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The hero archetype is a character who saves people, does the right thing, and fights monsters. It originated in ancient Greece and has evolved over time. Heroes are strong in physical and moral character, with special skills to aid their good works. Variants include action heroes, superheroes, would-be heroes, and anti-heroes. Examples range from Achilles to Harry Potter.
The heroic archetype is a literary or cinematic character who is good all round. He or she will save people, do the right thing, protect what is good, and fight every monster that gets in his way. They are one of the basic paradigms in tales and mythology around the world, but particularly in European culture. Such examples of the hero archetype range from Achilles to Beowulf to superheroes like Superman and the action heroes of the 1980s.
The roots of the hero archetype go back to ancient Greece and the beginnings of many polytheistic and animistic religions. They are based, like many other archetypes, on folk tales related to gods and ancestors. Over time, the attributes and deeds of these ancestors have changed as stories are repeated from generation to generation. These social developments are related to Carl Jung’s ideas about archetypes and collective dreams.
There are a number of basic characteristics to the hero archetype. Traditionally, the hero is strong in both physical and moral character. They may have special fighting or intellectual skills that allow them to function as a hero. This ranges from martial arts skills to knowledge of weapons. They are moral and do good. They don’t have to be intellectual giants, but they are skilled and resourceful while doing the right thing.
Hero types include action heroes and superheroes. The action hero doesn’t have to be special, but he fights to defeat the main villain. Action heroes were common in the 1980s and early 1990s with action stars like Bruce Willis, Dolf Lundgren and Arnold Schwarzenegger. Superheroes like Superman and Spiderman tie back into more mythic heroes like Hercules, who have special abilities to aid their good works.
There are also types of the hero archetype that deviate from the traditional mold. JK Rowling created Harry Potter in a different way than many other heroes. Harry Potter is small and slender compared to the traditional hero. He has many of the tropes of a hero, like tragic backstory and birth, but remains small and weedy. However, he retains the strength of character to be a hero.
Other variants of the hero archetype include the would-be hero and the anti-hero. The would-be hero is a wide-eyed idealist who, due to lack of skill or the wrong circumstances, fails to become a hero. He or she often looks up to the main hero. The would-be hero often dies heroically trying to emulate the hero. Examples include Don Quixote and Boone in “Lost.”
The antihero is a character lacking many of the good qualities of the hero. Often they do the right thing in the end, but their lives and personal histories are more dubious and less wholesome than those of Superman or Spiderman. The antihero is often morally compromised. Examples include Ender Wiggins of “Ender’s Game” and Sam Spade.
