Likability: Eric Harris vs Dylan Klebold

That's why I said that low-key Dylan was selfish cause he sorta dragged Eric into his ultimate suicide-plan and the bombing/murder was Eric's desire which Dylan willingly helped his friend execute.

I recently started seeing E&D's planning and executing of NBK as 2 kids who were paired up to do a school project together. You always have the one kid who does pretty much all the work planning, researching and building the project, and the other kid who has good ideas to contribute but kinda slacks through the whole thing but steps up when you have to present it.

Eric had plenty of likeable traits and was such a Loyal person. It seems like if he valued you he probably would have done anything for you. I think he was someone who didnt like to let others down. This might be where some of his anger came from. I was a lot like this as a teenager, and overly loyal people can often be easily used and taken advantage of. I think that with all of the moving his family did and him always having to change schools just kinda threw him off, and he had a hard time adjusting. This could be why he had trouble making friends.

Dylan also had plenty of likeable traits. He was so laid back and seemingly easygoing. Personally I get along better with mellow people. Those that knew him claimed he was easy to approach and some even described him as a pacifist. He seemed like someone who would have been fun to hang out with.

Both of them equally had their flaws like anyone else. Their arrogance would have been a big roadblock for me haha. As a teenager I probably would have been more drawn to Dylan first, mainly because of his taste in music and laid back personality. On a superficial level, I was somewhat part of and pretty into the "skater" crowd at that age and he *kinda* looked the part at least. But in getting to know them I probably would have been better friends with Eric. I shared traits with both of them as a teenager, but Eric would have been someone I could share all my teenage hardships with (and vise versa), who would probably be more interested in going out and doing things instead of just "hangning out" somewhere. He was open and honest (not including he and Dylan hiding nbk from everyone). And again on a superficial level, if he actually had two different colored eyes I would have been drawn to him regardless haha.

Dylan is the type of guy people are drawn to because he has his own aesthetic, he was grungy, taller, laidback, the dreamer mellow dude, so you hang out a few times, as [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] said, eventually when you get to know Eric, you'd appreciate him more and if you have thoughts or you like intellectual conversations you can have it with him. If you don't mind dry jokes or a few complaints here and there then Eric's the guy hahaha. But yeah, I appreciate his loyalty and dedication too and if he liked you I'll say you've found a good one.

Dylan's the guy for the lazy nights out under the stars and Eric's the guy for a mission wrecking things and going on the run.

Forgot to add Eric's appreciation for nature, his fascination with the night sky. Most teenagers are into materialistic superficial things and don't see that far past their own small spaces, and overlook the natural world. It's a shame neither of them could find others that appreciated or shared these things that were important to them. Could have steered them in a different direction.

Kiwik wrote:

Forgot to add Eric's appreciation for nature, his fascination with the night sky. Most teenagers are into materialistic superficial things and don't see that far past their own small spaces, and overlook the natural world. It's a shame neither of them could find others that appreciated or shared these things that were important to them. Could have steered them in a different direction.

Do you think it's a result of where they were? Conventional Littleton, in Columbine High? Say if they were in another school and they found the right group of friends, girls they could continue seeing, people thought their interests were cool. Would it have bucked things up abit? Or was it not the place but it was their minds?

ultraviolencelv wrote:

Kiwik wrote:

Forgot to add Eric's appreciation for nature, his fascination with the night sky. Most teenagers are into materialistic superficial things and don't see that far past their own small spaces, and overlook the natural world. It's a shame neither of them could find others that appreciated or shared these things that were important to them. Could have steered them in a different direction.

Do you think it's a result of where they were? Conventional Littleton, in Columbine High? Say if they were in another school and they found the right group of friends, girls they could continue seeing, people thought their interests were cool. Would it have bucked things up abit? Or was it not the place but it was their minds?

I'd say it could have been a combination of both. The environment they lived in probably contributed to their mental instabilities and it only got worse. I would also believe that Eric and Dylan wasted too much time and effort pursuing the wrong kind of girls.

aquillina wrote:

ultraviolencelv wrote:

Kiwik wrote:

Forgot to add Eric's appreciation for nature, his fascination with the night sky. Most teenagers are into materialistic superficial things and don't see that far past their own small spaces, and overlook the natural world. It's a shame neither of them could find others that appreciated or shared these things that were important to them. Could have steered them in a different direction.

