If you haven't played Bioshock and intend to, turn away now.
I've heard many people say that Andrew Ryan is the villain in Bioshock but I have a different theory on his character if anything he is a tragic hero. Ryan was a hard-working individual who rose above hardships to become greatly successful by his own merit, not through cheating or manipulation, but by pure hard work. When he found that his philosophy was seen as greedy and self-righteous he decided to build Rapture where he could coexist peacefully with other like-minded people. He truly realized the laissez-faire society, everyone was free, worked hard and lived peacefully for the most part.
Then enter Frank Fontaine who, unlike Ryan, is willing to use fear and violence to get what he wants and does so leading to chaos in Rapture. Ryan is hesitant to restrict Fontaine because, even though he is obviously dangerous, that would be a violation of his freedom and of Ryan's values. He does not realize how much of a threat Fontaine is to Rapture until it is too late. Ryan knows that sticking to his usual values will not save Rapture so he hesitantly abuses his power to try and save his city but he fails and ends up as a totalitarian dictator in the process. The whole game Ryan is trying to save his utopia but Rapture can never return to the way it was after the irreprable damage Fontaine has dealt it which Ryan doesn't seem to realize. Ryan's philosophy is a good one but Bioshock shows what happens when people don't abide by it and instead choose to resort to force to get ahead in life.
Now I'm sure people will say that Jack is the protagonist of Bioshock but hear me out. Jack works for Fontaine most of the game (Granted it is without his consent) and when he realizes that he was being manipulated he only kills Fontaine to save his own neck, if Fontaine didn't have the "Kill switch" programmed into him Jack could have just left Rapture after Tenanbaum saved him. He's more of an opportunist than a hero in my opinion.
Thoughts?
I've heard many people say that Andrew Ryan is the villain in Bioshock but I have a different theory on his character if anything he is a tragic hero. Ryan was a hard-working individual who rose above hardships to become greatly successful by his own merit, not through cheating or manipulation, but by pure hard work. When he found that his philosophy was seen as greedy and self-righteous he decided to build Rapture where he could coexist peacefully with other like-minded people. He truly realized the laissez-faire society, everyone was free, worked hard and lived peacefully for the most part.
Then enter Frank Fontaine who, unlike Ryan, is willing to use fear and violence to get what he wants and does so leading to chaos in Rapture. Ryan is hesitant to restrict Fontaine because, even though he is obviously dangerous, that would be a violation of his freedom and of Ryan's values. He does not realize how much of a threat Fontaine is to Rapture until it is too late. Ryan knows that sticking to his usual values will not save Rapture so he hesitantly abuses his power to try and save his city but he fails and ends up as a totalitarian dictator in the process. The whole game Ryan is trying to save his utopia but Rapture can never return to the way it was after the irreprable damage Fontaine has dealt it which Ryan doesn't seem to realize. Ryan's philosophy is a good one but Bioshock shows what happens when people don't abide by it and instead choose to resort to force to get ahead in life.
Now I'm sure people will say that Jack is the protagonist of Bioshock but hear me out. Jack works for Fontaine most of the game (Granted it is without his consent) and when he realizes that he was being manipulated he only kills Fontaine to save his own neck, if Fontaine didn't have the "Kill switch" programmed into him Jack could have just left Rapture after Tenanbaum saved him. He's more of an opportunist than a hero in my opinion.
Thoughts?