for it.)

*I know that Draco isn't the primary antagonist, but everyone's read Harry Potter.
 

Nogetsune

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I once had a WIP about a brother and sister pair that where teenage inter-planar defense contractors(Think Lockheed Martin but for various fantasy worlds and specializing in magitech) who where pit against another teenager who was the head of a rival inter-planar defense contractor. Crazy? Yes....but I like teen vs. teen and Yugioh, which was known for, among other things, an overabundance of abnormally young CEOs and corporate-types was a massive influence on me growing up(even through my teenage years, go figure)....So yeah. It can definitely be done, and I think it's also pretty awesome. There can only be so many President Snows and Madara Uchihas...sometimes we just need our Seto Kaibas and Draco Malfoys.
 

stephen andrew

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I think teen vs. teens is great, but it might limit the scope of the evil of the antagonist. It seems the conversation mostly lends to spec fic, since contempt is a lot easier and more prevalent in teen antagonists... For spec tho, an adult taking over the world is more plausible and more representative of the struggles of real life teens (resisting a system they have no control over; whether it's government or school admin, or boss or whatever)... a kid being all-supremely powerful can make it seem a little silly unless handled really well... I think it takes a lot more skill to craft a good teen antagonist in speculative... think Joffrey from Game of Thrones and there's a great example... his childishness makes him almost more terrifying because he is immature and irrational and makes huge decisions on a whim...

Conversely, the draw to teens defeating the Big Government is also representative of that struggle against adult authority in real life. It's kind of wish-fulfillment I suppose.

On another note, I agree that Draco is a more complex antagonist in HP, however his complexity would be less so without the existence of Voldemort, and Draco's family's fearful loyalty to him... he's sympathetic due to his youth, but also do to his situation, in which he had little control over what made him the way he is...
 

Becca C.

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This thread is just rekindling my Draco love all over the place. He's honestly one of the best characters in HP. I love how, underneath all the classism and arrogance, he really does love his family, and the Malfoys do end up choosing their family over Voldemort. It's very touching. *sniff sniff*
 

KarmaPolice

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Then there's the point that you can sneak more crap under the radar as it's 'just another kid' doing it to them.