| By Gwynlyn MacKenzie | June 26, 2009 |
Not long ago, an anthropological study caught my eye. According to this study, men and women are pre-programmed to desire certain qualities in a mate. Men look for markers that tell them a woman can successfully bear young. Women look for a man who can provide for and protect them and the young they bear.
I’m no anthrolpologist, but DUH! Anyone who looks back through history realizes that women needed a man’s physical strength as a bastion against other men who preyed upon the weak and vulnerable; i.e., women and children.
Both civil and canon law conspired to keep this the status quo for most of mankind’s history, and I’ll leave it to the sociologists to examine the whys and wherefores. The fact remains, however, that science declares women are predisposed to desiring stong, capable men.
Works for me.
I love an Alpha hero. Strong, dependable, decisive, honorable are good qualities. Arrogant and commanding, not so much. Witty is nice, but so is the strong, silent type.
Oh, and let’s not forget intelligent. Not necessarily a rocket scientist–although there are a few heroes out there that should have been geeky yet evaded the classification–but quick to catch on, act, and protect no matter the cost.
A man so confident he’s annoying, scary, and reassuring all at once.
Alpha heroes are the stuff of fantasies. No sane woman wants to live with a pure alpha male–we’re talking serious domination issues–but a Knight in Shining Armor, regardless of era, will display any number of desirable alpha traits. He will be lover and companion, confidante and comforter, defender and protector, and do it with deceptive aplomb.
Some people consider Robin Hood an alpha hero. Driven by a need for vengeance, he gathers others similar to himself, the dispossessed and outlawed, determined to destroy the unscrupulous Sheriff of Nottingham and the usurper, Prince John.
Enter Maid Marian.
Selfless to a fault, she becomes Robin’s eyes and ears in the castle. She sees Robin as a savior who cares for the welfare of all men regardless of station. In other words, she sees him as a better man than he is.
Wanting to be that man, Robin changes. Oh, he’s still arrogant, decisive, unrelenting, and a host of other things, but the goal has changed; he no longer desires justice only for himself but for all Englishmen.
Yes, a good woman is often the making of a memorable hero.
Rhett Butler starts his story as an anti-hero. How can he be anything else? He’s jaded, cynical, a profiteer who doesn’t care which side wins the war as long as he comes out of it rich.
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But then he’s enchanted by Scarlett O’Hara–a heroine as “anti” as Rhett’s hero.
Scarlett fiddle-dee-dees her way across Rhett’s heart, careless of her heeled slippers, challenging his assumptions, forcing him to see beyond the obvious, turning him from a strong hero into a drunken wreck.
Cup-shot and disgusted with both himself and his manipulative spouse, Rhett sweeps Scarlett into his arms and climbs the stairs, determined to show her he’s the boss. Scarlett wiggles and thrashes like a cat with its tail afire–to no avail.
With her fire obviously well doused, Scarlett awakens pleased with herself and life in general. Her satisfaction is short-lived. Rhett has reclaimed his manhood. It’s over–for now.
Scarlett has raked Rhett over the coals, and he’s become a stronger, more resilient hero as a result. Even an anti-heroine can be the making of a man.
Fletcher Christian. Self-righteous zealot. It took him a while to see past the rules and regulations to the inherent abuses, but when he did . . .
Love this picture. Look at the stance, the intensity. A mutineer, as a rule, isn’t heroic, but Fletcher Christian risked all to put an end to the injustices he saw. He believed in his cause so much he threw his future away, but saved the lives of his men.
Adversity refined the heroic qualities in Fletcher Christian.
Last on this hero list is the stoic and stalwart Atticus Finch. Most of us have read, whether by choice or as a reading requirement, To Kill a Mockingbird.
Here is a soft-spoken, deep-feeling hero. He’ll not be rushing into the fray sword drawn, but he will fight for what he believes no matter the risk. He wears his self-righteous crusader hat a bit more subtly than Mr. Christian, but they are much alike. Both saw an injustice, strove to correct it, and discovered the cost of crusading can be high.
Finch’s heroine? His daughter, Scout. It is her voice that tells the story, ringing with convinction, her trust in the nobility and judgement of her father absolute.
Age is no impediment when love is the impetus.
