Who are your heroes and why?

Is there such a thing as a straight, flawless hero? I doubt it very much. If that person existed, wouldn't they be the most boring git on the planet? Who's interested in Mr Perfect? The examples you give of actors with failed marriages or explorers who leave loved ones behind are fair enough but why exclude them from hero status because of those apparent flaws? I can't think of a hero off the top of my head but I wouldn't knock a suggestion back because they weren't perfect.

I must be being obtuse. I just heroism on actions...not the whole package. I have heroes who have definitely been in low places. But it's those miraculous moments when they levitate from the pile, doing something wonderful, that gives them their hero status in my eyes. You can't find a perfect person...but you can find a person who has had a perfect moment. I have too many heroes to list.

Heroes with one exception listed below, will never be flawless. Thousands spring to mind. They are fighting fires, or crime, or putting their lives on the line in foreign countries to protect us. They are perfecting delicate surgery, at great personal sacrifice to themselves, or putting their lives in jeopardy to explore outer space.

About the only "unflawed hero" (notice my tongue in cheek) I know of is Roy Rogers. Careful now, don't jump on my main man. For many years Roy and I rode the range, whipped the bad guys, and kissed the horse on the nose. He was a example for good for millions of children.

Heroes abound, and I'm sorry you're having trouble finding them. As a journalist I got tired of hearing a movie star or an athlete called a hero, when the real heroes of the world live next door to you and live quite lives of inspiration to those around them.

Now for a few names to join Roy: Eugene Armstrong, John Glenn, my Uncle Jake (WWII), the fireman who caught the baby a desperate mom tossed from a burning building, Captain Kangaroo, Steve Allen, my Uncle Leland (WWII), and don't forget Uncle Charlie (WWII), President Ronald Reagan, President Harry S Truman (who had the courage to drop the A bomb and save thousands of U.S. soldiers' lives), George Washington (who turned down the chance to be a king), Robert E. Lee and U.S. Grant, Chris Fields (the fireman thrust into the limelight when he held a dying child at OKC), and Aren Allman, the child's mother who defined grace under pressure, Lou Gehrig, the baseball great whose name became the byword for a horrible disease, who told a crowd of fans as he stood at death's door, "Today, I feel like the luckest man in the world.", Charles Lindberg, the Apostles Peter and Paul, and of course, the greatest hero of all to Christians, Jesus Christ, considered the flawless human, and still one of history's most interesting personalities. He certainly had more impact on the history of the world than anyone else.

Golly, they're everywhere. Hope this helps spur your search, and good luck in your hunt.

Now, you're one of my heroes for asking the question in this post.

I've got to agree with the other posters - heroes aren't necessarily flawless. I have a segment at the end of my first book where my MC struggles to come to grips with that very concept, but I digress.

I think a hero for someone is a perception (not always justified or realistic) that brings them inspiration to make themselves better. They would be someone to look up to, or to look at as a role model - even if just in a particular aspect of their lives.

It's that concept that makes me not *want* a hero to be perfect. If they're perfect, than they're too much better than I am for me to realistically want to emulate their behavior - they don't give me something to strive for because it's too far to go.

As Chisem said, heroes are everywhere. You might even be a hero for some people!

Amiton.

How would you guys answer these questions? Who are your heroes? And why?[/quote]

My most current heroes are the two gay men who chased, caught and subdued an intruder in their bed and breakfast business,on the weekend. Anybody who puts aside their fear in order to do what is right is a hero to me.

expatbrat said:

I’m trying to work my way through Donald Maass’ “Writing the breakout novel workbook” and the first exercise is to list “who are your personal heroes” and then “what makes this person a hero or heroine to you?”

First two questions in the workbook and I can’t answer them. I honestly don’t have any heroes.

There are plenty of people I admire but all of those people have some weaknesses in some part of their lives disqualifying them from hero status. Like movie stars with failed marriages, drug addiction, unbalanced lives and poor relationships with their kids. While I admire their achievements in a part of their lives they certainly don’t have lives I would trade mine for. Sporting champions who have skipped education and relationships to achieve what they have. Adventures who have sacrificed limbs and adventure partners, who have left their families for months on end while they selfishly go climb Everest or cross the Artic, a desert or an ocean. I can admire some of the actions of people (and I love reading about them), but there really is no one person I could say has lived a heroes life. No one person who could really be called a hero in all aspects of their life.

How would you guys answer these questions? Who are your heroes? And why?

Click to expand...

My heroes would be people who, despite their flaws, kept going and living their lives. They don't, IMO, have to be big names or stuff like that, but basically they have to have, as some would say, fought the good fight.

A good example in my own life would be my Grandpa Martien. When he passed from this Earth, he had suffered from Parkinson's Disease for several years. To my knowledge, despite his tremendous suffering, he never gave up until the last.

Another good example would be my Grandma Dooley. A more wonderful woman you would never meet. She kept her good attitude until the day she died. Always positive. Always willing to be of help and inspiration.


People like that are my heroes, because they fought the good fight and did not give up. There are others in my own life, but those are two of the brightest examples of what makes a hero to me.

