One of the most noteworthy things about the long-running FX series American Horror Story is its ability to create compelling characters, men and women who endure a great deal of trauma and terror as they attempt to survive the circumstances in which they find themselves. This is especially true of Murder House, the first season of the show that subjected the residents of the titular house to truly horrifying events.
However, many of the people involved show a surprising amount of bravery as they contend with a house that clearly has an intrinsic aura of evil. Who were the most courageous characters in the story?
Dr. Charles Montgomery
There have been many unsettling doctors that have appeared in the history of American Horror Story, but Dr. Charles is one of the most diabolical. In particular, his effort to resurrect his own dead child is one of the most heinous acts in the series, and it leads him to create a monster that can barely be controlled.
Rather than having the courage to face his grief he chose instead to become a monster himself, violating the rules of nature.
Larry Harvey
Denis O’Hare has appeared in many of the seasons of AHS, and he almost always plays a villain. However, Larry Harvey is both one of his finer creations and one of the most cowardly people on the show.
While he clearly thinks that he has power over others and attempts to do everything he can to manipulate and blackmail them, when he is actually confronted by anyone else, he almost always retreats into an obsequious manner, showing just how much he lacks any sort of fortitude.
Moira O’Hara
Frances Conroy has played many great characters in American Horror Story, but the older version of Moira is one of her best.
Given that she was murdered by her own employer while said employer’s husband was trying to rape her, she shows a remarkable amount of courage in her time in the afterlife, doing what she can to be a support to the women that inhabit the house. And of course, she also becomes one of those who tries to keep unsuspecting new people from becoming trapped there as well.
Nora Montgomery
Even though her husband showed himself to be something of a coward, the same can’t be said of his wife, Nora Montgomery. Though she too goes along with his scheme to resurrect their child, she deserves a great deal of credit for being able to take accountability for what they’ve done and for stopping it before it was too late.
At the same time, her decision to take her own life was unfortunate, and it condemned her to perpetually live in the house that was the site and source of so much of her trauma.
Billie Dean Howard
There are few people who are as synonymous with AHS as Sarah Paulson, and she has played many fantastic characters during her tenure. One of those was Billie Dean Howard, the medium who was brought in to try to communicate with many of the spirits that inhabited the house.
Considering that this is a risky proposition in itself, and given how dangerous and often downright deadly the ghosts of the Murder House can be, Billie Dean must certainly be seen as one of the season’s bravest characters.
Constance Langdon
Jessica Lange is another of the great parts of American Horror Story, and she has created some very memorable characters. Constance Langdon is one of the most fascinating, and she shows a tremendous amount of courage, though she usually uses it in the pursuit of less than honorable goals.
Most notably, her character of Constance Langdon shows remarkable bravery in being willing to raise a child that is clearly the product of a demonic coupling and is capable of killing without hesitation.
Violet Harmon
As the daughter of Ben and Constance, Violet can be a bit of a brat, and she makes no secret of the fact that she didn’t want to move from their original home.
What’s more, she shows a remarkable amount of courage when she keeps Tate from killing a boy (which he was going to do in order to give her someone to love), especially in light of all of the other terrible things that Tate has shown himself willing to do (including to his fellow ghosts).
Tate Langdon
Evan Peters is another of the many veterans of American Horror Story, and he has created many fascinating and disturbing characters. Tate Langdon is arguably among the best of these, as he combines so much of what makes Evan Peters’ AHS characters so fascinating.
Though he is capable of monstrous acts, as the season progresses he nevertheless demonstrates his mettle in coming to terms with how monstrous he has been, and thus does try to become a better version of himself rather than clinging to his old ways.
Ben Harmon
Dylan McDermott plays Ben Harmon, who begins the season as not one of its better or more likable characters. He is also not very courageous, in that he refuses to really take accountability for his culpability in destroying his marriage by having an affair.
As the series goes on, however, he slowly shows that he has a significant amount of inner strength, especially since he joins with the ghosts that try to keep other unsuspecting people from becoming a victim of the house’s malevolent influence.
Vivien Harmon
Vivien Harmon, played by the inimitable Connie Britton in one of her best roles, is both a compelling and a very brave character. In addition to enduring all of the terrible things that happen while she’s alive–including the fact that her husband cheats on her with another woman–she is also brave enough to not just give in to despair and darkness when she becomes one of the ghosts.
Instead, she makes something of a good life for herself as a ghost, raising the child that was stillborn, forgiving her husband (itself a brave act), and joining those who want to keep the same thing from happening.