What is the true definition of hero?
The word “ Hero ” is not strange to people at all.
In the modern world, there are many superhero movies, such as Spiderman, Iron Man and Justice League. Those superheroes in the movie always save people’s lives and protect the social order. After watching those movies, people will gradually raise their own impression of what the hero will be like and they will form a general idea of the characteristics of the hero. Moreover, movies are not the only way to come into contact with the ideal “hero”, such as books and real life, and the “hero” is not just an imagination. This means that not all heroes have to be born with the superpower.
They are called “heroes” because they are doing their best to save people’s lives, which will be considered as one characteristic of the “hero”, however, if they use their superpower to do something harmful to the society, they will be considered as evil.
It is tremendous to know the characteristics of the ideal “hero”. In this paper, I will use The Tale of Genji and The Records of Ancient Times as two major sources to analyze general patterns of “heroism”.
To begin with, the willingness to protect people and the social order is one of the general characteristics of the ideal “hero”. According to the Ancient of Time(712), Susanowo, who is the son of Izanagi and Izanami, protected people who lived in the land of Izumo from the threat from the eight-forked serpent of Koshi.
Who is the best Batman ever?
After hearing the miserable lot from Foot Stroking Elder, child of the deity Great Mountain Possessor, the Susanowo decided immediately to kill the eight-forked serpent of Koshi to terminate the violence. After making a considerate plan, Susanowo killed the serpent by using his Kusanagi sword. Then, Susanowo gained the respect and became the true “hero”. This story highlights the significance of the willingness to protect people.
Actually, the people in the land of Izumo have no direct relationship with Susanowo.
So it is not an obligation for Susanowo to kill the serpent and save people’s life. This means that the motivation for Susanowo to help is his willingness of protection. He cared about those people who he had never seen before so much that he would do his best to kill the serpent to prevent the Foot Stroking Elder from the loss of his daughter.
Moreover, there is a poem from Susanowo: “Eight clouds arise / The eightfold fence of Izumo /. To dwell with my wife I make an eightfold fence / Oh, that eightfold fence”（PPT lecture Session 3, slide 8, January 16, 2018). This illustrates explicitly that Susanowo was happy to live with his wife in the land of Izumo. It also implicitly indicates that he indeed cared much about his wife. He made an eightfold fence in order to protect his wife, which reveals his “heroism”. Furthermore, the willingness to care for other people is always more valuable and praiseworthy than the act of protection itself.
In addition, the courage to take the responsibility is considered as one of the general characteristics of the “hero”.
When people make a choice or take some actions, it is common that their choice or actions will affect others. Differing from the normal people, “hero” is always willing to accept the consequences. I will use the story of the “Shining Genji ” to support my argument. “Where is she? Give her to me without letting people know. It would be wonderful to have her as a keepsake of the lady whose loss is so hard to bear” (McCullough 20). This conversation was between Genji and Ukon. Genji retained Ukon and asked her to bring Yugao’s daughter to him, attempting to raise her by himself because he assumed that the death of Yugao was related to the jealous Rokuju Lady. If so, the death of the Yugao would also be his fault. This conversation shows Genji’s noble character.
Actually, it is not necessary for Genji to raise Yugao’s daughter. Nobody forced Genji to do that. Genji decided to foster Yugao’s daughter of his own accord, which indicates that Genji was not afraid to take the responsibility for his act.
The desire of responsibility is plausible and admirable by bringing some positive effects and diminishing some negative effects on others’ lives.
Next, a unique and self-assured personal seduction can be regarded as one of the general characteristics of the “hero”. The distinct personal seduction of the “hero” can attract the people’s attention and make it easy for the “hero” to gain the support, advocacy, and appreciation. That is also why the “hero” can be distinguished from hundreds of people. Compared to normal people, the “hero” is more reliable and their words are often more convincing. I would like to use the story of “Shining Genji” to strengthen my viewpoint. “Genji danced “The Waves of the Blue Sea.” His partner, To-no-chujo, was extraordinarily handsome and confident, but he was like a nondescript mountain tree alongside a blossoming cherry” ( McCullough 20).
This excerpt shows that Genji was so charismatic that nobody could be on a par with him.
Moreover, “ That night, Genji was granted senior third rank, and To-no-chujo received senior fourth lower rank”（McCullough 20). Due to his unique personal charisma and extreme beauty, Genji gained more appreciation and power than To-no-chujo did, which will be more beneficial for him to influence the era and people around him. His unique personal seduction makes people feel more trustworthy of him.
To sum up, the ideal “hero” is obviously different from normal people.
The hero is called “hero” because he or she has a unique and self-assured personal seduction which makes him more reliable and infectious.
Moreover, the hero always has the willingness to help people get out of trouble. And the courage to take the responsibility for his or her acts and words. What’s more, keeping good faith is also considered as a characteristic of the ideal “hero”. The “hero” will never let the people around him or her down. The “hero” or “heroine” is all around us in our daily life.
Back To News
What is the true definition of hero? Bibliography
McCullough, Helen, trans. Genji and Heike: The Tale of Genji and The Tale of the Heike. Stanford, CA: Stanford University Press, 1994. Print.
Robert Borgen and Marian Ury. The Journal of the Association of Teachers of Japanese, Vol. 24, No. 1 (Apr., 1990), pp.61-97.
What is the true definition of hero?
