Line #0 Main/JerkJustifications


1	->'''Clementine:''' You don't have to do this. It's mean.\
2	'''Michelle:''' You gotta be mean to keep goin' out here.\
3	'''Clementine:''' I'm not mean.\
4	'''Michelle:''' Yeah? And who got your gun?
5	-->-- ''VideoGame/TheWalkingDeadSeasonTwo''
6
7	There are certain mentalities that create {{Jerkass}}es, or at least allow them to tolerate themselves. They come in many versions, but most of them boil down to one of a few justifications:
8
9	* AppealToInherentNature: "[[ItsWhatIDo That's just the way I am]], and I can't (or don't care to) change. If you don't like it, deal with it!"
10	* [[CorruptCorporateExecutive Appeal to Market Forces]]: "The demand is there! Someone's going to get rich doing this, it might as well be me!"
11	* BadMoodAsAnExcuse: "Something's got me worked up and I'm gonna take it out on someone as a form of release, and if they can't take it, then they're a total wuss!"
12	* BlamingTheVictim: "[[NeverMyFault It's their own fault]] for [[WhyDidYouMakeMeHitYou provoking me into hurting them]]!"
13	* BrutalHonesty: "I never sugarcoat the truth! If they're offended, then that's their fault, not mine!"
14	* CultureJustifiesAnything: "It's how I do things from the culture I was raised in! Get used to it!"
15	* DisabilityAsAnExcuseForJerkassery: "I have Asperger's, so I don't know how to behave!"
16	* FreudianExcuse: "I had a rough childhood, so of course I'm going to act like a jerk!"
17	* HumansAreBastards: "I'm just doing what [[NotSoDifferentRemark most people]] in my situation would do! The only difference is that they hide behind smug pretenses and [[AtLeastIAdmitIt I don't]]."
18	* JustJokingJustification: "Come on, can't you take a joke? I'm TooFunnyToBeEvil! You people have NoSenseOfHumor."
19	* MightMakesRight: "I have all the power here and there I make all of the rules. If you don't like that, then suck it up and deal with it!"
20	* MoralMyopia: "I'm right and all these peasants are wrong, so it's OK to treat them like crap [[{{Anvilicious}} just to hammer my point in.]]" The stock phrase "I'm not a jerk, [[EnragedByIdiocy I just don't suffer fools]]" may be used in their defense, the [[IResembleThatRemark implied insult of which only serves to prove the accuser's point]].
21	* {{Revenge}}: "They were horrible to me first! Two wrongs don't make a right, you say? Pfft, they started it, so me being horrible to them is right!"
22	* ScrewPolitenessImASenior: "I'm old, so I can be a jerk if I want!"
23	* TheSocialDarwinist: "The strong survive! Weak people are a bane to us! It's survival of the fittest!"
24	* ToughLove: "I'm treating you like crap just to toughen you up! After all, MiseryBuildsCharacter."
25	* VirtueIsWeakness: "Kindness is weakness and NiceGuysFinishLast. If you want to get ahead in [[CrapsackWorld this world]], you have to be ruthless, mean, and [[ManipulativeBastard manipulative]]."
26
27	{{Straw Nihilist}}s, {{Manipulative Bastard}}s, and {{Jerkass}}es of every type will self-righteously spout one of these philosophies whenever called out on their hostility, arrogance, and general pissy behavior. Can overlap with ObliviouslyEvil if the jerk genuinely believes they are right to hurt others, instead of merely coming up with excuses to make themselves feel better.
28
29	Just because an author believes this about a character doesn't mean that every sympathetic character in the story should view the character as a justified jerk. In real life, some people have a hard time dealing with people who act abrasively and are unlikely to know why they act like jerks in the first place. Having everyone make excuses for the character in the story itself may result in a JerkSue.
30
31	[[JerkassDissonance When the fans do this on their own]], a DracoInLeatherPants is born. See also WhatTheHellHero, a frequent response to Jerk Justifications. If a character's Jerk Justifications are the result of [[DarkAndTroubledPast painful experience]], can result in a JerkassWoobie.
32	----
33	!!Examples:
34
35	[[foldercontrol]]
36
37	[[folder:Virtue Is Weakness]]
38	* Your average CorruptCorporateExecutive, if they got enough CharacterDevelopment to be called out on their cruelty, will respond with something like this.
39	* Creator/NiccoloMachiavelli's ''Literature/ThePrince'' is all about this type. However, he does ''not'' justify KickTheDog {{jerkass}}ery to the point of people ''hating'' you.
40	* Nabiki from ''Manga/RanmaOneHalf'' tends to invoke VirtueIsWeakness if she gets called on her behaviour (which is [[KarmaHoudini rarely]]).