The heroes above all made the leap from literature to film. They are, for the most part, known to anyone who has set foot in a high school, unlike the works of Jane Austin, the Brontes, and a host of others–something I discovered to my horror when my children were in school. This lack did, however, give me the pleasure of introducing my girls to Pride & Prejudice, Sense & Sensibility, Wuthering Heights, Jane Eyre, and Emma in both book and screen forms.
Heathcliff commanded many a conversation.
All memorable heros touch the deep, dark, often forgotten recesses of the female psyche, appealing to the programmed need for a worthy mate. Pretty men please the eye, but only a man whose strength matches and balances that of the woman in question need apply for a lasting relationship.
Despite cultural differences, socio-economic differences, and any other difference you can name, at the root we remain the same as we were at the dawn of history–and we still love heroic qualities in our men.
Who are your favorite heroes? Why? What makes them heroic? Are they real or fictitious? Are they like Clark Kent with his alter-ego, Superman? The often maligned Mr. Darcy, stumbling on an overblown sense of self-worth? Or are they self-contained, independent sorts like Daniel Boone or Davy Crockett?
My real-life hero shines in every hero I write. Although I’ve bounced ideas off him, asked for advice (and took some of it), and let him read what I’d written, he’s never recognized his own reflection. Perhaps it’s just as well. While he’s never whisked me from humming railroad tracks, rescued me from marauding pirates, or ridden half-off a horse to sweep me out of harm’s way, he has heroic down to an art form. Save a drowning pet? Sure. Stop to change a stranded motorist’s tire? Certainly. Comfort a crying child? No doubt. Yet were you to praise any of this, he would dismiss it saying he was only doing the right thing.
In the final tally, isn’t that the true measure of a hero?
June 26th, 2009 at 9:36 am
I like the heros that seem totally hopeless in the beginning and redeem themselves by the end. Like Jack Colton in Romancing the Stone. In the beginning you just want to smack him across the head. What kind of hero takes hundreds of dollars from a stranded woman to bring her to safety??? He seems beyond hope but evolves into a stand up hero by the end. The fact that he’s a sexy, rugged adventurer makes him all the more appealing.
And of course dear Mr. Darcy. One of the all time best heros. That goes without say…
Beth
June 26th, 2009 at 10:34 am
This may be dating myself but STILL I love The Capitan in The Sound of Music. Of course it takes Maria’s love to bring out his goodness, buried deep from the pain of losing the mother of all those children. Maria makes him want to change his wandering eye and roaming heart… But, he never bats an eye or shirks his duty from speaking up to the Nazis about his love for Austria and distain for The Third Reich!
In the end he treks his clan over the Alps on foot without food or water with a song and a smile in his heart! I LOVE HIM. And he’s real!! Gotta go watch it now…
Great post, Gwynlyn…loved the pix!
June 26th, 2009 at 10:40 am
Nice post! Heros. Sigh. It’s true. If men did not have women to civilize them, they’d be running amuck. More amuck.
June 26th, 2009 at 11:02 am
I have an affinity for reluctant heroes, who usually fall into one of two distinct camps, the brooding-silent gents (Mr. Darcy) and the cocky-I’m-outta-here guys (Han Solo). One of my favorite reluctant movie heroes is expat Rick Blaine in Casablanca who’s a bit of a hybrid. Thanks for continuing our hero discussion, Gwynlyn!
June 26th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Great post, Gwynlyn. There are so many great heroes out there, but I’m going to talk about one in particular from film — Will Turner from the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. He is so in love with Elizabeth Swann that he’ll do anything and face any foe to protect her. And then he acts selfishly to try to free his father from his eternal imprisonment on Davy Jones’ The Flying Dutchman.
I know lots of people like Captain Jack better, and I do love the character and Johnny Depp’s phenomenal performance in that role, but I’m a Will girl all the way.
June 26th, 2009 at 11:41 am
Jack Colton!! Great example, Beth. Another anti-hero who comes around. Kicking and screaming, you betcha, but that boat in the middle of NYC says it all. I love those movies.
Ah, Carolyn, who can forget Captain von Trapp piping his children into formation? Talk about emotional baggage. Flawed and commanding, Maria had her work cut out for her. Another “True love conquers all” favorite made better because it is based on fact.
