protagonister

Protagonister is the plural form of the word protagonist in several Scandinavian languages, including Danish, Norwegian, and Swedish. In English, the conventional plural is protagonists. The term refers to the central character or characters around whom a narrative’s action centers.

In narrative theory, the protagonist is the character whose goals drive the plot and whose fate is closely tied to the story’s outcome. Works that feature more than one central character may be described as having multiple protagonists, dual protagonists, or an ensemble cast. Using multiple protagonists can provide diverse perspectives, shared or conflicting motivations, and varied narrative timelines.

Usage notes: while protagonists and multiple-protagonist structures are common terms in English-language analysis, protagonister is primarily a grammatical plural used in Scandinavian languages. When writing in English, writers typically use protagonists or multiple protagonists rather than protagonister, unless quoting or translating from a source that uses the Scandinavian term. Protagonist-related discussions are distinct from the antagonist, which is the character opposing the protagonist’s aims.