41	%%* Kreia of ''VideoGame/KnightsOfTheOldRepublicIITheSithLords'' is a variant.
42	* Souther of ''Manga/FistOfTheNorthStar''. For him, to be ahead in the CrapsackWorld where he lives, one has to be as ruthless and devoid of compassion as possible.
43	* Kratos' justification in ''VideoGame/GodOfWar''. Not entirely wrong, since many times he must kill innocent bystanders if he wants to survive. The Olympians' justification is more like MoralMyopia.
44	* Guy of Gisborne from ''Series/RobinHood'' is of the VirtueIsWeakness variety in regards to his pursuit of his ambition, but also a little Appeal to Inherent Nature in that he is well aware that he has "committed heinous crimes." Only he isn't prepared to do anything about it except to rely on Marian to "wash away his sins." She begs to differ. It does not end well.
45	* ''And that's how [[Series/{{Glee}} Sue]] C's it!"
46	* A common justification for cliques, trolls, internet bullies, and doxing (fishing for people's personal information or using it against them). Of course, the instant any of this stuff happens to THEM you can expect them to drop their "morality" like a sack of hammers.
47	* ''Radio/AbsolutePowerBBC'': Charles Prentiss. He's a bastard because being a bastard ''works''. You might wish it didn't, and he has some sympathy with that viewpoint. But it ''does''.
48	* Silver from ''VideoGame/PokemonGoldAndSilver'' and its remakes, though he eventually gets over it.
49	* In ''Manga/{{Berserk}}'', Guts, after his horrific ordeal during the Eclipse, adopts this attitude during his vengeance-obsessed Black Swordsman days, [[TheSocialDarwinist considering innocent civilians to be "small fry without the strength to truly live,"]] who he would not lift a finger to help against the ravening demons that are drawn to his Brand of Sacrifice and which he regularly has to fight. Thankfully, he gets over this when he finds Casca again and gathers a new circle of TrueCompanions, though he still has to deal with a very nasty EnemyWithin that represents the worst of what he used to be.
50	* Galatea ("Golly") from ''Webcomic/TheInexplicableAdventuresOfBob'' is raised with nothing but kibble to eat and various [[TheSocialDarwinist Nietzsche-inspired]] literature to read, so it's no real surprise that she produces these justifications.
51	* Lelouch from ''Anime/CodeGeass'' puts on this kind of act as a mask but does believe some of it (mainly the NiceGuysFinishLast and WorldHalfEmpty parts). However, his ultimate goal is to make the world a better place and completely overturn this kind of attitude, and he's willing to [[WellIntentionedExtremist take some extreme measures to achieve it]].
52	* Tywin Lannister (and pretty much every other {{Jerkass}} in the series) in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire'' / ''Series/GameOfThrones'': Westeros is a CrapsackWorld where doing the honorable thing will get not only you but probably everyone around you killed. A little PragmaticVillainy, on the other hand, can help stabilize the kingdom and make sure that most people can continue on with their lives.
53	** As with the [[DeconstructedTrope series theme]], such actions always have a cause and effect. By the time [[spoiler:Tywin dies]], all the fear and hatred against the Lannisters' past actions come back to bite them, as everyone now wants to oust the Lannisters, and their hold over the realm crumbles under [[EvilIsPetty Cersei Lannister's]] reign.
54	* Mello from ''Manga/DeathNote''. In order to catch Kira, he enlists the help of TheMafia and holds [[spoiler: Sayu]] hostage in order to get the notebook. He says he'll do whatever it takes to get ahead, and [[PunchClockHero it seems he cares more about besting Near than he does about bringing Kira to justice]].
55	* Though she pretends to be of the ToughLove variety, Rowena of ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' is really this at heart. "[[BadIsGoodAndGoodIsBad Love is weakness,]] and I will ''never'' be weak."
56	* [[WesternAnimation/RickAndMorty Rick Sanchez]] believes in the trope due to his being smarter than most people he's around. He even claimed niceness was "something [[GoodIsDumb stupid people]] use to get ahead in life".
57	* The Creator/MarquisDeSade and his characters often argued based on this. Often they would claim that cruelty such as murder and rape are good, while the opposite was bad. AppealToInherentNature also camp up, with them claiming that it's just the way they are. At the same time, they would fall into MoralMyopia, complaining that society prevented them from acting on their desires (in De Sade's case, he was imprisoned for his crimes).
58	[[/folder]]
59
60	[[folder:Moral Myopia]]
61	* Every {{straw\|Character}}man ever. Likewise every JerkJock and AlphaBitch. [[HiddenDepths At]] [[FreudianExcuse first]]...