You have that right, Kelly. In my wip, I have one character comment, “Takes a woman to civilize a man.” Thanks for stopping.
June 26th, 2009 at 11:43 am
Good morning, Ms MacKenzie!
It definitely makes sense–and may I say how much I love your examples?
My every day hero is also one of those, “do the right thing” men who don’t see anything heroic in his own decency. Gotta love them!
June 26th, 2009 at 11:53 am
You’re welcome, Shelley. I admit, the post had to morph a bit after Beth’s resounding success with Johnny Depp–hard act to follow–but I have a love for heroes. Han Solo is another cynical, jaded sort who bites the dust when the right gal comes along. Challenging, but anything worth having is worth fighting for.
Will Turner is the good boy vs Captain Jack’s bad boy striving for Elizabeth’s attention. Captain Jack is all flash and daring, Will just goes about getting the job done with a quiet dignity. And I assure you, Trish, you aren’t the only one who prefers Will. Even Elizabeth opted for resolution, honor, and dignity. Smart girl that Elizabeth.
June 26th, 2009 at 12:11 pm
Thank you, azteclady. I tried to choose literary examples that made the jump to movies so they would be better known. It proved a bit tougher than I’d imagined.
Flash and daring are wonderful things in the short term, but the everyday heroes have what it takes to be heroic no matter the circumstance and make it through to forever.
June 26th, 2009 at 1:24 pm
An excellent post on heroes, Gwynlyn. I can’t see the photo of Clark Gable, though. All I see is an X. Anyone else have this problem?
June 26th, 2009 at 1:30 pm
Gwynlyn wrote: Pretty men please the eye, but only a man whose strength matches and balances that of the woman in question need apply for a lasting relationship.
What an awesome post, and I so related with your thoughts on alpha males. Okay, for me if I have to say who was the sexiest alpha male — it had to be Tommy Lee Jones in the fugitive. — not in Double Jeopardy or The Client — but the deputy marshal he portrayed in this movie. His charisma, his sense of duty and getting the bad guy no matter what it took — exuded on stage and upstaged even the films major star. When I write an alpha male, I think Gerard, the character’s name in this movie. Tough on the outside, duty-bound on the inside.
June 26th, 2009 at 1:31 pm
I should have mentioned, there was no female attraction in the movie, and wouldn’t that have been interesting to see
June 26th, 2009 at 1:58 pm
I’m sorry you can’t see Clark. It’s a great shot, but putting them in took forever, and as you can see, I couldn’t wrap the text around them no matter what I tried. Oh, well. I’ll practice. I’m such a technodud. LOL I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
Thanks, Donnell. I’m so glad the post resonated with you. There is just something really, really hot about a commanding, in-charge man, and I agree, Tommy Lee as Gerard had it down. (Gotta wonder if going through life with a diminuative name might have prompted such fierce masculinity, though. Rather like “A Boy Named Sue.” *G*)
Add a female and that guy would have had the screen sizzling–if she didn’t conk him with a frying pan! LOL
June 26th, 2009 at 2:01 pm
Cindy, I’m so sorry. I made a correction to my reply (I was still awake when the post went live, still trying to make those #@% pictures work)which deleted your name and forgot to reinstate it. My bad.
June 26th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
I love the title of your post. Whether a reluctant hero or one that’s right out there, the heart of a champion shines through. I’ll add wit to the list of what a hero should have, even it’s tinged with just a tad of dark sarcasm. I have to agree with the Hans Solo variety, although Robin Hood captures my heart as well. Great post!
Mickey Flagg
June 26th, 2009 at 2:37 pm
Like you, I love my alpha heroes. But I do lean a bit more toward the darker and the dangerous – the sort that you can sense could do violence, though would never dream of carrying it out except to protect those weaker than himself. My “alpha male hero philosophy”= 2-fold: An amalgam of “mad, bad and dangerous to know” and “tall, dark and handsome”. My guys always have a dark side – and it can mean anger, arrogance or a stubborn determination – even a desire to be left wholly alone. Until, of course, my heroine shows up. Then it’s a whole new ballgame.