I agree, with Kevin. My heroes don't reside on pedestals. They are the people who snag their skin on barbed wire while stepping on the lower line and pulling up on the upper line so everyone else can climb through unscathed.

I'm not sure why anyone would choose a movie star as a hero anyway, unless he or she has done some other, more worthy thing, outside the profession. Nothing really heroic about acting, imo.

My heros (not all of whom I'll list) are just people who have done admirable things. They aren't super human, just regular human. Terry Fox (the one-legged Canadian who tried to run across the country to raise money for the disease that took his leg), my mum (the strongest woman I know, personally), Carol Shields, my friend Lisa (the 2nd strongest woman I know), Marie Curie.

janetbellinger said:

My most current heroes are the two gay men who chased, caught and subdued an intruder in their bed and breakfast business,on the weekend. Anybody who puts aside their fear in order to do what is right is a hero to me.

Click to expand...

I didn't know those guys who caught up with me were gay. Yeeaach!

When I see a thread like this or hear a similar conversation, I'm reminded of that old lament, "Where have all the heroes gone?" The question suggests there are no more heroes. While the term "hero" is often overused, the idea that are no true heros today is faulty.

If we disqualify every hero-candidate because they're flawed, then we must discard the entire human race, and reduce the term "hero" to the level of myth and legend.

Heroes can't be identified in part by an absence of flaws. However, many times they can be recognized by acts of courage, selflessness, and sacrifice in the face of great adversity, despite the presence of obvious flaws.

"Hero" is such a subjective tag. Sometimes, a person is proclaimed a hero by one person, while another observer merely sees a situation in which the "hero" merely did what was expected, when expected, as expected. Some may argue that there's nothing much heroic when one looks at it from that perspective. I disagree. Fire fighters are "expected" to rush into burning buildings while most any sane individual runs in the opposite direction. Does public expectation make the fire fighters act any less heroic?

This particluar fire fighter drinks to excess in his off hours, chain smokes, curses like a Jersey longshoreman, and hates puppies. Does that make him any less a hero? I think not. He also carries the scars from second and third degree burns on his torso, both legs and arms, "won" during an incident in which he saved three people during an apartment fire. He got a tin medal from the city (about the size of a quarter, hanging from a swatch of blue velvet and a diaper pin for a fastener. The scars and neverending pain from a dozen skin grafts will serve as a better reminder of his service than any medal.) Charcter flaws? Yeah. Do they negate the act of heroism? In no way.

Maybe the issue is one of degrees of heroism. I know a few real life heroes. Their actions may or may not not fit the ideal of "heroism" by another person's definition. These "heroes" may not fit ones notion of the ideal role model. Doesn't matter. Each of those few folk placed themselves at risk in some manner without personal regard for themselves, in order to serve humanity or some other "higher cause."

In the coming year, many of us will likely pass someone in front of a grocery store, or on a sidewalk bench. We'll walk by a scruffy looking character, look down our noses, and quicken our step, trying to ignore an unkept appearence or the odor of cigarettes and stale spirits. We'll never know that we just left a real life hero in the rear view mirror. We'll see the exterior faults, but never know the inner spirit of heroism

We won't reconize the clothing store clerk as a hero because he or she won't have a sign hanging from their necks, or a tattoo on the forehead proclaiming "I'm A Hero!" They seldom talk about deeds, or present themselves in a exhalted light. If you happen to know about the heroic deed and try to engage thm in coversation reagrding the event, they'll downplay events, change the topic of conversation, or ignore you. For every hero who's paraded out in public view, a dozen linger in the shadows or anonymity.

Heroes are still with us, and I hope everyone has an opportunity at some point to meet and come to know one. There's something special, and perhaps indefineable about them, but you may have to search long and deep to see it. There's also something very familiar about them. They're human, flaws, scars, warts, and all.

I've gotta go with the rest of you on this one. No hero has ever been perfect, but that does not negate their heroics. And most of the heroes we hear about from history have been blown way out of proportion, as if their deeds demand they should have personalities to match. A hero, nine times out of ten, did not get out of bed planning to make a hero of himself. He showed up, and stepped forward when everybody else stepped back.

A few of my personal heroes (other than the historic ones):
--My grandfathers, one of whom served as a bombardier on a B26, the other of whom was an auto mechanic and no less a hero for it
--One of my squad leaders, killed in action in Iraq a year ago; he was on his way out of the Army when we called him back, and we never heard a word of complaint from him
--My father, who gets up every day of his life and goes to work helping sick kids get better
--My mother, who has stuck with him for almost forty years in spite of his being a complete workaholic
--My mother-in-law, who juggles her dying father, her husband, two daughters and their small children, and her own health issues with never a complaint
--My wife, without whom I would be completely worthless
--My seven-year-old son, who brings me the newspaper classified ads and says "Hey, Dad, you want to see if there's a writing job in here?"
--My three-year-old daughter, who gives the best hugs in the world

Just a few.
HN

My hero? Two words:

Tom-Cruise.

Pretty cool, eh? (God I love that word cool.)

