Regret

Posted on 09 October 2009

So, I live a life with few regrets.  Granted, there are things I think back on and wonder how life would have gone if I had done differently, but even then, I cannot change these things, and even if I could, there is no way to tell how things would be different if you did.  Butterfly Effect and all that—not so coincidentally the name of a movie that explores exactly that.  Still, how can this singular and powerful emotion change an entire story?

Well, for one obvious thing, a character can have the major vice or strength of regret.  As a vice, regrets over lost loved ones or even crumbled friendships can stay a hand from finishing the job that must be finished.  As strength, regret over a past act of cowardice can drive a person to be brave.  Conversely, both can be twisted to strength or weakness equally well.  The regret of a lost loved one can steel the person to act, and the regret over cowardice can drive a person to stand and fight when fleeing was the honestly better option.

There can also be the fear of regret.  This is done less, and I think the best example is the story of The Last Unicorn by Peter S. Beagle.  The unicorn makes a large point of stating that she cannot regret, yet once she becomes human and falls in love, it is the fear of regretting her choice that stalls her and must be overcome.  Again, this can be switched around, and a fear of regret could force a character to stay with the path chosen when he or she would rather turn away.

How else, though?  Well, getting back to me, the absence of regret can be a strong motivator.  Now, I am not talking about being sorry over an action, or admitting that the action was bad.  Neither of those are regrets.  Regret is much deeper, it is the pain of that choice eating at you.  Everyone has some regret, no matter how much they say to the contrary, but imagine a character that is truly without regret.  They most hideous actions do not faze this person past the moment they happen.  It can be a powerful character, and typically can be seen in the “confident immortal” stereotype.  I think of Gerald Tarrant from the Coldfire Trilogy in particular.  Yes, he had sorrows in his life, but he was quite adamant that he would not change a single decision he ever made.  One thing I would like to see, though, is a regretless person being portrayed as slightly less fringe-evil—if not fully evil—and perhaps as a noble and likeable character.

So there you are, three (well, five?) very powerful uses of regret.  And that is not even getting into all the different kinds of regrets there are.  Very, very powerful.  Now to only figure out how to use this to get me to actually talk to a girl . . . .