June 26th, 2009 at 2:48 pm
The heart of a champion. I like that, Mickey. Even the baddest bad boy must have the a good heart hidden with to be redeemable. Life may have built the wall tall and thick, but a good heroine will see it come down. Thanks for the input!
Lise, you aren’t alone in loving the edgier heroes. Danger awakens so many senses it can’t help but be arousing when combined with strong, brooding masculinity. So many heroes. So little time!
June 26th, 2009 at 4:42 pm
Such great photos of these heroic gents! Love that. Well, aside from Mr. Darcy, some of my more obvious hero faves are The Scarlet Pimpernel as played by Anthony Andrews, Tyrone Power in The Mark of Zorro and Michael Keaton as Batman. (Apparently, I’m rather fond of heroes who wear disguises…)
June 26th, 2009 at 4:55 pm
There is something intriguing about the guy behind the mask, Marily. That I will concede. One of my favorite masked heroes (even if he only borrowed the identity for a wee while) believe it or not, is Danny Kaye in the Court Jester. You’ll never outfox the fox!
I love older movies (as evidenced by the heroes I chose), but must say Antonio Banderas rang my chimes a time or two as Zorro. *g*
June 26th, 2009 at 7:06 pm
Heroes? Hugh Jackman as Drover in Australia, or in Kate and Leopold, or in The Prestige (do you see a pattern here?). It isn’t just his looks. He’s a good guy, even when faced with the easy way out, he won’t take it, and he is passionate about what he does (even when it will destroy him, as in The Prestige).
Jim Caviezel in anything. Count of Monte Cristo is my favorite. Maybe because he discovers his flaw, overcomes it, and finds his bliss at the end.
Joseph Campbell (Hero with a Thousand Faces) is a must read — his work on the hero’s journey is amazing.
Kayla
June 26th, 2009 at 7:46 pm
Hugh Jackman stole my heart in Kate and Leopold, Kayla. He managed to look lost and confused without diminishing himself from man to boy. What’s not to love?
Looks like film heroes win this round hands down, but I was thrilled to see Joseph Campbell make an appearance. I’m not much for TV or movies these days–too many disappointments–so often have no faces to go with actor references. I gotta get out of this office more often!
June 26th, 2009 at 7:49 pm
I’m so late, all my heroes have been taken. I’ve often confessed that I named my son “Rick” after Humphrey Bogart’s role in Casablanca. Rick Blaine wore a mask of sorts, as did another fave hero, The Scarlet Pimpernel, who kissed his disdainful wife’s footsteps after she passed. She was in love with his alter ego without knowing he was the superhero. I’m not surprised a woman wrote that one! Great post, Gwynlyn! I enjoyed both prose and pictures.
June 26th, 2009 at 8:15 pm
Thanks, Pat. While I’m sure there are more than enough heroes to go around, the more memorable ones are bound to be popular. (And that whole footsteps thing? Talk about tear jerker!)
June 26th, 2009 at 9:34 pm
Hey, Gwyn~~~Great post! It’s hard to quantify exactly when it all comes together into hero-magic. But it does, and heroes are as different as apples and granite. Suffice it to say that I’d gladly watch Denzel Washington paint a fence; Gerard Depardieu peel carrots; Gerard Butler clean an outhouse; Sam Elliott pour cement (heck–he wouldn’t have to DO a thing as long as he talked), and Tom Selleck shuck corn.
They’re all different, but they all have one thing in common: me!
June 26th, 2009 at 9:54 pm
Dear Gwyn,
You are right on target with this post. Many women are attracted to the ‘bad boy’, certain in their minds that they can fix him. It can’t be done, except in rare occasions. We also like a bit of the cave man in men, at least in fantasy. In an era where men are incouraged to open up to their feminine side, even to the point of crying, some women are finding this to be an unattractive trait–not what we expected. Women’s Lib made us equals, in theory at least and yet we find, that as much as we gained we also lost. I still like a car door opened for me at certain times and I don’t really want to be equal on all levels. Of course I never realized until I was older that we were thought to be unequal, because to my moind I a;ways felt superior to men and still do in many ways.I think Ray Romano on Everybody Loves Raymond, said it best: “Why do women think men are deep–there’s no deep. This is all there is” (paraphrased.) After a lifetime of marriage to the same man, I have stopped delving into what is the empty abyss of his psyche and accept him for who he is, finding that we have a new and better relationship–and I can always trade him in for a dog who will grant me the adoration and unconditional love I deserve lol.
