What is a Hero? What is a hero? Is a soldier a hero? A sports star? A martyr? A president? A bringer of good news? A savior of a people? Is a father a hero, a mother, or a good friend? To be a hero is to be a valiant unknown. They do not achieve great things in order to gain glory, they do not put the needs of others before their own desires solely for the rewards. While mythology is full of “classic heroes,” very few live up to this strict ideal. Heracles, Arthur, and Achilles attempt to achieve heroism. None are successful. Heracles comes the closest to attaining idealistic heroism of any character in mythology. Even though Heracles is ultimately fighting for his own immortality, he performs his labors as a means of repentance and purification. This great Greek hero travels throughout the lands, killing monsters and slaying beasts, working for what seems to be the common good. After all, Heracles was not only cleansing himself of his transgressions but was also saving commoners from these sinister creatures. However, the purified selflessness of Heracles is tainted by the fact that he was truly working to serve his own selfish needs. He performed the labors as a means of freeing himself of guilt, and even this motive is questioned when one analyzes the tale involving King Augeas. Instead of admitting to the king that he was volunteering his services to repay his debt to society, Heracles seeks to preserve his own dignity and asks for a handsome reward. Clearly Heracles is not working for the common good but solely for himself. King Arthur is another classic mythological hero that deserves careful examination. To the casual observer Arthur appears to be a tragic hero, fighting for his people but ultimately being destroyed by his honest heart. However, after closer analysis, the true character of Arthur is revealed in quite a different light. He allows Lancelot to love Guinevere for the sole purpose of maintaining the integrity of the round table, thereby cementing his own domination and ensuring himself complete control of his empire. And when the affair finally becomes public, Arthur is quick to sacrifice his wife and his knights in order to preserve his own dignity. Instead of refusing to pay Rome’s tribute and sending the messengers on their way, Arthur decides to conquer the entire Roman empire. Arthur recklessly fights a superior opponent, driven by his insatiable thirst for glory and riches. His desire for power leads him to wage war on all fronts and his furious ego blinds him from reason. When confronted by Sir Pellinor, Arthur foolishly decides to fight his unknown enemy rather than surrender to him. Arthur’s honor and emotion control his decisions, leading to senseless violence and the crumbling of a kingdom. Throughout ancient mythology, Achilles is the most unworthy character to be emblazoned with the title of “hero”. Achilles’s motives are one sided: honor, riches, and fame dominate his every thought and action. When Agamemnon steals Achilles’s prize of honor, Achilles simply withdraws from battle. This rash decision seriously hampers the Greeks’ ability to defeat the Trojan enemy, and proves to be the cause of ten years of suffering. Even after being presented with enough gold to warm even the coldest of hearts, Achilles refuses to yield. His own stubborn attitude brings about the death of Patroclus, Achilles’s dearest friend and worthy soldier. Only the bitter taste of revenge incites Achilles to take action against the Trojans, whom Achilles saw as responsible for Patroclus’s demise. Once he has slain Hector, Achilles triumphantly parades around the city walls, dragging the fallen hero’s body behind his horse-drawn chariot. Achilles is motivated by glory, and, having fallen victim to hubris, his own strengths are the cause of his own defeat. One likes to think that the past is filled with heroes unrecognized, saviors unnamed, and champions ignored; that the annals of history recall only the villains, the victims, or the power-hungry barons. However, a true hero does not exist, has not existed, and will not ever exist. Because the moment a person looks upon himself with self-pity, the very instant he thinks about his own egocentric desires, his purity is lost forever. One cannot choose to be a hero, and the instant one thinks himself as such he is destroyed. And to lack these self-centered motives is to be deprived of the very thing that makes us human. [Their Eyes Were Watching God] Previous Rant Index Next [The Nature of Inhabitable Planets in the Universe]

Additional Information This essay is attempting to explain the way in which I view human nature in general. As with all other material on this site, DO NOT attempt to turn in any part of this essay as your own. It is the sole property of its author.

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