An index for tropes that deal with themes of individualitynote and individualisticnote traits and behaviors.
Tropes:
- Abilene Paradox: A character doesn't want to do something but does it because they erroneously believe that doing so is what the group wants.
- Against the Grain: A character has no intention of following social expectations, wishing to forge their own path.
- A God Am I: A character decides that they are a God or have god-like power and nothing can stop them.
- All of the Other Reindeer: A character is ostracized by the group for being different.
- Ambition Is Evil: A villainous character has ambitions and are willing to do whatever it takes to see them come to fruition.
- Anarchy Is Chaos: The belief that anarchy will lead to chaos can be used for individualistic characters who revel in death and destruction.
- Anti-School Uniforms Plot: Students rebel against having to wear school uniforms, seeing them as a symbol against individual expression.
- Awesome Ego: A character is egotistical but they're so cool and awesome about it that people love them for it instead of finding them infuriating to deal with.
- Be Yourself: One of the most common aesops, in which a character must learn to be themselves instead of trying to be like someone else.
- Big Ego, Hidden Depths: A character has a large ego but that is one facet of their entire personality.
- Blithe Spirit: A character whose eternal optimism challenges the dreary, cynical world around them.
- Chafing Against the Dress Code: Characters rebel against the idea of being bound to a certain dress code.
- Collective Identity: Several individuals take up a single identity, but are otherwise different people who have their own take on the identity.
- Con Man: A person who tricks people into giving them money and other valuables, and may use all sorts of tricks and manipulations to get what they want.
- Cowboy Cop: A loose cannon who does police work their own way instead of doing it by the book.
- Deck of Wild Cards: Every member of the villainous faction is trying to usurp the Big Bad and take his place in the evil hierachy for themselves.
- Disobey This Message: An attempt at teaching people not to blindly obey authority falls flat due to it implying "don't blindly obey authority except me".
- Do Not Call Me "Paul": Character A's name is disregarded by Character B, showing a lack of respect for Character A's individual identity.
- The Dissenter Is Always Right: A character who goes against popular consensus ends up being correct instead of wrong.
- The Drifter: A character who travels from place to place, helping out the local townsfolk before leaving again.
- Dying as Yourself: A character overcomes their corruption or brainwashing, allowing them to die as themselves.
- Enlightened Self-Interest: A character decides to help the agendas of others because it fathers their own interests in turn.
- The Evils of Free Will: A villainous character believes that free will should be eliminated due to some people choosing to do awful things.
- Existentialism: There is no objective right or wrong, and the only thing that shapes your beliefs and ethics are your own decisions.
- Fighting Your God: A character decides that they must go one step further - punching God in the face!
- Flashy Protagonists, Bland Extras: Main characters tend to have designs that allow them to stand out while background characters have more ordinary designs that blend with the background.
- Friendship-Hating Antagonist: An antagonist who hates friendship and bonds, and in some cases has a very individualist bent to their hatred.
- Gang of Hats: A criminal gang uses a specific or downright esoteric gimmick to differentiate themselves from the competition.
- Genocide from the Inside: A character commits genocide upon their own race.
- Glory Hound: A person who seeks glory and will use all sorts of underhanded if not outright illegal means to achieve it.
- The Hedonist: A person who believes that the pursuit of pleasure and the maintenance of their pleasurable lifestyle is the purpose of life.
- The Hermit: A person who chooses to live alone away from society for varying reasons.
- Hero with Bad Publicity: The hero has a bad reputation amongst the public despite trying their best to save lives and stop villains.
- Hunter of His Own Kind: A character from a non-human species may hunt down members of their own kind who are often portrayed as Always Chaotic Evil.
- Hypocrite: A character who doesn't practice what they preach and is often inconsistent in their beliefs.
- I Am Not Him: A character makes it clear that they are not that other person and that they do things their way.
- I Am Not My Father: A character decides to go their own way and actively decides not to repeat their parent:
- I Am What I Am: A character comes to terms with who they are and accepts their flaws.
- Identity Breakdown: A character undergoes a breakdown due to revelations or issues that make them question their identity.
- Individualism vs. Collectivism: Works that deal with this either portray individualism as liberating or toxic depending on the work.
- Individuality Is Illegal: Individuality is ruthlessly stamped out by society to ensure conformity.
- Ineffectual Loner: A loner who despite their individualistic drive is utterly inept and gets their asses handed to them every time.
- It's All About Me: A character is egotistical enough that they think everything revolves around them.
- It Amused Me: A character does something solely because it amused them.
- I Work Alone: A character declines help, stating that they work alone.
- Journey to Find Oneself: A character travels on a quest for self discovery.
- Leaving You to Find Myself: A character ends a relationship or marriage in order to find themselves.
- Libertarians IN SPACE!: Characters with an individualistic drive for life leave the Earth and venture off into space to find a more individualistic society.
- Liberty Over Prosperity: A character believes it that it is better to be poor and free than to be better off under the control of others.
- Loners Are Freaks: When being a loner is seen as weird or socially unacceptable.
- Loss of Identity: A character starts to lose their sense of identity due to life changes, revelations or trauma.
