Magawisca demonstrates her heroism early on in the novel when she tries to defend the Fletcher family from being massacred. She tries to intervene, against her father’s wishes, because she feels connected to the family she even states that she “bleeds when they are struck” (65). After being unsuccessful in saving Mrs. Fletcher and her two younger kids, she is determined to help Everell escape the same fate. When Everell is about to be sacrificed by Mononotto’s, Magawisca interposes her arm just as Everell’s neck is about to be struck with his hatchet, and her arm is lost during the process. Magawisca’s bravery and selflessness undoubtedly makes her a hero within the novel despite her gender or race. The other hero of the story is Hope who …show more content…
“is a young woman of a unique and independent spirit, in fact ‘nothing could be more unlike the authentic, ‘thoroughly educated’ and thoroughly disciplined young ladies of the present day, than Hope Leslie” (Viana). Hope, unlike Esther who was submissive, passive, and blindly followed the puritan rules, directly challenged the patriarchal system that was ran by puritans, and she challenged authority regularly. Hope’s first heroic deed comes when she offers to suck the blood out of Cradock’s snake bite, although Digby does not allow her to do so because it would be to dangerous, it shows how brave and selfless Hope is. Hope officially becomes a hero when she single-handedly helps Nelema escape when she is incarcerated, after being falsely accused of witchcraft after healing Hope’s tutor from his rattlesnake bite. Later on, in the book when Magawisca is arrested, Hope is also taken captive by Oneco and Mononotto, but Hope manages to save herself and escape, after Mononotto is struck by lightning and Oneco is forced to go to shore. Hope greatest act of heroism probably comes when she helps Magawisca escape after she is incarcerated. Magawisca was captured after reuniting Hope and Faith, by Sir Phillip Gardiner. Hope initially directly challenged Governor Winthrop and plead to let Magawisca go, but when he refuses Hope decided to take matters into her own hands and breaks Magawisca out. An indirect affect of this is that by helping Magawisca escape, Hope also eliminates the need to retaliate from the Pequod’s, preventing another massacre (Viana). Although Everell was perceived as a hero, as a male he did not demonstrate the same heroic characteristics that were typical of other frontier novels. He possessed heroic elements, but he lacked the will or the impulse to carry out his actions. When the massacre at Bethel was happening Magawisca confronted her father to try to stop the attack, Everell also tried to defend his family, but he was overpowered and when he was captured he resigned any will to live and accepted his fate, the only reason Everell survived was because Magawisca did not give up so easily and she lost her arm while saving Everell’s life. When Magawisca was jailed Everell also tried to help her escape, but he was deterred from doing so when he heard the voices of people approaching. Everell is given another chance to prove himself as a hero when Hope is captured by Sir Phillip and Chaddock’s men, but once again fails to develop into a hero in the story. Everell, unlike the female heroes, also fails to take charge within his own personal life, for example he becomes engaged to Esther despite not being in love with her, because it was what others wanted him to do, so once again Everell simply resigns himself to his situation and just accepts his fate. The only reason the marriage does not take place was because Esther realized that he does not want to be with her and she called off their engagement. Although Everell holds the same good will and self-governing ideas as Magawisca and Hope had, he lacks the motivation to act on these impulses which holds him back from developing into a hero on the same level as the women. A last stereotypical defiance, comes from the fact that often in frontier novels Native American are the bad guys of the story, but in Hope Leslie, Sir Phillip Gardiner, who is a “white, civilized male” becomes the story’s antagonist in the second half of the book (Ross).
