Charles Dickens allows Ebenezer Scrooge to find redemption for his mean and miserly ways by the end of "A Christmas Carol" but an argument can made that the sour old sod's real redemption came when he was transformed into the comedic figure of the Grinch by Dr. Seuss. "How the Grinch Stole Christmas" may not contain any ghosts and the Grinch may not be a miserly moneylender, but he is essentially just a much funnier version of Scrooge nevertheless.
What is especially interesting, and very easy to overlook, is that while Ebenezer Scrooge hates the whole Christmas season primarily because of its lack of a commercial sensibility and focus on illogical emotional response, the Grinch's ire is raised by the cacophony of the symbols of commercialization of the holiday. Which raises the question of which other memorable literary villains might be ideal candidates for such a comedic reinvention of a basic character type.
Captain Ahab
Few who have read the stories of both would argue that Scrooge is just plain meaner than Ahab, but in terms of villainy the monomaniacal pursuer of the great white whale wins hands down if only because no redemption awaits the peglegged captain of the Pequod. Monomaniacal revenge upon animals has been portrayed in comedic terms from Elmer Fudd to "Caddyshack" but thus far no equivalent of a Grinch has for Ahab has yet made it into the mainstream.
Edmund the Bastard
Shakespeare's greatest villain may be even more sympathetic than either Scrooge or Ahab from a psychological perspective. Knowing the back-story that drives literary characters to acts of villainy or the heights of meanness does give readers a greater understanding than the characters trapped in ignorance. A comedic equivalent of the Grinch in the case of this "King Lear" villain would be driven to rebel against an antiquated system of institutionalized social injustice rather than a comedic character whose underlying urge to destroy Christmas celebration in Whoville is stimulated by a misunderstanding of the true meaning behind that celebration.
Rebecca de Winter
The thing that makes the titular character of Daphne DuMaurier's novel such a great villain is that for the reader (and audiences of the movie versions) she conducts her nefarious villainy from the grave. True, she's got a classic accomplice who is at least her equal in Mrs. Danvers, but for the purposes of a Grinchy comedic adaptation, it is the quality of posthumous machination that makes Rebecca such a compelling figure. Rebecca de Winter has been parodied many times, most notably by Carol Burnett in a spoof sketch titled "Rebecky." Rebecca is the personification of every person's fear deep-rooted fear that they can't measure up to whoever has come before them, whether that means a first wife or a former employee. The singular characteristic of Rebecca's evil influence being the result of a ghostly presence in the form of other people's memories is ripe with comic potential.
For more from Timothy Sexton, check out:
"King Lear": When Freud Met Marx
Is Maxim de Winter an Example of the Gothic Hero?