- The Man Is Sticking It to the Man: A character decides to express their individuality by buying a mass-produced product
- Merger of Souls: A singular being is created from many souls, either through natural means or artificial.
- Mighty Lumberjack: A character is portrayed as a rugged, masculine individual due to their life as a lumberjack.
- Miles Gloriosus: A character whose proud bravado is sharply contrasted by their cowardice in the face of a real fight.
- Military Maverick: A member of the military who doesn't follow military protocol and does things their own way, even if such things would get them court martialled in reality.
- Misanthrope Supreme: A human character despises other of their kind, and may in extreme cases actually want them all to die.
- Misunderstood Loner with a Heart of Gold: A loner has a bad reputation but despite that is actually a good person.
- Moral Myopia: A character believes their actions are justified but tends to be far less forgiving when anyone does the same thing as them.
- Narcissist: A self centred individual whose ego is so high that they see nothing wrong with making other people's lives revolve around them and ruining anyone who slights them.
- Nominal Importance: A character's importance to the overall story is defined by them having an actual name.
- Nonconformist Dyed Hair: A character is depicted as rebellious or non-conforming due to having dyed hair.
- Non-Uniform Uniform: A character wears an alternate or specialized version of a school/work/military uniform which makes them stand out.
- No Place for Me There: A person fighting for a utopian vision of the world accepts that such a world cannot include them due to them being a part of the problem.
- Objectivism: An individualist right-wing ideology popularized by the novel Atlas Shrugged which involves laissez-faire capitalism, non-theistic pragmatic realism and Enlightened Self-Interest.
- Offended by an Inferior's Success: A character feels offended that someone they deem "inferior" is more successful than they are or that they don't deserve the success they currently have.
- Off the Grid: A character either through choice or necessity can no longer rely on modern conveniences, forcing them to move around constantly and pay for everything in cash.
- Omnicidal Maniac: A character who wants to either render their kind extinct, destroy everything in their world and in extreme cases the universe and all of creation.
- Opinion Myopia: A character believes that their opinion is right and justified while thinking that other people are wrong, even if they share a similar opinion.
- Order Versus Chaos: Most uses of this trope tend to have Chaos fall under the side of individualism in contrast to Order being seen as collectivist.
- Passion Is Evil: A villainous character is portrayed as someone who is chaotic, impulsive and ruled by their passions.
- Patriotic Fervor: When portrayed as good, it is used as a celebration of the people and their individuality.
- Peer Pressure Makes You Evil: Going along with group think is depicted as bad or evil.
- Penny Among Diamonds: A poor or common person finds themselves surrounded by wealthy or privileged people, making them stand out in their new environment.
- Protagonist-Centred Morality: A main character's actions are forgiven by the narrative yet if another character does the same thing, they get criticized for it.
- Quest for Identity: An amnesiac character goes on a quest to discover who they are (or were).
- Rags to Riches: A character who was once poor managed to climb out of poverty in order to become far better off than they started.
- Rogue Drone: A character breaks away from the Hive Mind and becomes their own person in the process.
- Romanticism Versus Enlightenment: Most uses of this trope tend to have Romanticism fall on the individualist side with Enlightment being the more collectivist of the two.
- Self-Imposed Exile: A character wilfully exiles themselves from their previous society after a great mistake or crime on their part.
- Self-Made Man: A person who through hard work, connections and luck manages to rise above their former station and become well off.
- Small Name, Big Ego: A character considers themselves top banana despite their ego vastly outweighing their actual talents, intelligence and power.
- Social Climber: A character who does everything in their power to increase their social status, even if they have crush others underfoot to achieve their ideal lifestyle.
- The Sociopath: Sociopaths are often in it for themselves and will gladly use and abuse others to get what they want.
- Solipsism: An individualist philosophy that believes that only the self is the only thing that can be known and verified.
- The Starscream: A character who is often trying to usurp the leader of their group so they can rule it as leader instead.
- Straw Nihilist: A character whose believes that everything is pointless and that there is no point in living at all.
- Super Supremacist: A character with super powers believes themselves to be superior to those devoid of superpowers, often to the point of believing that they should rule over mortals instead of them running their own societies.
- Then Let Me Be Evil: A character decides that because everyone keeps treating them like a jerk and/or villain, they might as well become one.
- Theseus' Ship Paradox: If you replace all the parts of an object or replace all the cells of a person overtime, are they still the original object/same person?
- Übermensch: The ideal man as envisioned in Nietzsche's philosophy. The Ubermensch is often an individualist ideal of independence, willpower and creating one's one personal values.
- Uniformity Exception: A character who is a part of an otherwise identical group has a feature or something else that makes them stand out.
- Unique Protagonist Asset: A protagonist has something special about them that makes them the main hero over the other potential main character candidates.
- Villain with Good Publicity: The villain has a good reputation amongst the public despite their actual misdeeds behind closed doors.
- Wild Card: A character whose allegiance is unpredictable and serves only one side: theirs.
- Working-Class Hero: A character who is from the working class and who struggles against the day to day grind of society and its expectations.