62	%%* [[WesternAnimation/TransformersAnimated Sentinel Prime]].
63	* ''Webcomic/LeastICouldDo'' will twist itself into storytelling pretzels in order to let Rayne be a {{Jerkass}} wish-fulfillment character and still look like a good guy in the end, usually by pulling a justification out of thin air that leads to everyone apologizing to Rayne and saying he was right all along. In one arc, Rayne's company is hiring but he doesn't tell his jobless friend Issa. When she angrily confronts him and demands to know why he didn't get her a job, he says that she needs to earn it by merit rather than getting it through favoritism -- and this is after weeks of comedic backpedaling to avoid telling the truth.
64	* ''Literature/SwordOfTruth'': Terry Goodkind's at it again, this time with other characters.
65	* ''Literature/TheGulagArchipelago'' has the line, "What can I do with the incorrigible directness of my personality! ... I am compelled to utter reprimands; it disciplines those nearby."
66	* Lucifer (and most evil angels) in ''Series/{{Supernatural}}'' think of themselves as being [[FantasticRacism above humans]], making it OK to kill them.
67	[[/folder]]
68
69	[[folder:Appeal To Inherent Nature]]
70	* Most characters with {{Freudian Excuse}}s for their behavior fall back on this excuse. Apparently, MommyIssues are more important than self-control and common decency.
71	* This is usually the justification for the JerkSue. In the author's failed attempt to excuse whatever the JerkSue does and cast them in a sympathetic or just "assertive," they end up writing it off as this.
72	* Sawyer from ''Series/{{Lost}}'' is Appeal to Inherent Nature, with a little bit of self-loathing and a whole lot of [[JerkWithAHeartOfGold Heart of Gold]] thrown in. At least, he was in the first seasons. He would usually justify his actions with "I'm not a good person."
73	* Gene Simmons and Ted Nugent have used this in RealLife.
74	* "Take Me Or Leave Me," from ''Theatre/{{RENT}}'', is essentially an entire song of the Appeal to Inherent Nature justification. Most of it is on Maureen's part, but Joanne does a lot of justifying and refusing to compromise by the number's end.
75	* In ''Franchise/KingdomHearts'', Organization XIII uses this kind of excuse for their actions. Since they're Nobodies, who don't have hearts, it's simply in their nature to screw with the universe and the heroes, but it's clear from the start that 80% of the excuse is MoralMyopia. To be fair, the whole "missing a heart" bit makes them sociopaths by design. It's rather easy to be a jerk when you're completely incapable of empathy.
76	* Sam Puckett on ''Series/ICarly'' very much this type. Has had another character say outright that it would be weird if she didn't make them miserable, simply because Sam refuses to grow up or act maturely. Could very well be a FreudianExcuse because, in a later episode, it's revealed that Sam's mother Pam is ''exactly the same way''.
77	* Damon on ''Series/TheVampireDiaries'' has used "I'm a vampire" as an excuse for his behavior a few times. It would be a lot more convincing if not for the behavior of several other vampires demonstrating that it really isn't one.
78	* ScottKurtz. In a webcomics weekly podcast with his friends, they actually point out this has caused him to be alienated amongst pro print cartoonists and he responds by saying that other cartoonists are jerks so he should be able to be one as well.
79	* The final example on [[http://www.cracked.com/blog/5-excuses-we-make-doing-terrible-things/ this article]] on ''Website/{{Cracked}}'' explains why invoking Appeal to Inherent Nature typically leads to you being ''[[{{Deconstruction}} unable to function in society]]''.
80	* Don John in ''Theatre/MuchAdoAboutNothing'' has a speech declaring himself to be this.
81	* In ''Manga/FruitsBasket'', this is the excuse [[ObfuscatingStupidity Shigure]] gives for being so selfish and manipulative.
82	* Spike on ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer''. After he takes Xander's radio:
83	-->'''Xander''': Hey, that's mine!\
84	'''Spike''': And you're what, shocked and disappointed? I'm ''evil''.
85	* ''ComicStrip/CalvinAndHobbes'': Both Calvin and Hobbes are guilty of this in different ways; Calvin claims that he has a "natural inclination towards evil" (in other words, he likes being a brat) and it's unfair for his parents, school and society in general to stifle him by forcing their morals and ethics on him. Hobbes, on the other hand, believes that as a tiger and a natural predator, it's in his nature to constantly stalk and attack Calvin, ignoring that, whatever his real nature is, he's clearly not a regular tiger, since he's sentient, can talk and walk upright.
