My favorite heroes that we have discussed have to be the most recent heroes such as Martin Luther King Jr., Ghandi and Melba. I like talking about heroes that we can identify and say that they have done something for us. If not for those three heroes, we would not have equality or freedom among the races. Being able to see that these ordinary people were able to make a change in our world, helps to make them heroes. I would have loved to talk more about the generic super heroes and compare them with today heroes. Most people know who superman is and batman, but not everyone can say exactly why they are heroes. It would be interesting to see them from a literally standpoint during class rather than just pure entertainment. Maybe looking at the original comic books from Spider man would help to give us a better understanding why we should consider him a hero, and why so many people already do.

In the first blog, I talked about Jenny Finch, and knowing what I know now, I do not think that Finch would fit into our generic definition of a monomyth, however I would still considered her a hero because she has changed the way people look at the game of softball. By the ordinary person, Finch would probably not be considered a hero, however, knowing that she has helped develop not only a stronger reputation for softball but she also increased the level of play. I would have to characterize her as a folk hero, although she does not have any fatal demise or tragic fall. However, she is a hero in that sense that she helped women in softball as well as women in sports.

My favorite heroes we have discussed and learned about these past three weeks would for the most part be the completely non-fiction characters like Gandhi, MLK, and Melba. I’m just more someone who is drawn to non-fiction because you can actually and more easily connect to them as real human beings. Of course there were heroes we didn’t get to discuss, but in a three-week course I think we hit in the major ones. Completely biased here as a big sports fan I would liked to have seen us cover someone like Roberto Clemente or Pat Tillman, heroes classmates have mentioned before.

Looking back at the hero I discussed in my first blog post, Bo Jackson, the monomyth I would say absolutely applies to him. He very much had a journey in playing both Baseball and Football and then coming back from a devastating injury that no athlete has every come back from before. As far as the greater good benefiting, we as sports fans saw these brief few years of one man dominating two sports and the physical and athletic specimen that his is. That was some would say a blessing to see. I would say Bo Jackson is and Epic Hero, but with an asterisk. The asterisk is because he in sports and an athlete. I think we are to quick to jump to say an athlete is a hero.

My favorite hero that we have discusses is V from V for Vendetta.  I like how he has a very unique set of skills that he applies to a just cause.  He uses some fighting skills only when he really needs to, he prefers to use his mind to fight against the oppressive government.  He is intelligent and he knows the and fully utilizes it.  He makes the revolution happen by not just doing what he has to do, but trusting others to do what he thinks they will do.  He is seen as a terrorist by his government, yet the people thought of him as an icon that would do what is necessary to create freedom.  In this course I would have liked to see us do more on reluctant heroes.

For my first blog of this class I talked about Mr. Incredible from the film The Incredibles.  There is certainly a monomyth here.  The story of him is somewhat tragic to start, but by the end, he is an epic hero.  As an epic hero people know who he is when they see him, he does not have to say his name.  He could also be considered as a folk hero by the people that he saves, this is because he is a super hero type.  The public would talk about him in a great amount of exaggeration.

After these three weeks of class and all of the different things I have learned about our heroes, real and fictional, my views on heroes have changed. Originally, one of my favorite heroes of all time was Braveheart. I loved his drive for revenge and how he fought with nothing to lose, but now I have a new favorite hero, Melba, from “Warriors Don’t Cry”. She was part of the Little Rock Nine, the first African Americans to attend a white school in Arkansas. Melba was just a young teenage girl who was mostly unaware of the significance of her situation. With the guidance of her grandmother, she was able to resist lashing back at those who mocked her every day. This display of courage was much bigger than her. Knowing this, she did what she had to do to help rid segregation in schools and set a foundation for young men and women like herself to build off of.

            What I have learned is there are all different kinds of heroes, and there were not any that we did not talk about that I cannot now interpret and dissect on my own. I went back and looked at who I chose as my hero for our first blog. I chose Derek Jeter because I believed he is a great role model on and off the field and he inspires many to believe in what they do and succeed. I believe he is a cultural hero for his influence on our society. No matter how little his actions may seem when compared to some heroes, he himself has overcome challenges in his life, and has made decisions to now help others in need through volunteering and charity work.

Most of the heroes that we learned about were interesting.  My favorites were V and Melba.  Before this class I had never seen V for Vendetta before.  I had heard mixed views about the film, but never got a chance to watch it.  I found the movie to be extremely interesting and well done.  The story line made a lot of sense and it was easy for me to understand what an anti-hero entails through this film.   I also found the character of V to be stimulating.  I found myself wanting to know more about him and wanting to understand his reasoning.

I also really liked Melba.  She was one of my favorites because even though she is known for being a hero, she wasn’t afraid to admit being scared to commit the heroic acts.  It is easy for me to see her as a human, rather than a superhuman.  Melba faced a lot of hardships and managed to make it through.  She helped to change the world, which is amazing.

The first hero that I wrote about was Simba from The Lion King.  I think that Simba can also be classified as a reluctant hero.  Although he did go back and save his family, it took him while to get there.  When he originally left Pride Rock, he had no intentions of coming back because he thought he was responsible for his father’s death.  Once he was asked by Nala to go back, he hesitated, but followed through and ended up saving his family.

This course has opened my eyes to what makes up a true hero and has caused me to look at protagonists in films differently. My favorite heroes over the course of ENG 255 were V from V for Vendetta and Atticus from To Kill A Mockingbird. V opened my eyes to what it means to truly fight for a cause close to one’s heart. I felt bad for V but then again I envied him. He was dealt a horrible hand in life but was such a dynamic and outstanding hero. The movie was long but it had my full attention the entire time. I got lost in his story and from the first moment he was introduced I found myself cheering for him. It was crazy how one man could cause that much change but like he said “ideas never die”. Walking away from that movie I learned some great sayings I will use for the rest of my life.