Gardiner, unbeknownst to many characters until later into the story, is a rather reprehensible character. Gardiner also does what he chooses, but instead of helping others he opts to help himself; he has no “morals and no scruples, he calculates his every action to further his own nefarious plans” (Ross). Gardiner initially tries to win Hope over, but when she rejects him saying she did not share his same feelings, he decides that instead of respecting her decision he will take her and hold her captive and coerce her to become his mistress. This attitude held by Gardiner makes him the perfect antagonist to this feminist novel, because the way in which Gardiner treats Rosa and the way in which he attempts to possess Hope, it is clear that he views women as objects. Gardiner poses a great threat to women, as he has a history of mentally and emotionally abusing his current mistress, for which he no longer cares for, in fact when Gardiner takes Magawisca captive he audaciously suggests trading Rosa for her liberty. Gardiner suggests that Magawisca takes Rosa with her and give her to Oneco as his new wife and he can let Faith go. Rightly so Magawisca refuses to stoop to his level and instead opts to remain a prisoner rather than to play in to Garnier’s plan, further proving herself to be a hero with good morals. These actions show that Gardiner considers women to be disposable and easily replaceable. Gardiner is portrayed as a typical entitled male who if he is rejected tries to take what he wants by force. Another interesting aspect of Gardiner being the antagonist is that Sedgwick made it so that this white male posed more of a threat to Hope, than Oneco did to Faith, once again breaking away from
racist notions that Native Americans were a major threat to white women during this time period. Sedgwick’s novel defies several stereotypes commonly found in frontier romances, and in society at the time the novel was set in. These stereotypes include the portrayal of Native Americans as savages, which Sedgwick defies by providing Native Americans with a voice. With Magawisca as a lead character in the story “Sedgwick provides a more balanced account of the white-Native American conflicts” during the seventeenth century (Ross). She further defies the Puritans racist views by including a mixed-race couple in her story, Faith and Oneco. The couple is loyal to one another and is bound by genuine love, according to Louise Barnett this is “the only interracial couple in frontier romances to achieve a happy ending” (Ross). The idea of women being seen as passive and helpless was also challenged in this novel. The author counters these ideas by assigning stereotypically male characteristics to Magawisca and Hope, making them more heroic, and independent. The two female characters’ bravery drives the story as they were not merely defenseless damsels, they serve as their own heroes. Sedgwick gives “Hope and Magawisca the tools and judgment to act according to their own moral compasses for the good of the community as a whole” (Viana). Sedgwick allows Magawisca and Hope to act on these moral convictions, which makes them distinct from the other characters, including the white males. Sedgwick also challenges the idea of men having to be heroes by having Everell never really transcending that plane. Everell, though he has good intentions fails to act on these intentions and therefore fails to establish himself as a hero within the novel. He also is quick to fold under circumstances he feels are out of his control. Lastly, Sedgwick depicts a white male as an antagonist, with Sir Phillip Gardiner attempting to possess Hope and hold her captive. What Sedgwick does with this character is suggest that white males are just as dangerous if not more dangerous to the women in the story than the Native Americans, once again suggesting that race does not implicitly suggest savagery.
Walk Two Moons: A Heroine’s Journey Many typical adventures in classic novels follow a pattern of events using the archetype, the Hero, which defines the nature of the protagonist’s journey. However, some stories don’t fit the layout of a Hero’s journey. The nature of this story structure often limits itself to the interpretation of a male’s heroic quest involving accomplishments in order to prove one’s masculinity. The alternate story pattern, a heroine’s journey, was created to satisfy the type of journey a female would experience. The heroine's journey defies the general perspective of heroism, instead highlighting the bravery in defying expectations of one’s character and refusing to be held back by the expectations of others.
“The journey toward heroism is a process. This universal process forms the spine of all the particular stories..” (Seger 2). Linda Seger explains that some types of movies have the same idea of having a hero. There’s always a hero, and a mentor who is a wise or old man that teaches the hero on how to accomplish a task. In the movie, The Sandlot by David M. Evans, shows scenes that can follow most of Seger’s 10. Seger is trying to show that most movies can accurately resemble her following ten ways of a movie structure. It is stating that most of the movies will have a hero and mentor that can change the way the movie will play out. The Sandlot attempts to portray the first six of the hero myth by having Scotty Smalls’ friend, Benny Rodriguez,
Have you ever heard of a hoodlum preforming a Good Samaritan act? Well the common stereotype is that hoodlums don’t do anything but hurt the community but two boys broke that stereotype. The Greasers proved to be the heroes in the story, not like the beloved Socs. The three greasers who showed the most heroism are Johnny, Darry, and Dally. This is because they sacrificed themselves to a bigger cause or to save the lives of others.
