What is a Hero?

J_Chemist

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Take away the bland, fairy tale definition for a second. Take away the magic swords, the gilded shining armor. Remove the party and the demon or whatever evil they have to face.

Define what a Hero is. Just the person. The individual. What do you believe makes a Hero?

Is it their choices? Their decision to do "the right thing"? Is it the way that they help others, save lives, and protect those who cannot protect themselves?

Or, is it their selfless attitude. The unending "giving" of themselves, their time, and maybe even their lives?

Take away the typical trope of smiling, golden boy or girl who can do no wrong. It doesn't even need to be on a scale of World Ending. Maybe it's just the man who pulled someone off a ledge. A person who saved a kitten from drowning. A parent who took the time to listen to their kid before it was too late. A firefighter who took off his oxygen mask and gave it to someone who was trapped in a blaze.

When you think of a Hero, what comes to your mind? How do you define the pedestal?
 
D

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The definition of the word "Hero" can be skewed depending on a person's perspective.

Here's an example. Take a normal war between humans and demons. For most people, it's white and black, good and evil, the right and the wrong. To the demons who might be persecuted by their oppressors, the "Hero" the humans believe is just and righteous may very well be a villain to them.

When I think of a hero, I think of someone who stands for their own ideals and is willing to purse them valiantly. Because whatever you do, not everyone is going to look at you the same way. They'll always find reasons to put you in a bad light. But for the ones who see the good in the actions you'll do—those are the ones truly worth protecting.

I'd go on about morals and whatnot, but that's just another talk I'm too lazy to go into. :blobreading:
 
RepresentingDesire

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My definitions for a hero are:

Someone who protects the status quo, depending on the scenario he/she/they sacrifices something personal.

Someone who performs helpful acts to a entity (group, organisation, state, family).

The ways and reason need to be good to the status quo or/and entity.
 
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LilRora

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I don't really have a rigid definition for that. For me it's got a lot to do with sacrifice and selflessness, but NOT with kindness or something like that. That's actually a thing that often pisses me off when I read various stories, but I'll just say that a true hero doesn't care about others' opinions or wants, but acts based on their conviction that they're doing the right thing without expecting anything in return.

The problem with that is, it's very subjective. A person who's a hero to one can be a murderer to another, and those are not exclusive, with the simplest example being the classic hero against demon lord scenario. It's questionable if the hero is an actual hero according to the above criteria, but that's not what I want to focus on - the thing is, the hero is definitely going to be as far from a hero as he can be to demons.

Why that is important is that just the fact that being a hero is heavily subjective makes it impossible to properly define who a hero is. It depends on values of the person who judges the hero.

Because of that, since now it's me judging the hero, my opinion is going to be detached from any actual real or fictional hero dilemma. I say that a true hero, in a broad meaning, is a person who sacrifices something of their own (most often it's life, time, effort, and uh, harm? not sure how to say that other than they put themselves in harm's way for other people) for other people without expecting anything in return - if he is for the people in question though, that's a different matter.
 
RepresentingDesire

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LilRora said:
I don't really have a rigid definition for that. For me it's got a lot to do with sacrifice and selflessness, but NOT with kindness or something like that. That's actually a thing that often pisses me off when I read various stories, but I'll just say that a true hero doesn't care about others' opinions or wants, but acts based on their conviction that they're doing the right thing without expecting anything in return.

The problem with that is, it's very subjective. A person who's a hero to one can be a murderer to another, and those are not exclusive, with the simplest example being the classic hero against demon lord scenario. It's questionable if the hero is an actual hero according to the above criteria, but that's not what I want to focus on - the thing is, the hero is definitely going to be as far from a hero as he can be to demons.

Why that is important is that just the fact that being a hero is heavily subjective makes it impossible to properly define who a hero is. It depends on values of the person who judges the hero.

Because of that, since now it's me judging the hero, my opinion is going to be detached from any actual real or fictional hero dilemma. I say that a true hero, in a broad meaning, is a person who sacrifices something of their own (most often it's life, time, effort, and uh, harm? not sure how to say that other than they put themselves in harm's way for other people) for other people without expecting anything in return - if he is for the people in question though, that's a different matter.
Click to expand...
That's the reason I defined my hero meaning so vaguely.
 
D

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There are many qualities I can think of, but the one that speaks to me the most is ...

That when they fail, they can stand back up... and try again, to try to find a way to overcome. That indomitable mental fortitude.

Even when it looks hopeless, even when the "hero" themselves doubt any possibility of a solution... they will put on the facade so there could be "hope", whether they succeed is the nature of the narrative.

