What Makes A Hero?

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What is a hero? Is it superman? Is it your mom or dad? Is it your teacher? There are many people that are considered heroes. Some are just every day people, and some are super-human. Characteristics of heroes vary from era to era. Now people who are just simply a good person are considered a hero. But, back in ancient times to become a hero took much more. It took honesty, wisdom, and in some cases, wealth and superhuman abilities. With time new stories and beliefs are uncovered. In ancient times there were heroes that we can study today through books. Some of the most well known heroes are: Achilles, Odysseus, Aneius, Socrates, Gilgamesh, Beowulf, and King Arthur.
Achilles was a well known Greek hero. He was a warrior that faught long and hard for his people. He was a superhuman, believed to be part god. His mother dipped him in holy water when he was a child. However, she didn’t get his feet because that is what she was holding him by, which later was the reason for his death, because he was shot in the back of the foot, where we would today call our Achilles tendon. Achilles is seen partially after he has died and gone to the underworld in the book “The Odyssey” by Homer. Here he shows almost a bad view of a hero, and this scene of the novel is frowned upon by many of the Greeks, because it was showing that the afterlife wasn’t something to look forward to. Achilles says to Odyssues while he is down there; “By god, I would rather slave on earth for another man—some dirt-poor tenant farmer who scrapes to keep alive—than rule down here over all the breathless dead.” Here many people don’t understand why Achilles was so unhappy. He lived a very blessed and heroic life on earth, and now he has nothing to show for ...

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Kreis, Steven. "Lectures on Ancient and Medevile History." The History Guide. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2013. . Information on Socrates
Malcolm. "Beowulf." Good Reads. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2013. . Opinions on Beowulf's Herocism
McDougall, Richard. "Aeneas." Cliff Notes. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. . information on aeneas
Stewart, Michael. "Odysseus." Mythagora. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Nov. 2013. . information on Odysseus
Thompson, Diane. "Gilgamesh." World Literature. N.p., n.d. Web. 15 Nov. 2013. . Information on Gilgamesh

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