While he no doubt has an impressive resume, his deeds were not as hard-earned as some may believe. Alexander the Great, many would say otherwise, and would agree that his title is not so appropriate. Alexander the III of Macedon was a young king with an inherited empire, he never had to earn what he had given to him by his father, Phillip the II. A man that never had to work for what gave him his victory sounds like no victory at all. This is just one of the reasons Alexander does not deserve as much gratitude as he is delivered.
It is obvious from the excerpt that the connection between kingship and the divine power is significant; in fact, the divine power grants kingship and without it's approval, kingship is lost. It is stated that whether or not King Shou would win the war and maintain his position as king relied solely on “the gracious decision of Heaven”. It is only “Heaven” that bestows power upon a king and it is only “heaven” that can revoke these same powers. In the case of king Shou, heaven revoked his powers by determining his fate in the war. As described by zhou, “the king of Shang, is without principle, cruel and destructive to the creatures of Heaven...”.
In Grendel, many people think that Unferth is not a hero because he never accomplishes anything and never seems any better than those around him. However, Unferth always had the good intention of destroying Grendel and helping the people around him. Unferth does everything that he can throughout the entire story, which makes him very heroic, although some would argue that he is not. Unferth in Grendel by John Gardner is actually a hero who never gets his shining moment yet he still displays bravery, the want to help others, and integrity. A quality that is present in obvious and hidden victors and that is necessary for any hero is bravery.
Taking on this battle showed the first glimpse of his heroic nature, which describes the unconventional thinking the godly man applied in the midst of danger. Unlike any other hero in that particular time period, Odysseus was an intellectual man rather than a fiercely strong one. He thought before he acted and that is believed to have been his greatest attribute in successfully returning
Miller believed that the shift in the American Dream, into one based entirely on the acquisition of material possessions, was derogatory to society as a whole; it was impossible for everyone to become 'successful' in 1950s America, yet the pressures of consumerism were nonetheless suffered by all. One of the main arguments against Willy being thought of as a tragic hero is that he doesn't undergo all of Aristotle's 'concepts of tragedy'. For example, Willy doesn't experiences a sudden reversal of fortune (Peripeteia) in the play. Though it could be argued that the omission of Peripeteia is to emphasise the hoplessness of Willy's situation with the intention of evoking pity from the audience, adding to the cathartic effect. This lack of sudden change wouldn't also fit in with the play's stark and down-to-earth style; demoralisation of a man is far more commonly a slow-acting process, and an attempt to adhere to Aristotle's decree would have been ultimately detrimental to Miller's fundamental aim for DoaS: to create a play relevant to 'every man' of his time.
Throughout the novel, Gatsby refused to reveal how he came about his wealth for reasons no one knew. Even to someone he apparently appointed as his confidant, Nick Carraway, Gatsby still refused to reveal any secrets about him that would affect his current position. This secret leads multiple superstitions about Gatsby’s work as a: murderer, drug cartel, drug stores, etc. throughout the entire novel. This dishonesty about him leads to people not being able to trust him to the fullest extent, which leads to more cons than pros throughout the rest of his life.
Odysseus boasted about how he won the Trojan War all by himself, without any help from the gods. Poseidon did not like what he heard so he was going to make Odysseus suffer for denying all the Gods. Poseidon took him too many places.
First, in various stories Odysseus is very contradicting to himself because he is only hero-like some of the time. When he and his men were raiding the Cyclops’ cave they could have left before the Cyclops got there and they could have avoided a lot of trouble. But Odysseus wanted to be a hero and wanted to stay and fight the Cyclops. This was a very selfish move of him and ended up being the wrong decision because it cost him a few of his best men. Later when he redeems himself he tells the Cyclops his name is nobody and gets him drunk.
I think that in the movie Little Big Man, General Custer is the most selfish character and his ignorance results in the ruining of many lives. At first, Custer’s grand behavior seems appealing and admirable to Jack. Custer continues to state that he is always right and is angered by those who disagree. Only a self-centered man could have such an outlook on life. It is either Custer’s way or the highway.
I personally define a hero as an individual who is selfless, brave, powerful, and willing to help others. In some ways, Gilgamesh and Enkidu reflect my idea of a hero. Being selfless means that one cares more about others than him/herself. Gilgamesh is the king of Uruk, and as a king, he should care a lot about his people, but in the story, he ignores his own people. Gilgamesh is described as “a tyrant,” a cruel and oppressive ruler.