Do you think it's a result of where they were? Conventional Littleton, in Columbine High? Say if they were in another school and they found the right group of friends, girls they could continue seeing, people thought their interests were cool. Would it have bucked things up abit? Or was it not the place but it was their minds?

I'd say it could have been a combination of both. The environment they lived in probably contributed to their mental instabilities and it only got worse. I would also believe that Eric and Dylan wasted too much time and effort pursuing the wrong kind of girls.

I agree with this. I think a lot of things factored into this. It didn't help that they lived in a small town where the majority of the residents had a very closed minded mentality, and from what I understand were kinda pushy with religion. Plus not all teenagers are self aware or even aware of what's going on in the lives of those around them, and they shouldn't be expected to be. I think E&D would have benefited from help from adults who have been where they were, learned from their experiences and gained perspective from it. I don't think other teenagers could have helped them unless they found some very mature, wise beyond their years old soul types who "got" them haha. Its possible that if they had gone to other schools they would have found more like-minded people or been more accepted, but of those schools were in the same area it's likely they would have run tnto similar problems.

ultraviolencelv wrote:

Dylan's the guy for the lazy nights out under the stars and Eric's the guy for a mission wrecking things and going on the run.

BTW both of these sound like a blast haha

Kiwik wrote:

ultraviolencelv wrote:

Dylan's the guy for the lazy nights out under the stars and Eric's the guy for a mission wrecking things and going on the run.

BTW both of these sound like a blast haha

Oh yeah I would so go on a date with either one of them. HeeHee

I mean honestly after a couple of discussions, be it if it's in hindsight or not, I've always thought to myself that there's nothing completely wrong with the boys. In fact they're just like any other teenage guys if not better with how stable their lives were, how smart they were, they were funny, they probably looked better than most guys, they had potential...I really wished I knew why. Why couldn't they have sat back and thought about everything they should be grateful for, that everyone else goes through the same amount of insecurity and self-esteem issues, just a little bit more time to get the hell out of there and prosper to a young adult. Why the hell not? But who am I to say. The fault in their minds or the wiring of their brains didn't do them justice. If they felt they were doomed, no one could help them.

Unfortunately with their sense of entitlement it caused them to view the world like it did not treat them the way they should be or give them what they wanted, they are angry at everyone like it was everybody's fault, and yet they snap back to the other realisation where they end up hating themselves and kicking themselves for not being enough.

A lot of it just boils down to basic teenage emotions I guess. You really don't have a whole lot of life experience at that age. They don't have the perspective to compare their lives to others'.

For example, one thing that really bothers me about Eric is how he had such a hard time dealing with loss. His family moving so much and him having to leave all his friends behind against his will really seemed to traumatize him. He himself described it as the worst feeling in the world. If he was so affected by leaving people behind and never being able to see them again, imagine how traumatizing it would be for him if someone he cared about passed away. I imagine him handling that far worse than just moving away from his friends. He even was frantic over his dog being sick and being worried that he would pass away.

I guess the point in trying to make is you would think for someone who was sensitive enough to be traumatized by loss, how could he go on to inflict that pain on others - including his own family, who he did seem to care about? I don't think he ever experienced the loss of anyone important to him due to death. I think if he knew personally how ultimately painful It is to mourn a death, he might have had second thoughts about nbk. It kinda goes to show the lack of perspective they had, and what most people with similar life experiences have at that age.

Kiwik wrote:

For example, one thing that really bothers me about Eric is how he had such a hard time dealing with loss. His family moving so much and him having to leave all his friends behind against his will really seemed to traumatize him. He himself described it as the worst feeling in the world. If he was so affected by leaving people behind and never being able to see them again, imagine how traumatizing it would be for him if someone he cared about passed away. I imagine him handling that far worse than just moving away from his friends. He even was frantic over his dog being sick and being worried that he would pass away.

I guess the point in trying to make is you would think for someone who was sensitive enough to be traumatized by loss, how could he go on to inflict that pain on others - including his own family, who he did seem to care about? I don't think he ever experienced the loss of anyone important to him due to death. I think if he knew personally how ultimately painful It is to mourn a death, he might have had second thoughts about nbk. It kinda goes to show the lack of perspective they had, and what most people with similar life experiences have at that age.

That's perfect. Thank you.

EDITED

Thank you [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]. I like your insight.

Have we not had it confirmed that Dylan did stink? I wouldn't be surprised if he was always walking round in that coat and his big boots - especially in the summer

Lol I said before that Dylan might have stunk, or had a distinct smell at least, and his friends got so used to it that it didn't bother them esp Eric.

