tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post7206309834086339574..comments2023-06-15T09:13:45.467-04:00Comments on Liberty's Torch: Hero HungerFrancis W. Porrettohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05862584203772592282noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-7659698170891790472020-01-16T01:19:26.984-05:002020-01-16T01:19:26.984-05:00There is a hero that fits your criteria. He exists...There is a hero that fits your criteria. He exists in one very popular novel. But because I think it is clear the author did not intend for him to be seen as one, I need to name him: Eddie Willers. <br /><br />A long while ago I specifically <a href="https://pascalfervor.blogspot.com/2010/07/ayn-rand-loved-titans-not-mankind.html" rel="nofollow">criticized Ayn Rand for it</a>. Too bad most all those who so adore her fail to see the significance that her intended heroes were almost as cold-blooded titans as the elitist she came to be. <br /><br />Had any fans gone to their deaths defending her novels as Willers did defending Dagney's railroad, she would hardly have acknowledged them for anything but fools. You see Rand had the decent, hard-working and loyal Willers torn to shreds by a mob as he defended his boss's railroad not knowing Dagney had abandoned it <b>as she didn't bother to inform her childhood friend and closest employee</b> not to bother on her account. <br /><br />Rand was a powerful writer, but that deliberate act of callousness is a horrid one -- to the extent that her influence could be deadly for those who might live under the thumb of one of her acolytes. Consequently one ought to hold a healthy wariness of her movement and foundation. <br /><br />Despite what Rand intended to convey with <i>Atlas Shrugged</i>, I think Willers fits your criteria of the lesser character who acted heroically. In a way he still is a strong unintended hero -- serving as a warning against Randism.Pascalhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00303025432356543062noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-41485489139003576242020-01-15T14:16:13.514-05:002020-01-15T14:16:13.514-05:00Thank you for the reference. Of course what I lik...Thank you for the reference. Of course what I like to read also colors what I tend to write. My characters can be gray or driven by simple motives like survival. But I do like to write heroes who do heroic things for heroic reasons too, folk like Kreg and Kaila form my Knights of Aerioch, or Dani from Dhampyre the Hunter, folk who, when it comes right down to it, will step between the defenseless and those who would do them harm simply because it is the right thing to do.<br /><br />Whether I succeed or not, is for others to judge, but I do try.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-4794065879969758922020-01-15T08:06:55.236-05:002020-01-15T08:06:55.236-05:00So I scanned through my library looking for books ...So I scanned through my library looking for books with heroes that match your criteria. I have lots of books with heroes, but relatively few that fit the given requirements. Here are a few that stand out to me:<br /><br />Lord of the Rings (of course) - Samwise is the real hero of the story as he is the only person in the entire world who is able to resist the lure of the One Ring (Tom Bombadil doesn't count as the One Ring doesn't affect him at all).<br /><br />Terry Pratchett's Carpe Jugulum, a Discworld novel, has a key moment at the end with the awesome quote, "Let's make it one." The newly minted hero swings his newly blessed axe to behead the villainous vampire.<br /><br />David Eddings' Belgariad series has Durnik, who mostly follows along the adventure because he is in love with one of the main characters make a heroic sacrifice at the end that turns the tide in favor of the hero.<br /><br />Finally, we have Coll Ohmsford from Terry Brooks' Scions of Shannara series. He's mostly along to support his brother, who possesses real magic while Coll has none. However, Coll is the only one who can wield the MacGuffin in the series and thus plays a pivotal role in the climax.<br /><br />Lord Squirrelhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08324390481197233147noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6557458849091969678.post-68191886584217012102020-01-15T07:37:19.384-05:002020-01-15T07:37:19.384-05:00Safe to assume you've read Campbell's &quo...Safe to assume you've read Campbell's "The Power of Myth" among others?NITZAKHONhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04110716447757507226noreply@blogger.com