In Which The Stranger is Concerned

In many ways, Mersault is a heroic antihero.
>He is unconcerned about his role in a warrior society, despite the fact he killed the Arab.
>He has absolutely no desire to be recognized (In the beginning of the trial, he realizes "Usually people didn't pay much attention to me. It took some doing on my part to understand that I was the cause of all the excitement"(83)).
>Mersault does not care about immortality.
>Nor does he feel particularly worthy and peruse what he does best.
>Obviously, he is unaffected by a desire to not loose face or honor (seeing as he is relatively undisturbed by his-murdering-someone-and-ensuing-trial).

But yet, near the end, he does manage to reach a state of heroism, even by the classical code.
>By the end, the does desire to be recognized, if only to the extent "for a large crowd of spectators...[to] greet me with cries of hate"(123).
>He finds his place in a warrior society--if not as a warrior, in "the gentle interference of the world" wherein he finds inner peace, a solace.

Mersault also reaches a kind-of-heroism beyond the traditional definition:
>He reaches a state of understanding, almost of reconciliation. He realizes that "So close to death, Maman must have felt free then and ready to live it all again. Nobody, nobody had the right to cry over her" (122).
>He refuses to lie throughout the entire story. Whether it be conscious or unconscious, it is there nonetheless. I believe it is conscious—stemming from his realization that "none of it really mattered" (41). This requires a sort of bravery, even if it is buffered by a nonchalant attitude.
>His consistency is also very commendable. Even while in jail, though he is affected, his personality does not range, like Raymond's does.

I also feel Marie is over looked. She seems to have a much stronger personality and be much less fickle than portrayed. As far as we know (it can be inferred as such), she remains true to Mersault even after he a) kills someone b) is put in jail c) remains in jail d) goes through trial and e) is sentenced to death. She visits him in jail and attends his trial. He discounts her quickly by assuming she was now offering herself to "another Mersault." Marie is extremely brave to have held on that long—I don't think any of us (at least me) would have held it against her if she'd jumped ship after Mersault killed the Arab, let alone after contact was cut off while he was in jail. I also think this answers a question about love. Although it doesn't matter if it's there or not (according to Mersault), love is here. Otherwise, how could she have gone through this for a condemned man? I feel that love is ever present, whether it is detected or not; "to me she was Marie" (99).

In Which The Metamorphosis is Concerned

Hmmm....the Hero in The Metamorphosis. An interesting idea.

I did not actually pick out any of the characters as being particularly heroic, or heroic at all. I was a big fan of Grete, Gregor's sister, until she turned around and decided that Gregor was not Gregor and was the source of all their problems.

I suppose the father could be a sort of hero. Due to his new circumstances, he pulls himself up and away from his easy life at home and pushes himself back into the world of work, and suceeds. He places his entire being and soul into his new position and constantly tries to do what is best for his family.

In a way, that is more heroic than the knight in shining armor riding off to save the poor princess from the dragon...

In Which The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man is Concerned

Heroism in The Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man...

There doesn't appear to be what one would label as classic "heroism" in The Artist. No flashing swords. No dangerous fights for honor. No dragons. Yet, despite the fact that a) this was not my favorite book (not my least favorite, but not my favorite), and b) Stephen is in many ways similar to Shawn who I tore apart in my last post on Playboy of the Western World, Stephen does manage to pull of a spout of heroism.

No, Stephen does not appear to search for his identity and role in being part of a warrior society. But he does fulfill other parts of the heroic code. It is indisputable that he follows what he does best--his writing. Through his writing Stephen fulfills other parts of the heroic code: the desire to be recognized and persuing excellence.

Actually, come to think of it, he does search for his identity and role in being part of a warrior society. That is the entire focus point of the book, Stephen searching for who he is and where he belongs in his society of competition, fear, and others and thier perceptions of the world. Throughout the story he hids behind masks: reckless and completely the church, devoted beyond belief, nonchalant, and finally he appears to come into his own. He eventually becomes comfortable with who he is, and no longer needs to prove himself to anyone. Not the deans at school. Not his friends. Not his father. He develops his own sense of the world, and expressing how he sees it.

Wild spring. Scudding clouds. O life! Dark stream of swirling bogwater on which apple trees have cast down their delicate flowers.