The humanization and protagonism of classical antagonists are becoming
increasingly common in contemporary literature and media, so it becomes even more
interesting to analyze such movement. This work presents an analysis in the scope
of comparative literature to understand this process in one of the oldest villains in the
history of our society: the Devil. The research has as object of study the drama series
Lucifer, in which the Devil becomes the protagonist, helping a detective and having
his possible rise as an angel. It is worked with an analysis of the historical
construction of the Devil, from its origin to the contemporaneity, through the
camouflage imposed by the church in the mid-twentieth century on the account of the
Enlightenment and, after, its ascension by the nonconformity of the satanic
romantics. With this timeline, one has perceived that the historical construction of the
Devil, from its origin to the present, contributed to his identity construction, being able
to observe the factors of the rebellion, the argumentation and power of the word, the
angelic androgyny and temptation. By tracing a comparative line among the Devils of
Gil Vicente and Ariano Suassuna, the contemporary Devils of The Powerpuff Girls,
South Park and Lucifer, it is possible to consider that the contact of the characters
with human beings resigns and humanizes them. Through the plot’s construction or
the authors’ train of thought, these characters end up acquiring charisma from the
audience and also many of the characteristics from our society – including possible
redemption and heroic protagonism.
