Some fictional characters desire peace over violence. That doesn’t necessarily mean that they can’t or don’t fight, but rather that they prefer not to. Fighting is so commonplace in many books, TV shows, etc., that these characters tend to stand out because they don’t want to fight. I really like characters who promote peace because they bring a new perspective to the series, so I compiled a short list to explore some of my favorites.
Note: there will be spoilers
Dimity Ann Plumleigh-Teignmott from The Finishing School Series
Dimity attends Mademoiselle Geraldine’s Finishing Academy for Young Ladies of Quality, where she is taught etiquette but also espionage, diversion, and how to kill. However, much to her parents’ disappointment, she simply wants to marry and be a lady. Not to mention that Dimity also faints at the sight of blood, including her own. She is excellent at espionage and stealth, and she will use these skills in the future, but she dislikes danger and violence. She only uses violence as a last resort.
Armin Arlet from Attack on Titan
Armin has always preferred talking to fighting. His intelligence and communication skills are his biggest assets, and he uses them frequently throughout the series. He forms strategies to minimize human casualties when fighting Titans, and he always tries to talk to people before fighting them. However, he was born into a world where the only two options were to accept death by being peaceful and passive or to kill Titans for survival. He was forced to use violence many times to fight for peace and survival despite that going against his nature.
Aang from The Last Airbender
From the beginning, Aang preferred peace to violence. Air monks were pacifists and preferred to stay uninvolved with war and other conflicts, and Aang was no different. However, he had to get involved in violence since he was the Avatar. He tried to talk first and use peaceful methods before resorting to violence. He also struggled with having to kill Fire Lord Ozai to end the Hundred Year War. In the end, he stripped Ozai of his powers and status and had him imprisoned because he couldn’t stand the idea of killing him.
Kamado Tanjiro from Demon Slayer
Tanjiro is an incredible demon slayer, though he doesn’t want to be one. He became a demon slayer for one reason: to turn Nezuko, his younger sister, back into a human. The rest of their family was killed by the king of demons, but Tanjiro never showed malice for other demons and even honored many of their deaths. He wouldn’t hesitate to kill a demon if it meant he could save someone, but he doesn’t want this to be his life forever. He wishes for peace and understanding more than anything else.
Cress Darnel from The Lunar Chronicles
Cress lived in a small satellite for years, and she had little room to move around, let alone exercise. She also wasn’t trained to fight, as she was supposed to be Queen Levana’s spy, hacker, and programmer. Cress is also tiny, coming up to about 5’0″, and her opponents can easily overwhelm her. Because of this, and her being forced to live alone for much of her life, she prefers to be around screens and do what she is good at instead.
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