If I were to meet the two of them in my school I would probably see Eric as arrogant and ignorant.

I would probably stay aware from him and avoid conflict with him, I know afew people that remind me of him and I have done those things for them.

As for Dylan, I would probably be friendly towards him, if he was weird and awkward I would ignore it and be friendly. I know people like that as well and thats how I would react.

In relation to the proper question I think that Dylan to me seems more likable because he is sorta like that kid that things didn't go his way. As for Eric I see him as that kid that always wanted things to go his way but when they didn't things got messy.

I don't know what people who admire or take some sort of interest into them would think but from a researcher and purely researchers aspect I feel as if Dylan is the more likable one for the above reasons.

If you sympathized with them then maybe you might like Eric more as he has a lot of things to be sympathetic for.

Draw_It_White wrote:

Have we not had it confirmed that Dylan did stink? I wouldn't be surprised if he was always walking round in that coat and his big boots - especially in the summer

He may have. His mother stated he was clean and if she did his laundry his clothing was probably clean. His hair did look pretty grubby though. We know he had cleaner fingernails than Eric though on the 20

Draw_It_White wrote:

Have we not had it confirmed that Dylan did stink? I wouldn't be surprised if he was always walking round in that coat and his big boots - especially in the summer

Well if you count the nicotine then there's really not much left to explain.

Dylan must've smelt like nicotine/weed, natural hair grease and that musky men B.O that's not too terrible but just the kind you can get a whiff off of a t-shirt that hasn't been washed in two days.

I wonder why so many people assume that Dylan had poor personal hygiene. (Not that I am convinced that he was absolutely neat and clean, just wondering.)
Yes, his hair looked untidy, but it was because he had just begun to grow it out - in this "already not short, but not long yet" phase, one's hair can look really messy. No matter how often you wash it. I experienced it myself.
But has anyone - who knew him in person - mentioned that he had an unpleasant body smell? At least, I haven't read about it.
Big boots and long coat at summertime - oh yeah, it is a common problem for dark souls (sorry for the irony, I experienced this problem too.) But is it really true that Dylan insisted on wearing these items, even when the weather was hot? Does Mrs.Klebold write anything about it? (It is more than possible that I failed to read the necessary docs.)

I think I have read somewhere that classmates thought he had bad personal hygiene because of how he looked so, you're getting somewhere. Someone could just look grubby but they aren't. I haven't read an account yet that said he straight up stank.

Awwwww, this says so much about prejudices.

I'm absolutely certain there were reports about him smelling foisty.

Seriously this conversation is really starting to crack me up.

I think there are actual accounts from witnesses stating that Dylan had dirty/greasy hair. As far as smell goes, I read reports that several people confused Dylan with another kid named Robert Perry, who supposedly did have bad hygene. They said Robert Perry smelled like B.O. and apparently also had bad skin and teeth, so that could be where the bad smell rumor started?

Moonshadow wrote:

I wonder why so many people assume that Dylan had poor personal hygiene. (Not that I am convinced that he was absolutely neat and clean, just wondering.)
Yes, his hair looked untidy, but it was because he had just begun to grow it out - in this "already not short, but not long yet" phase, one's hair can look really messy. No matter how often you wash it. I experienced it myself.
But has anyone - who knew him in person - mentioned that he had an unpleasant body smell? At least, I haven't read about it.
Big boots and long coat at summertime - oh yeah, it is a common problem for dark souls (sorry for the irony, I experienced this problem too.) But is it really true that Dylan insisted on wearing these items, even when the weather was hot? Does Mrs.Klebold write anything about it? (It is more than possible that I failed to read the necessary docs.)

His Mom said in her book that even thought she thought his hair looked unkempt that he always kept it clean.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] is right. I am aware of the Robert Perry mix-up, so maybe the account of funky cold medina smell is robert and not Dylan.

Well I guess if you leave out the tobacco, Dylan smelled pretty natural as with any guy. I guess the scientific term for it would be pheromones?

aquillina wrote:

I guess the scientific term for it would be pheromones?

That, and Androstenol. "Androstenol is the scent produced by fresh male sweat, and is attractive to females." I love me a whiff of natural pheromones and androstenol LOL. No but really, men have a distinct natural odour of something like that and some more noticable than others. Does that mean they're more horny?

Wasn't someone on this board in contact with Brooks Brown's parents at one point? Maybe they can get the parents to ask Brooks if he remembers anything about Dylan having an unpleasant smell haha. I think that's probably as close to knowing as we're gonna get unless someone else here has connections to people who actually knew Dylan.

