A person or group who automatically opts for the opposite view, for the sake of being antagonistic, not because they have a good argument or view point.
Gerald: GO ISIS Friend1: Why the fuck is Gerald pro-ISIS? I thought he was part of the FSA?
Friend2: He's Sunni now, he can't make up his mind. His allegiances shift faster than Trump's cabinet reshuffles. He's such a contrarian.
1) A person who disagrees with the mainstream or accepted view because he believes it makes him look good and feeds his ego, not because his argument is well thought-out or rational.
2) A false iconoclast who attacks the idols of truth and social justice in order to bring freedom to the status quo and powerful interests.
3) A person who believes they are staking a claim of intellectual daring by suggesting that progress has harmed society.
That Caitlin Flanagan is a real contrarian, always willing to challenge the notion that women are the intellectual and social equals of men by brazenly daring to send them back to the kitchen.
A property manager or investor who after purchasing property, contrary to the traditional approach of renting it out, burns it to the ground for the insurancemoney.
The rental market in Flint Michigan is so bad only a real estate contrarian could make money.