June 26th, 2009 at 10:19 pm
Great post, Gwynlyn. Love the pictures, too. I loved Rhett Butler and all of the heroes you mentioned. I also adored Atticus, the soft-spoken, deep feeling hero. Great descriptions. And I loved what you said about your own hero husband who helps people in need and yet he doesn’t think he’s doing anything too important. Sweet.
Thanks!
June 26th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
I’m with you on the Sam Elliott thing, Lin. Talk to me, baby. Melts my bones to butter–the left on the table in summer variety.
Tom Selleck reminds me to much of my oldest brother–not so much looks, although they are built the same–but expressions, both physical and facial.
Thanks for stopping. I’m glad you enjoyed the post.
June 26th, 2009 at 10:42 pm
Hi Micki,
Thanks for stopping and commenting. It’s been a “red-headed stepchild” kind of day so having friends pop in helps.
Love the Ray Romano quote. Read somewhere that when a man says he’s thinking of nothing, he actually is. My head doesn’t work that way. Always have something flitting around in there.
Men will always be physically stronger than women; we can’t change the ways our bodies are made or the purpose for which they were designed, but brains will overcome brawn. It’s when brawn comes with a working brain that things get a bit more — interesting!
June 26th, 2009 at 10:45 pm
Thank you, Theresa, for your kind words about the heroes I chose as examples and the one I married. He is, although he doesn’t realize it, what keeps me going when the going get tough. No complaints, no rolling the eyes, just keeps on keepin’ on.
June 27th, 2009 at 11:32 am
Sorry I didn’t get a chance to read your blog yesterday. Hubby was home and you know how that is. Yada-yada-yada.
I laughed at Fletcher Christian’s stance in his picture. When my macho father read my first book, he told me no REAL man would be caught dead with his hands on his hips. Two weeks later, I mailed him a newspaper photo of John Wayne (Dad’s hero) standing in just such a pose.
Anyway, your post made me miss my dad.
June 27th, 2009 at 1:25 pm
I’m sorry. I remember you telling me that story, too.
{{{Hugs}}}
June 28th, 2009 at 7:23 am
Hi Gwyn~
Sorry I’m late in responding – I’m always a few days late and a million dollars short. Love the post. Love your heroes. My favorite is Mr. Darcy, that’s probably why I married the strong silent type. It’s either that or I just don’t let him get a word in edgewise.
Hugs…Robin
September 1st, 2009 at 8:51 am
Scarlett doesn’t change Rhett. Rhett just puts all his hopes on Scarlet because she reminds him of himself. She is just as stubborn, selfish and charming as he is. He hopes to redeem himself through her and ends up bitterly disappointed. Indeed, the tragedy of Gone With the Wind (in the original meaning of the word) is that Rhett didn’t man up enough in his marriage to Scarlett.
Also, don’t tell me you consider Heathcliff an alpha male? He is narcissistic and sadistic. He has no love for Catherine and only wants to harm everyone around him to make himself feel better. Anyone whose vagina tingles at the thought of Heathcliff is probably the same woman who falls in love with a man on death row for being so ‘alpha’
September 20th, 2009 at 2:17 am
Jester,
I’m glad I came back and checked out these comments while looking for something. Perhaps you will do the same.
I never said Scarlett changed Rhett. I said she was the making of him. You are correct in that Rhett recognized his own short-comings in Scarlett. However, after Bonnie Blue died, Rhett looked at his wife with different, and much more critical eyes—and didn’t like what he saw. That whole sweeping her up the stairs thing came as a result of Rhett’s realization the ugliness he saw in Scarlett was a reflection of himself. He didn’t want to accept it, needed to prove he wasn’t that ugly. Thus does our anti-heroine help him discover the hero within.
As for Heathcliff, my girls were teens. No vagina tingling involved. They didn’t like him, couldn’t imagine why Jane cared about him, and enjoyed ripping him to shreds and “remaking” him to suit themselves.
Thanks for taking the time to read and comment.