Atticus from To Kill A Mockingbird captured my heart and attention just as V did. Atticus was a hope in the unseen. He stood up and fought for what was right even though he knew he had no chance of winning. He was courageous and put everything on the line for what was right. If everyone had a little part of Atticus in them and they let it show the world would be a much better place for it. Atticus could have fallen in line and just did what everyone else did but he stood up for what was right even though he was basically standing alone.

The only other heroes I would have liked to discuss were comic book heroes like Hancock or Iron Man. These are the heroes that truly grasp my attention and I would have loved to analyze them. I think Hancock should be added to the required viewing list. In my first blog, I looked at the character of Storm from X-Men. Storm is an epic hero based on the criteria we discussed but her monomyth is not as developed as some of the heroes we discussed. Storm is famous because of he role in X-Men. She was born with her powers, it is her destiny to use them to help people whether she wants to or not, she has enemies who try to kill her and she has had some romance over the course of her stories. Storm is a hero well worth analyzing and dissecting.

My favorite hero discussed in class this Winter-Term was Sir Gawain from Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. I found him relatable and humble. I appreciated him risking his life for King Arthur without being asked to do so. His Monomyth was the most interesting and it prompted a discussion between chivalry and love that was enlightening. As far as heroes not discussed in class, I think it might have been interesting to incorporate some recent films like from the James Bond or Harry Potter Series. It might be beneficial to have a survey on the first day of class asking students about some famous films and seeing how students interpret the heroes in these films. It would be a nice reflection at the end of the semester to see how much students have learned.

My very first blog post was about Captain America. I would categorize him as a folk hero because in the Avengers he was frozen in ice for hundreds of years and this is an example of a hyperbole. He also understands the average everyday American and is a champion for America. Captain America’s Monomyth is the he outlives time and continuously reappears in America during tough times to help promote pride in the Nation.  I think the class would have still considered him a hero and he would have been a good discussion had we talked about him in class. He could also be considered an anti-hero in some regards.

During the duration of this class I discovered that there is much more to being a hero than I originally thought. I was naive in thinking that the term hero was really only directed to comic or film heroes. I have encountered many qualities that are described as heroic and the many types of heroes that actually exist (i.e.: Epic, Anti, Folk, Tragic, etc.) My personal favorite hero we analyzed would be V in V for Vendetta. Even though he wasn’t the perfect hero, he was a symbol of freedom against oppression, and that really speaks of heroism to me. I believe that we covered a plethora of heroes, but I thought we might have studied the Greek hero, like Hercules, a bit more in class; although I realized that we only had a limited time during this semester and could only cover so much.

            When I look back on my first blog post about which hero I was able to identify myself with, which was Wonder Woman. A monomyth can definitely be applied to her with her travels from her isolated homeland to the current population and experiencing brand new things along the way. I would categorize her as an epic hero for not only her amazing powers, but for her mental and emotional strength in all aspects of life. She would easily be considered a hero in many aspects, but I also believe it is difficult to find a flaw in her as well; and while she is a great role model to look up to, it sometimes may be hard to relate to her.

Through-out the entire course we have discussed many different heroes and hero types. I have learned a lot of information that helps me classify many different types of heroes that I did not originally view as being a hero. My favorite heroes that we discussed in class were V from V for Vendetta and Atticus Finch from To Kill a Mockingbird. I really liked how V was not afraid to do what he believed in no matter who was looking or what people thought. He had a mission that he wanted to complete and was going to complete it no matter what anyone said to him. No one was going to stop V and I think that shows great courage and determination, because he was doing what he set out to do no matter who got in the way. I feel like Atticus Finch has some of the same characteristics as V, because Atticus was doing what he thought was right in representing a black man. I think this really defines both of them as heroes because they were willing to do whatever it took to get their job done and working for what they thought was right.

Looking back I feel as though Bubbles from The Powderpuff Girls could be placed as a reluctant hero. She is the average girl out of the three sisters, but when placed into an extraordinary situation she excels and takes the role as a hero. I feel as though that she fits well into the criteria of a reluctant hero and could be a great example. As for another hero that we did not get to look at in class, I would probably say the teachers who were involved in the Sandy Hook shooting who died protecting their students. I do not think that heroes such as them are talked about as much as they should as well as the soldiers that have fought and are fighting for our countries. I think the average everyday people should be factored in more to the being a hero because people place their lives on the line on a daily basis and deserve more credit.

Like many others, V is certainly my favorite character that we discussed. I just enjoyed the way he went about his vengeance. It was brutal, brilliant and also perfectly justified. He is extremely polite and smart, and yet he is also terrifying because of that.

Two heroes I would have liked to discuss would have been Neo from The Matrix and Rorshack of Watchmen. I think Neo brings an interesting perspective because he pretty much is thrusted into becoming a hero rather than him doing it completely on his own, as well as talking to an Oracle that tells him the choices he will have to make. Rorshack is interesting simply because he is such an anti-hero and a brutal one at that.

In my first blog I compared myself to Batman. I think certain parts of the Monomyth can be applied in that Batman had to travel to a different location in the world to train his body and mind. He then emerges as a completely new being. If one had to categorize him as a hero I guess they might say he is a folk hero or an anti hero. He is a regular but above average man but also fights for no individual in particular and is considered a vigilante. Gotham is the city he protects but no one understands his motives but him, alfred, robin and gordon.