A Great Hero
This is a repost from 2008...
Boy, do I love heroes. Especially the dark and brooding ones. But whether moody, cold, or boy next door, heroes should have one thing in common.
They're NEVER perfect.
A good hero needs some flaws. Not necessarily anything truly evil and not something annoying. But something to make them real. Something to make their sacrifice/choice/good deed truly heroic.
Being a hero shouldn't be easy. It should come with a price.
I wrote earlier about the movie 3:10 to Yuma. The villain helped the hero out by getting on the train to go to jail, but it wasn't a heroic move. At first glance, or if you'd missed some dialogue, you might think so. But the villain, good old Ben Wade, (yes, the mark of a great character is that days later I still remember his name) is not a hero for a reason. He'd already admitted to escaping from that particular jail before. Twice.
So his actions, while making him likeable, did not make him heroic. There was no real cost.
Dan (the hero), on the other hand, is giving up everything. For what? His honor? The respect of his boy? Justice? What creates a truly compelling hero are his choices throughout the story. When things get tough, when he's torn between his weaknesses, his needs, and what he knows is right, he chooses the good way.
Makes me think of Jeremiah 6:16
". . . ask where the good way is and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
Want an incredible hero? Flaw him, hurt him, and then have him choose the right way.
How do you write an awesome hero? Who is your real-life hero? Your favorite fictional hero?
Boy, do I love heroes. Especially the dark and brooding ones. But whether moody, cold, or boy next door, heroes should have one thing in common.
They're NEVER perfect.
A good hero needs some flaws. Not necessarily anything truly evil and not something annoying. But something to make them real. Something to make their sacrifice/choice/good deed truly heroic.
Being a hero shouldn't be easy. It should come with a price.
I wrote earlier about the movie 3:10 to Yuma. The villain helped the hero out by getting on the train to go to jail, but it wasn't a heroic move. At first glance, or if you'd missed some dialogue, you might think so. But the villain, good old Ben Wade, (yes, the mark of a great character is that days later I still remember his name) is not a hero for a reason. He'd already admitted to escaping from that particular jail before. Twice.
So his actions, while making him likeable, did not make him heroic. There was no real cost.
Dan (the hero), on the other hand, is giving up everything. For what? His honor? The respect of his boy? Justice? What creates a truly compelling hero are his choices throughout the story. When things get tough, when he's torn between his weaknesses, his needs, and what he knows is right, he chooses the good way.
Makes me think of Jeremiah 6:16
". . . ask where the good way is and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls."
Want an incredible hero? Flaw him, hurt him, and then have him choose the right way.
How do you write an awesome hero? Who is your real-life hero? Your favorite fictional hero?
Comments
Does that mean I can be a hero, too?
*grin*
How do I WRITE an awesome hero? I'm still trying to figure that out lol
Great post, Jess! (going to conf in Sept????)
Favorite fictional hero...Alexander Kinloch from Dick Francis's novel To The Hilt.
Erica, that's so sweet about your hubby. I've never read the book you mention, but I think you've talked about it before?
Julie, your husband too? Wow! I'm impressed with all the super-hubbies out there. *grin*
Hahaaa, Jaime, you're makinig me drool.
I wish I was going in Sept. *sigh* If you want, you can pray my husband sells a million-dollar house, and then I could go. LOL
Oh, and Edward Cullen. Yep. I like me some Edward. :)
The guy who gives his life at the guillotine in place of a convicted man whom he resembles, is my kind of hero. Especially considering that he does it so the lady he loves can marry the convict, after she rejected the hero. Wow.
Angie, lol, charming is, imo, debatable. *grin*
Relatability...good point Talli. That's the point of flaws in our characters, right?
Blessings for the weekend,
Karen
I also like Sam in The Lord of the Rings. He has tons of flaws, yet he persevered and became a hero, a quiet one.
Great post.
Scarlett!!!
patti
How do I write a flawed hero? Well, I give him something painful in his past that has led to some weakness in his present which he'll have to overcome for the heroine in some way.
Who's my real life hero? My sweet hubbie-pie.
Fave fictional hero? I would have to say Mr. Rochester in Jane Eyre. He is SO flawed and wounded, yet his love for Jane so heart-wrenchingly desparate, he lies to her about something monumental from his past then ends up losing her for his efforts. He practically wastes away while pining for her until she finally comes back, at last making him whole. Sigh...