86	* ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons'': In "At Long Last Leave", the shows 500th episode, Springfield finally decides to banish The Simpson family, fed up with the increasingly destructive and obnoxious nature of their hijinxs, especially Homer and Bart. Marge eventually resorts to this excuse when she gives TheReasonYouSuckSpeech to the townspeople, claiming that it's wrong to punish someone for "being who they are" as an excuse for her complete inability to control her dysfunctional family. Of course, the entire town ignores that [[MoralMyopia they're not exactly perfect themselves]], which Marge also points out to them.
87	[[/folder]]
88
89	[[folder:Just Joking Justification]]
90	* Described on social media as Schrodinger's Asshole, "someone who decides whether they're joking or not based on how other people react to what they just said."
91	[[/folder]]
92
93	[[folder:Tough Love]]
94	* In ''Literature/WingsOfFire'', Qibli's mother beat him to make him "strong". This is why he ran away from her while still a child and is currently under the care of [[AFatherToHisMen Queen Thorn]].
95	[[/folder]]
96
97	[[folder:Victim Blaming]]
98	* In volume 6 of ''Literature/CookingWithWildGame'', [[spoiler:Yamiel Tsun]] offers her (bound, drugged) captive a [[AnOfferYouCantRefuse "choice"]]: he can abandon his own family to join hers and make them the money necessary for them to go legit, or he can be brutally murdered. Apparently, the fact that redemption requires effort and responsibility exempts her from having to do it.
99	* Some people that sell unlicensed merchandise of other people's art will try to justify it by saying they shouldn't have put it on the internet if they didn't want it to be downloaded and sold by somebody. If the artist ''was'' selling merch, then the argument changes: if they didn't want somebody else selling it, they should have put watermarks on it or copyrighted it. If the artist did either of those, then it wraps back to "don't put it on the internet", [[MovingTheGoalposts and so on]]. If they didn't put it on the internet to begin with, then the goals are shifted to "you knew people are going to scan and sell this, so why put it out?"
100	[[/folder]]
101
102	[[folder:Appeal to Market Forces]]
103	* ''Manga/GunsmithCats'': Rider's justification for running drugs: it'll happen whether or not he does it, so he might as well make money off it. Rally eventually gets him to give it up.
104	* ''WesternAnimation/SouthPark'': Used twice, in "Quest For Ratings" and "Raising The Bar", where the characters (Stan, Kyle, Kenny, Cartman and Butters in the former and Token in the latter) use this as a defence for why they're appealing to the LowestCommonDenominator and creating garbage entertainment. This is what makes money, so it's okay to make it even though it's having a visibly negative effect.
105	[[/folder]]
106
107	[[folder:Other]]
108	* This is definitely TruthInTelevision.
109	* House, from ''Series/{{House}}, M.D.'', combines MoralMyopia and AppealToInherentNature. At least [[JerkassHasAPoint he has a point]] as House is an ''amazing'' doctor, which is pretty much the only reason he's still working at that hospital, despite being such an utter jackass who is committed to the GoodIsNotNice trope.
110	-->"Would you rather a doctor who holds your son's hand while he dies or ignores him as he gets better?"
111	* Multiple types tend to show up on ''Series/{{Survivor}}'', with people saying VirtueIsWeakness and [[AppealToInherentNature That's The Way I Am]] (or [[HumansAreBastards That's The Way Everyone Is]]) almost verbatim to the ConfessionCam. By definition, nobody really wants to own up to MoralMyopia, but it's there; and it appears to be the specialty of Russell, from ''Samoa'' and ''Heroes vs. Villains.''
112	* ''Series/TheBigBangTheory'': Sheldon Cooper combines MoralMyopia and AppealToInherentNature. Basically, he's House without the {{Deadpan Snark\|er}}ing or any sort of personality. He's also an InsufferableGenius.
113	* ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'': Azula, while more AxCrazy than {{Jerkass}}, claims VirtueIsWeakness and Appeal to Inherent Nature for herself (during the BeachEpisode she says that her mother was right about her being a monster, and a later episode has her frantically claiming that trust is for fools).
114	%%* ''Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac'': Cyrano combines all three types.
115	* Barney Stinson from ''Series/HowIMetYourMother'' uses multiple types with great abandon and inconsistency, depending on whichever one will best get him out of a conundrum without admitting he's wrong/non-awesome or showing weakness: when his friends call him out on Appeal to Inherent Nature by saying they're sick of "dealing" with him, he insists upon MoralMyopia. When they prove MoralMyopia wrong by showing him how much damage his jerkassery causes, he falls back on VirtueIsWeakness. When they argue against VirtueIsWeakness by demonstrating that ''they're'' all happy without being jerks, he seizes on to MoralMyopia to dismiss their opinions as signs that they're "lame" and then insists upon Appeal to Inherent Nature, because he's "awesome". And so it begins again.