“Being a woman is a terribly difficult task, since it consists principally in dealing with men” (Joseph Conrad). In the Novel, The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the wife of George Wilson, Myrtle, has been cheating with the married man Tom Buchanan. From time to time they escape to an apartment Tom owns, behind each of their spouses backs. As time goes on Daisy, Tom’s wife, obtains the knowledge from Jordan that her previous lover is just across the bay and waiting to see her again. Daisy begins going behind Tom’s back with Jay Gatsby, tangling the characters in a mess of relationships. Throughout the book, women take important roles and change the story, even ultimately leading to Gatsby’s death.
...Piercy badgers the reader with Comstock's view of women (mostly in the descriptions of his dutiful wife and obedient daughter) to illustrate his sexism, however, the belabored point begins to fall flat and instead leaves the character feeling one-dimensional. Likewise, even men initially introduced to the reader as pro-feminist, like Theodore Tilton, meet with a predictable sexist ending. These men were no doubt chosen to embody the patriarchal society of then and today, but the unyielding portrayal began to feel overwhelmingly oppressive (perhaps her intent) and a novel so based in realism, on that point, began to feel contrived, therefore unrealistic. Nevertheless, Piercy compares and contrasts the experiences of the characters', offering them up to the reader, perhaps in hope that similarities can be identified and a feminist dialogue can be started or continued.
Prejudice towards others who have different heritages and beliefs have led to many people performing heroic actions upon human rights for equality. The German Nazis have murdered over six million Jews and five million non-Jews during the Holocaust between the years of 1943 and 1945. Due to the gruesome Holocaust and the Nazis’ alarmingly violent, unsettling, and questionable behaviors have provoked three individuals who have displayed tremendous heroism upon man-kind. The first individual, Elie Wiesel, Holocaust survivor and the author of the novel Night which is a first-hand account of the Holocaust and the brutality of the Nazis. Elie stayed loyal to his father and did not leave his father’s side. Second, Miep Gies, risked her life deciding
What is a hero? To our understanding, a hero is a person who is admired for great or brave acts. Joseph Campbell, an American mythologist, and writer wrote The Odyssey. In this novel he talks about The Heroes Journey which are twelve different stages of adventure known as the Ordinary World, the Call to Adventure, Refusal of the Call, Meeting the Mentor, Crossing the Threshold, Test/Allies/Enemies, Approach to the Inmost Cave, Ordeal, Reward, the Road Back, Resurrection, and the Return With The Elixir. The Odyssey is about a legendary hero named Odysseus, who fought among the Greeks in the battle of Troy and went through the stages of The Heroes Journey. Odysseus lived in Ithaca, Northwest of Greece, with his wife Penelope and son Telemachus.
The most prominent female character in the novel, Brigid O’Shaughnessy, employs her sexuality, secrecy and mysterious nature when trying to gain more power and control throughout the novel. This can be seen easily in her description at the beginning of the novel. “She was tall and pliantly slender, without angularity anywhere. Her body was erect and high-breasted, her legs long, her hands and feet narrow…The hair curling from under her blue hat was darkly red, her full lips more brightly red” (Hammett, 4). Her physical description gives her an air of sexuality and intrigue that can immediately be assumed will be beneficial to her throughout the story. However, it is not until later when her use of her sexuality can be interpreted as a desperate attempt to take power back from the leading male character. “‘I’ve thrown myself on your mercy, told you that without your help I’m utterly lost. What else is there?’ She suddenly moved close to him on the settee and cried angrily: ‘Can I buy you with my body?’” (Hammett, 57). The desperation, which is a common characteristic that can be seen among hard-boiled female characters, pushed her ...
The influence a hero can have on people is immense because he can inspire and guide them to attain specific goals. In A Lesson Before Dying by Ernest J. Gaines, Grant is Jefferson’s hero and mentor, helping him with a variety of problems in the precious time he has left. As a result of Jefferson’s false conviction and death sentence, he becomes very depressed and does not see any point in trying to become a “true man”. Being called a “hog”, by his lawyer during his trial in the courtroom, also causes him to lose the little dignity and pride he had left further depressing him. In addition, he refuses to learn from Grant and finds any way to make others feel guilty for what was happening to him. This hostility also became directed towards his
Even if they disagree about other issues, all feminists believe patriarchal ideology works to keep men and women confined to traditional gender roles so male dominance may be maintained. Utilizing the precepts of Feminist criticism, it could be argued “The Great Gatsby” promotes a thinly veiled patriarchal agenda. Through Fitzgerald’s treatment of the three women in “Gatsby”, as well as masking the possible homosexuality of a central character, the novel seems to promote only the traditional gender roles, swaying uncomfortably from any possible variance.
