everyman

plural everymen

1. In fiction, drama, or allegory, the archetypical ordinary individual, frequently the protagonist in a parable of some sort.

   Near-synonyms: man on the street, John Q. Public (see more there)

   3 more examples

   In the novels of John Updike, sometimes Rabbit is his own man, and sometimes he is everyman.

   Eternal Life is now on my trail / Got my red glitter coffin, man, just need one last nail / While all these ugly gentlemen play out their foolish games / There's a flaming red horizon that screams our names / And as your fantasies are broken in two / Did you really think this bloody road would pave the way for you? / You better turn around and blow your kiss hello to life eternal, angel / Racist everyman, what have you done? / Man, you've made a killer of your unborn son / Crown my fear your king at the point of a gun / All I want to do is love everyone

   1995, “Eternal Life”, in Grace (Hard Rock), performed by Jeff Buckley, United States

   Part of his appeal - apart from those insidiously catchy songs - is his everyman persona. He looks and dresses like a fan on the train home from Glastonbury, rather than one of the festival's headliners.

   2026 September 16, Mark Savage, BBC

   Synonyms: man on the street, John Q. Public