116	%%* Arguably, Huckebein family from ''Manga/MagicalRecordLyricalNanohaForce'' combines all three types.
117	* Reynauld de Chatilllon from ''Film/KingdomOfHeaven''. {{Lampshade\|Hanging}}d by him at one point when he slaughters one of many of Saladin's camps.
118	--> '''Reynauld''': {{I am what I am}}. Someone has to be.
119	* In ''Series/{{Firefly}}'', a historical figure named Shan Yu is described as having fancied himself a "warrior poet," and in one of his writings waxed on about how, essentially, the only way to truly ''know'' a person was through torture. Simon [[ShutUpHannibal sarcastically sums up this story]] as "sadistic crap legitimized by florid prose."
120	* ComicBook/TheJoker presents a HumansAreBastards variation in ''ComicBook/TheKillingJoke'', declaring that "one bad day" would make ''anybody'' as crazy as he is, and it's just luck of the draw that he actually ended up that way.
121	* For some people, especially if one browses Internet forums long enough, hang around {{Troll}}s and {{Jerkass}}es long enough and [[GotMeDoingIt you might start to become a jerk yourself]] and justify it by saying "everyone else is doing it, so I might as well be one, too." Also, if you start a thread asking why people are so mean on the Internet, expect the users, especially the trolls, respond with "[[InternetJerk It's the Internet. We can say whatever we want.]]"
122	* Eleanor Shellstrop from ''Series/TheGoodPlace'' is a mixture of the VirtueIsWeakness and HumansAreBastards types, with a FreudianExcuse in the form of her idiotic and selfish AbusiveParents leaving her with severe trust issues. In her earthly life, she was flagrantly selfish and generally was TheCynic, viewing the world as a big sack of crap and that there was no point in doing anything remotely altruistic; in fact, she couldn't fathom people being genuinely nice for the sake of being nice and always assumed they had some ulterior motive. A large part of her CharacterDevelopment is her not only learning to be a kinder and more considerate person but also accepting kindness from others and that FreudianExcuseIsNoExcuse.
123	* An extremely common variant combines the "tough love" and "victim blaming" types when someone says or does something horrible and, upon seeing how hurt the other person is, just says they are "too sensitive" or some variant rather than feeling any remorse. May also combine the VirtueIsWeakness part if they think being sensitive in the sense of being caring is a bad thing.
124	* In ''Roleplay/DawnOfANewAgeOldportBlues'', Jessica uses her newfound CompellingVoice superpower to nearly commit RapeByProxy. When she's called out on it, she defends herself by appealing to the idea of HumansAreBastards; ''anyone'' who got superpowers would inevitably think about doing something awful with them, she was just the one who went through with it.
125	* ''Theatre/{{Carrie}}'': [[VillainSong "The World According To Chris"]] is basically Jerk Justifications: The Song. In it, [[AlphaBitch Chris Hargensen]] sings about how she [[TheSocialDarwinist sees life as a vicious competition where it's "better to be screwed than screwed".]] When Sue asks "What does it cost to be kind?" Chris [[VirtueIsWeakness scoffs and mocks her.]] Worst of all, she seems to think she has the right to be cruel to Carrie [[MightMakesRight just because she's more powerful.]]
126	* ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'': Raven Branwen purports to be a social darwinist who refuses to help those she sees as weak, but it becomes increasingly obvious to everyone around her that she's a DirtyCoward who doesn't want to get involved with the main conflict purely because she's scared shitless of the BigBad and prefers to bury her head in the sand and terrorize those weaker than her just so she doesn't have to risk her own sorry hide- despite the fact that she ''knows'' that the BigBad is an OmnicidalManiac and so the only chance she has of long-term survival is to oppose said BigBad.
127	* [[Myth/ClassicalMythology Hera]] has a combination FreudianExcuse and Appeal to Inherent Nature as the usual justification for how much she terrorizes Zeus's lovers and children. She's the Goddess of Marriage and punishing infidelity is part of her divine duty, [[TheCobblersChildrenHaveNoShoes but her husband Zeus constantly and flagrantly insults her divine domain by cheating on her with mortals]], and she ''can't'' punish him for his infidelity because he's much stronger than her and the one time she tried, she ended up hanging off Mt. Olympus with anvils attached to her ankles. The only recourse she has is to take RevengeByProxy, since Zeus does care about his demigod children and their mothers.
128	[[/folder]]

Context Main / JerkJustifications