Essay: Idealized Heroes in History

Sample Essay

The Roman and Spartan ages glorified soldiers as people’s champions due to the martial nature. The more severed heads they brought, they more they secured their place as heroes in the eyes of the populace. Christianity’s birth brought out a new kind of hero, a symbol of piety and selflessness; the saints took over the mythical seat left by their predecessors. The martyred saints gained the love and attention all across the globe as a heroes began to show signs of humanity and empathy. Whilst the medieval age viewed artists, intellectuals and rebels as heroes, Shakespearean heroes began to emerge men filled with great virtue and character. And so the traditional hero of age started that lasted until the industrial revolution.

The medieval age invoked a new breed of heroes. These brave, noble, proud and honorable knights and warriors pitted their lives against all odds to save the meek from the clutches of evil. The Arthurian age of heroes was born thus and heroes such as King Arthur, Sir Gawain, and Beowulf were idolized.

Heroes of the modern age took a new definition. They were men of character and virtue yet burdened with the load their responsibilities and afflictions. They whimpered and hid behind their supporting characters in times of trouble. Thus the age of Byronic Heroes begun where heroes or the protagonists (as that’s what they were turning into) portrayed men of high intellect and capabilities but with no regard for laws or society. They were depicted as rather anti-social. The romantic and modern age turned heroes into mere protagonists, the centre of the spotlight quite unlike the heroes of the old age with their traditional rescuing the damsel in distress tactics.

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