An English proverb states, “ A hero is a man who is afraid to run away”. I agree with this proverb, because when you see a hero in a comic book, they have super cool back stories, are not afraid to fight, and stare danger in the face and not blink. They are not afraid of anything. That’s nice to look up to, but they are not real. Our definition of a hero is too much for one man to become, you can do something honorable, heroic, but you will never actually be a hero because it's too much, in real life. Heroes don’t just do it so they can get paid, or respect. What really determines whether someone is a hero is if they choose to do something about it in a bad situation. We have people that do heroic acts, for example, people putting their lives before others. Those people cannot be heroes because they get paid to do it, they are, firefighters, cops, and military, they get paid to help people, so they aren't considered a hero.
...nequality between men and women, rather than reinforcing it. The feminist movement was created to ensure that men do not think that they are in any way more superior or better to women. It is very important for readers to realize that men should not consider women to be inferior to them, but rather treat them equally. The Great Gatsby shows how men during this time period did not believe that women can be independent and knowledgeable. One should value the intelligence in a woman rather than dismissing it due to their gender. The novel redirects the readers to see the terrible treatment of women during the early twenties, and allows them to focus on treating women fairly rather than objects. By reading the story readers should not be careless and biased, but instead see the mistreatment of women and try to play a part in reinforcing equality between men and women.
Throughout history, there have always been heroes. Those strong-willed, brave individuals who perform courageous acts for fame and glory are prevalent in most cultures.. Societies have these heroes as standards of their cultures’ moral codes. Every society has their own definition of these codes are, so a unifying definition of hero can be hard to achieve. However, Philip Zimbardo says “Simply put, then, the key to heroism is a concern for other people in need—a concern to defend a moral cause, knowing there is a personal risk, done without expectation of reward.” With this basic definition, I will be examining various epic heroes I’ve studied throughout the course of my senior year for characteristics. From the copious amounts of studying, I’ve deduced that Achilles, Odysseus, Aeneas, Socrates, Gilgamesh, Beowulf, and Arthur all have characteristics that make them heroic.
Abstract—The “hero” from Harry Potter: The Philosopher’s Stone, is a young book taken from his dull and tedious life and swept off to the fantastical boarding school of Hogwarts. In the Black Cauldron Taran the pig keeper shares a similar situation, he is taken from his life of drudgery and whisked off on an epic journey. Each of these characters goes through similar developments on their quests, and each draws from seemingly mundane beginnings. This type of heroism seems coherent across the two books as well as similar books such as the Lord of the Rings where Hobbits become the most unlikely hero. This provides something that the reader can latch on to particularly in more fantastic books, it allows readers to identify and relate concepts of the hero to their own life, creating an immersive experience. Hero’s are not unique to young adult books, but books with strong archetypes are more popular in young audiences as it gives simplified characters as opposed to more gray writing that might include a Byronic or anti-hero characters. Comparing two similar books from two very different time periods that maintain a similar message of heroism I believe validates the purpose and impact of a hero in young adult fiction.
In F. Scott Fitzgerald's, The Great Gatsby, the main female character, Daisy Buchanan, is portrayed by, Nick, the narrator, only by her superficial qualities. “Guided only by Nick’s limited view of her, readers often judge Daisy solely on the basis of her superficial qualities” (Fryer 43). What the reader sees through the eyes of Nick only appears as a woman whose impatience and desire for wealth and luxury cost her the love of her life, Gatsby. Nick’s narrow perception does not allow one to see that “…[Daisy’s] silly manner conceals a woman of feeling or that her final ‘irresponsibility’ towards Gatsby stems from an acute sense of responsibility towards herself” and that Nick “…clearly does not understand what motivates her” (Fryer 43). One can easily view Daisy as a victim. Fitzgerald distinctly exposes Daisy’s need for stability, which, according to Fitzgerald or perhaps the mentality of the time period, can only be found in a man. “Her need for stability was immediate, and she attempted to satisfy that need through something tangible, something close at hand” (Fryer 51). This “need” that Fitzg...