Artemis Fowl is the main protagonist of the novel and a 12-year-old child prodigy. Dr. Argon concludes the novel by explaining that Artemis Fowl is in fact Artemis’s case file for the Lower 1 Police. He notes that Artemis’s main problem is his “own intelligence” (1). Throughout the novel, Artemis is one step ahead of the fairies as they endeavor to retrieve Holly; this aligns with his own opinion that “what he [does] best [is] plot dastardly acts” (30). Accordingly, he is outwardly confident about his own ability to subvert the time stop and bio bomb, effectively defeating the LEP. Even as his mother returns to improved health, he still plans on continuing his activities, albeit more surreptitiously.

Without his father and with his mother unable to care for him, Artemis is left with little parental supervision, save for Butler who is “the closest Artemis had to a father, albeit one who obeyed orders” (16). While his family’s recent misfortunes and Artemis’s lack of parental guidance can provoke sympathy from the reader, many of Artemis’s deeds emphasize his role as an antihero. He is, after all, committing numerous crimes including kidnapping and extortion.