You’ve seen it a hundred times in a hundred permutations. The one plucked from normalcy and propelled into a world of magic, destined to defeat the Dark Lord. The one born into every generation to drive out evil. The Chosen One.
They’re often wide-eyed and inexperienced but can kick ass with the flick of the wrist or by screaming “Expelliarmus” at any conflict because, you know, chosen. They’re a timeless, Messianic archetype.
While all protagonists are chosen in some way, set apart by a writer to spearhead a story, the Chosen One bears the birthmark of destiny. Yet despite the undeniable charm of the Chosen One trope, it carries a staleness and sense of disillusionment.
Our list of modern Chosen Ones is long. There’s Captain Marvel, Spider-Man, Ash Ketchum from “Pokemon,” Harry Potter, Anakin Skywalker from “Star Wars,” Neo from “the Matrix,” a dozen “Lord of the Rings” characters, even Wendy from “Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior.”
But while often equated with Young Adult novels today, the Chosen One is not a new concept. Pretty much any Greek or Roman hero, from Achilles to Aeneas, who is tied by the hands of fate was also a Chosen One. There’s also King Arthur, destined to retrieve the sword of Excalibur, and the faithful warlock, Merlin. Even Jesus could be considered a Chosen One. So why have we been so drawn to Chosen Ones throughout history?
Part of it may be that all of us, whether we admit it or not, yearn to hear from someone that we are special and meant for great things. If an all-knowing oracle could pass out prophecies to us like they’re candy, you’d be a fool to pass it up. How great would it be to have someone hand you a great destiny and tell you to go forth? Life would be simple yet instantly meaningful.
For those of us constantly afraid of the future, every step is a choice that could carry you toward your greatest mistake or what you are truly meant to do, some great unknown that’s terrifying in itself. Chosen One stories help us cope with this anxiety and the burden of choosing our future.
These escapist fantasies give us comfort, but they’re also disconnecting and unrelatable. If great destinies are only meant for the chosen, the rest of us are just average people relegated to unimportant lives as simple minor characters, props in side quests.
Despite our wishful escapism, we have to live with the fact that we will never be the Chosen One. There is nothing truly special about any of us, and there’s no way of telling what our destinies will be until we reach it. That’s a scary thought and one that can make Chosen One stories disillusioning.
While the chosen lead fantastical lives battling evil and altering the world, we wrestle with our own mediocrity, watching the world revolve around a select few as we ask “What makes you so special?”
Chosen Ones also make us wonder if it’s the character or fate itself that deserves the credit for success. Do Chosen Ones earn their place or are they just empty vehicles of fate?
Aeneas from Virgil’s epic “The Aeneid” was destined to found Rome. While he has heroic qualities, he constantly leans on the backs of fate and the gods that enforce it. The gods strap Aeneas with gifts and outline his road map to destiny step by step, and he follows like a puppet on a string. A lapdog of destiny, his victories are just as much a result of divine protection as his own heroism.
These types of characters are not only bland avatars of fate. They’re also annoying. Why don’t the rest of us get instruction manuals for life?
But being a Chosen One is a double-edged sword, a blessing and a curse. It often means living a short, painful life, which lead some to refuse the call. There’s a charm in the Chosen One woes of these reluctant heroes — like Buffy from “Buffy the Vampire Slayer,” Rey from “Star Wars” or Achilles from “The Iliad” — as they grapple with fulfilling their destinies and their desires to live long, happy, normal lives.
But the rest of us feel that tug of yearning to be chosen, that sting of watching Chosen Ones in art step into a spotlight never meant for us. We learn that the magic hasn’t been in us all along. It never even existed at all.
Yet, there’s solace in the Unchosen Ones — the Hermione Grangers and Xanders (“Buffy the Vampire Slayer”) — the ones who see evil in the world and work hard to fight it despite never being chosen. Things aren’t laid out on a silver platter for them like a true Chosen One. They’re the characters we can learn from most, who teach us to stare out at the terrifying unknown of our futures, take a step forward and yell, “Screw destiny.”
