5. hero Definitions noun ( plural ) -roes a man distinguished by exceptional courage, nobility, fortitude, etc. a man who is idealized for possessing superior qualities in any field ( classical mythology ) a being of extraordinary strength and courage, often the offspring of a mortal and a god, who is celebrated for his exploits the principal male character in a novel, play, etc Word Origin C14: from Latin hērōs, from Greek

6. The Tragic Hero defined by Aristotle The tragic hero is "a [great] man who is neither a paragon of virtue and justice nor undergoes the change to misfortune through any real badness or wickedness but because of some mistake.“ a) a great man: "one of those who stand in great repute and prosperity. The hero is neither a villain nor a model of perfection but is basically good and decent. b) "mistake" (hamartia): This Greek word, which Aristotle uses only once in the Poetics, has also been translated as "flaw" or as "error." The great man falls through--though not entirely because of--some weakness of character, some moral blindness, or error. We should note that the gods also are in some sense responsible for the hero's fall.

7. “Unconsciously we all have a standard by which we measure other men, and if we examine closely we find that this standard is a very simple one, and is this: we admire them, we envy them, for great qualities we ourselves lack. Hero worship consists in just that. Our heroes are men who do things which we recognize, with regret, and sometimes with a secret shame, that we cannot do. We find not much in ourselves to admire, we are always privately wanting to be like somebody else. If everybody was satisfied with himself, there would be no heroes.” ― Mark TwainMark Twain

8. “What makes a hero? Courage, strength, morality, withstanding adversity? Are these the traits that truly show and create a hero? Is the light truly the source of darkness or vice versa? Is the soul a source of hope or despair? Who are these so called heroes and where do they come from? Are their origins in obscurity or in plain sight?” ― Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Notes from UndergroundFyodor Dostoyevsky Notes from Underground

9. “I have a private theory, Sir, that there are no heroes and no monsters in this world. Only children should be allowed to use these words” ― Alfred de Vigny, StelloAlfred de Vigny Stello