I may not like what I see in his personal life, but the roles he plays give me goose bumps. I still remember the Ridley Scott movie Legend. He was pretty darned good. And then Top Gun. Ahh, yes. His movies are like a living experience for me. Who wouldn't want his troubles in Eyes Wide Shut?

If it wasn't for him, I'd probably be oodling over new Johnny Depp's releases. Ah hell, I still do anyway. He's in cool movie roles too that I enjoy watching. The Ninth Gate, anyone? It made me buy the book, which was boring.

I reject the notion of heroism altogether.

I wonder what those questions have to do with writing a breakout novel?

If fictional characters count...

Oh wait, they probably don't. D:

My personal heroes that have nothing to do with historic people, well, all but for one:

Jesus/God of course.
My husband. He is my personal hero. If it weren't for the first hero, I wouldn't have the second.

And as crazy as this sounds, myself. I am my own hero as well. There are a lot of reasons, none in which I really feel to go into. But, there it is.

My dad.

He knows why, and I know why, and that's all that really matters.

chaostitan said:

My dad.

He knows why, and I know why, and that's all that really matters.

Click to expand...

Well said.

My granny is my hero, for reasons too numerous to list. I told her once that she was my hero, and she told me she wasn't good enough to be anyone's hero. If I could be one-tenth as good as she is, I would be happy.

Ditto, southern_girl! My Grammie was and always will be my hero. She went to work in a lumberjack camp in Upstate NY at 16 (1926) to help feed her 8 sibs back on the farm, and only got tougher and cooler as she went along. She was the best no-$hit gal I've ever known. Well, my daughter (who is a LOT like her) comes awfully close.

On a less personal note (this is a writing forum, after all), Janet Fitch is my latest hero: her 2nd book is brave and beautiful, and if I can ever write half as well (or be half as honest doing it) I'll be happy. Plus, she's just cool! Go listen to her read and talk about writing, and try to tell me I'm wrong.

expatbrat said:

I’m trying to work my way through Donald Maass’ “Writing the breakout novel workbook” and the first exercise is to list “who are your personal heroes” and then “what makes this person a hero or heroine to you?”

First two questions in the workbook and I can’t answer them. I honestly don’t have any heroes.

There are plenty of people I admire but all of those people have some weaknesses in some part of their lives disqualifying them from hero status. Like movie stars with failed marriages, drug addiction, unbalanced lives and poor relationships with their kids. While I admire their achievements in a part of their lives they certainly don’t have lives I would trade mine for. Sporting champions who have skipped education and relationships to achieve what they have. Adventures who have sacrificed limbs and adventure partners, who have left their families for months on end while they selfishly go climb Everest or cross the Artic, a desert or an ocean. I can admire some of the actions of people (and I love reading about them), but there really is no one person I could say has lived a heroes life. No one person who could really be called a hero in all aspects of their life.

How would you guys answer these questions? Who are your heroes? And why?

Click to expand...

Buddha is my hero for spitting in the face of temptation. He probably had flaws, but no one remembers what they were.

Gandhi is my hero for sticking to his guns and not bending to pressure. He was *certainly* flawed.

Bradford is my hero, though you've never heard of him, because he is what he is with no fear. His fingers are shaped oddly and he doesn't eat enough. Sometimes he just goes too far.

Who said heroes were flawless?

My heroes include Marie Curie, Nellie Bly, and Amelia Earhart.

And the English teacher I had in 8th and 12th grades. He had lost his wife and kid in a car accident when he was young and had never gotten over it. He had hoped to teach college but never quite managed to pull his life together enough. Most of the kids in his class couldn't wait to get out of it. He was sad, acerbic, and bitter. It was common knowledge that he drank too much.

But he taught me how to realy read. Use of language. Character arc. Plotline. Theme. He made me read Red Badge of Courage and To Kill a Mockingbird and Death Be Not Proud. He taught me how to understand Shakespeare and Tennyson and Yeats. He taught me that classics are classics for a reason, even the ones you don't enjoy yourself. And that it's OK not to like everything considered a classic. He made me realise that I could string words together, too, even if he did wield a wicked red pencil.

You don't have to be a perfect human being to be a hero. We wouldn't have any at all, if that's what was required.

My greatest hero is yet unsung, but I think and hope oe day he'll be remembered beyond the realtively small circle that knew him. He was a German doctor, named Hugo. He lived in India for about 20 years, following a spiritual calling. Part of that calling was to tend to the sick, which is what he did more and more in his final years. Word spread, and every day outside his home there used ot be a long line of sick Indians. The hospital. After that he opened a school, an orphanage and several other projects, all with donations form supporters from the West. People came to volunteer to help, spending all their money and free time to build it up. He was the lovingest, strongest man I ever knew, th emost inspiring person I;ve had the good fortune to meet. Everyting about him was love. He contracted cancer and continued his work though fatally sick. He never lost his humour; he never stopped inspiring people. He died about two years ago. At his death anniversary last July thousands of Indians, the poorest of th epoor, came from miles away, sometimes by foot, to honour him. He never sought fame or fortune. He was just there to serve. He was a true man of God. Just meeting him made you believe.