Absurdly behind most Americans, I have recently read Michael Shaara's Killer Angels. Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain blows me away. (I now have to see the movie Gettysburg, which I also missed.) What astounds me is that this is a real individual, as heroic and fine as any fictional hero of fantasy or anything else. No, he was not such a great husband, but what an amazing man! Perhaps Shaara's picture of him is a bit starry-eyed, but he convinced me.
What is it about a hero that leaves me spell bound and gasping? Men can be admirable in many different ways, but few are admirable in almost all ways. Rarely, except in fiction, do I come across men with the qualities of leadership and courage, good sense and virtue that Shaara attributes to Chamberlain.
How many of you have been inspired by a hero only to discover through your research their clay feet? Certain characters in my work, like Captain John Smith, suffered under my close scrutiny. Have any of your heroes kept their bright luster the deeper you delved?
What is it about a hero that leaves me spell bound and gasping? Men can be admirable in many different ways, but few are admirable in almost all ways. Rarely, except in fiction, do I come across men with the qualities of leadership and courage, good sense and virtue that Shaara attributes to Chamberlain.
How many of you have been inspired by a hero only to discover through your research their clay feet? Certain characters in my work, like Captain John Smith, suffered under my close scrutiny. Have any of your heroes kept their bright luster the deeper you delved?