The Greatest Antiheroes in Literature

[Coír Draoi Ceítien]

Sometimes, there are characters who just don't fit into the category of either hero or villain. They aren't wretched enough to be completely despicable, and they aren't heroic enough to be outstanding examples to follow. They're brooding or pathetic, weak or strong, the best AND the worst that life can offer. They're antiheroes, and we love them just the same.

Of course, sometimes, the antihero may become the hero, but he/she may just as well become the villain. Life isn't totally black and white, and they have enough of both to fill their own category. So who are some of the best written of these perplexing characters? From what books protrude the deepest shades of grey? Who are the protagonists we love because they can be so against the grain, or the antagonists who have such traces of nobility about them?

For assistance, according to Wikipedia, the traits of an antihero are:
-imperfections that separate them from typically heroic characters (selfishness, ignorance, bigotry, etc.)
-lack of positive qualities such as "courage, physical prowess, and fortitude", and "generally feel helpless in a world over which they have no control"
-qualities considered dark traits, usually belonging to villains, (amorality, greed, violent tendencies, etc.) that may be tempered with more human, identifiable traits that blur the moral lines between the protagonist and antagonist.

[Raven]

Professor Snape, Harry Potter.
I think he became the most interesting character in the entire series, in many ways the most heroic as well. I was let down that the last book wasn't largely about him, but oh well (wasn't overall impressed with the last Harry Potter book).