But "be the light in the dark" comes to mind.
 
forli

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In the context of fiction, a hero is someone who acts with good intentions and has an overall positive effect on other people.

If the intentions are bad but the result is good, it's an anti-hero.

If the intentions are good but the result is bad, it's an anti-villain.

Naturally, people might disagree on what counts as 'an overall positive effect on people', and that's where all the moral complexity comes from.

Lorelliad said:
Here's an example. Take a normal war between humans and demons. For most people, it's white and black, good and evil, the right and the wrong. To the demons who might be persecuted by their oppressors, the "Hero" the humans believe is just and righteous may very well be a villain to them.
Click to expand...

I know I should be used to it by now, but I cannot help but keep noticing everyone seems to have casually accepted that a 'normal' war between humans and demons has the demons being persecuted and the humans as the 'oppressors'...
 
ThrillingHuman

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A person who dedicates themselves to the greater good of the world.
Being selfless or not is unimportant. People who act to make a better world do it because they want to live in a better world, they want a better world. Do they want to be remembered? Perhaps. Do they not want their lives to be in vain? Certainly. Is it truly selfless then? Who cares.
 
D

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J_Chemist said:
Take away the bland, fairy tale definition for a second. Take away the magic swords, the gilded shining armor. Remove the party and the demon or whatever evil they have to face.

Define what a Hero is. Just the person. The individual. What do you believe makes a Hero?

Is it their choices? Their decision to do "the right thing"? Is it the way that they help others, save lives, and protect those who cannot protect themselves?

Or, is it their selfless attitude. The unending "giving" of themselves, their time, and maybe even their lives?

Take away the typical trope of smiling, golden boy or girl who can do no wrong. It doesn't even need to be on a scale of World Ending. Maybe it's just the man who pulled someone off a ledge. A person who saved a kitten from drowning. A parent who took the time to listen to their kid before it was too late. A firefighter who took off his oxygen mask and gave it to someone who was trapped in a blaze.

When you think of a Hero, what comes to your mind? How do you define the pedestal?
Click to expand...
Someone who blindly follows his ideals to the point of death or danger. At least, he's a hero in his eyes, and his followers.
 
forli

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Generic.Archdemon said:
*nods
I think I have seen great mix of variations, I think that trope might be in the cannibalization stage of its life cycle.

Iirc. Play the trope straight -> play in reverse -> hybridization -> deconstruction-> cannibalization -> divergence or evolution or regression
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The heck is the 'cannibalization' of a trope?

I've never heard that term before and I can't find anything in google.
 
Tempokai

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Hero is the one who puts everything he owns towards the greater goal and people recognize it for his actions
 
NotaNuffian

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A hero is an idiot I guess?

Because the first thing that came pop into my head was Nana Shimura.

We sacrifice things to live; time, joy, etc.

Heroes sacrifice a lot more. A LOT A LOT MORE.

They are the ones that I do not inspire to be because I am a cunt. But ones that I wish to know of.
 
D

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forli said:
The heck is the 'cannibalization' of a trope?
Click to expand...
It not on Google, because I just made it up, like just moments ago on the top of my head.

Hmmm...
If
Play it straight is - human good, demon evil, war.

Reverse is - actually demons are victims, humans bad

hybridization - actually the bad one are the third party? Ghosts, lol ancient evils, gods, so both humans and demons are good? Victims?

deconstruction - humans are good. ~ but are they really? what makes them good? Demons are evil.. but are they, what makes them evil what are monsters are they sentient, can they speak, what are monsters? Do they weep for the deaths of their children?

cannibalization - take a used system, human good, demon bad, I know you know that i am setting it up for a reversal reveal, and you know I know you know, so actually it's not, there is actually no trope reversal, the reveal is that is is play it straight trope, lol.
... or.. is it? Maybe ghosts... boo!

divergence: stop having inter racial war?

Evolution: make it a Diplomatic, social economic conflicts or make conflict a domestic unrest?

Regression: self explanatory
 
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NonKawai

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In the world of everything, I find the 'hero' to be someone who firmly stays on their belief yet changes when deemed necessary. When everything is changing, they forces their way upstream. Morality is the 'face' of hero and actions done for being preserving their morality are the 'emotion'. However, the 'heart' of hero is ... ???(Maybe the motivation or inspiration which gives strength to the hero. Something that can change their morality.)
 
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vzymmer

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Hero = selfless meddlesome busybody.

The older diefinition of hero is a brave man.
My definition of a hero right now is "someone who is needed".
 
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