But honestly I still stand by the theory that the smelly Dylan rumors came from him looking like he had dirty hair and people confusing him with that Robert Perry guy. I actually looked up a picture of Robert, and he does share a very slight resemblance to Dylan. I could see where people confused the two, especially since they were supposedly both around the same height and build and had long hair.

I guess I feel like Dylan would be a bit smelly because of his laziness. Wearing the same clothes, smoking, maybe not showering or cutting his hair....

Perhaps he really was clean though. We will never know.

Poor Robert Perry was always picked on though. I feel terrible for him.

I don't know if it's my imagination or not, but I think that time when brooks answered questions on tumblr- screenshots still online, didn't someone ask him what the boys smelled like and he said he didn't remember? As in I think someone asked him that actual question. But I could be making it up.

ultraviolencelv wrote:

I don't know if it's my imagination or not, but I think that time when brooks answered questions on tumblr- screenshots still online, didn't someone ask him what the boys smelled like and he said he didn't remember? As in I think someone asked him that actual question. But I could be making it up.

Someone asked and I can't remember the exact answer but he was quite sarcastic in his reply so I wouldn't take it too seriously.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] This thread. Scroll a little down, oh someone asked him what Eric smelled like and yup, sarcastic answer.

ultraviolencelv wrote:

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] This thread. Scroll a little down, oh someone asked him what Eric smelled like and yup, sarcastic answer.

Ah right. Eric smelled like a huge sigh. He should know what he is in for opening a AMA on that site.

Lol a huge sigh though. He's such an ass hahaha

ultraviolencelv wrote:

Lol a huge sigh though. He's such an ass hahaha

He wants to be in the spotlight so he opens that AMA then gets annoyed when the fangirls want to ask him questions like that. I do find him hilarious sometimes though.

Ya know I wonder if Sue realizes all the fangirls her late son has garnished. Do you think she would be amused and entertained or disgusted?

aquillina wrote:

Ya know I wonder if Sue realizes all the fangirls her late son has garnished. Do you think she would be amused and entertained or disgusted?

I am sure she knows about them. I doubt she gives it too much headspace but I would be uncomfortable with it if I was her.

good question [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]. I suggest making a thread on that alone, up to you, cause I've yet to ponder about an answer.

I bet Eric smelled like laundry detergent. With his crisp tucked in shirts and hatred of stained up clothes haha

Yeah. We know he hated people who don't believe in personal hygiene. Any other components than detergent? E.g. hair styling gel, deo spray, smell of ammunition or the metallic smell of weapons on his hands... anything?

I think Eric smelled like detergent or fresh linen, and a whiff of soap perhaps? I think when you're next to him he just smelled fresh. Had to be linen and soap. He hardly smoked and he was a clean freak so, it was either from fresh linen to nothing. He might've smelled like nothing - some people are just like that haha. He looked so wet behind the ears hahah!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] I bet some of Eric's favorite smells were ammo and that metallic smell that you mentioned, but I doubt he himself smelled like that on a normal basis. I agree with [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] and assume based on his preferences and the tidy way he kept himself, he probably just smelled like clean laundry. Although I've read that he did have quite a messy room so he might not have been as squeaky clean as we assume.

Not gonna lie when I was a teenager I kept myself smelling fresh and had a slight problem with people that had poor hygene and smelled bad (and could help it), but my room was a total disaster!

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.] what else could I say? Just grinning

I relate to Dylan more than I do eric. Eric's Journal is more enjoyable than Dylan's and his IMs with that one girl is almost scarily similar to how my IMs would be at that age. Like Im pretty sure ive had that exact same conversation with multiple people.

I really do think my "likability" is linked to which one I would rather be. Dylan also looked like more of a man. Eric didnt. Often the case when we were all in highschool. My looks in HS bother me a ton because I always looked like a boy. Which made me want to act out more.

For me Columbine was a place of comfort. As sick as it sounds its true. And now that Im older Columbine brings up a lot of questions about the outside world and about myself.

Im glad i never acted on those feelings.

Really both are relate-able just Dylan more so

Spac3case wrote:

For me Columbine was a place of comfort. As sick as it sounds its true. And now that Im older Columbine brings up a lot of questions about the outside world and about myself.

Same goes for me. Columbine has helped me grow somehow and learnt more about the issues of people, of life, loss and togetherness.