Heroism and theory

Vladimir Propp developed a character theory for studying media texts and productions, which indicates that there were 8 main characters which include:

• The villain (struggles against the hero)
• The donor (prepares the hero or gives the hero some magical object) They are a catalyst to the hero on his way. They're known as the goodies but in modern twists can betray the hero. They occasionally die throughout the journey through evil or sacrifice. 
• The (magical) helper (helps the hero in quest)
• The princess (person the hero marries (often fought for during the narrative.) -Not necessarily an actual princess. She usually survives and is the archetypical victim rescued by the hero.
• Her father (rewards the hero) Man figure 
• The dispatcher (character who makes the lack known and the hero off) He/she gives key information that forces the hero to go off.
• The hero (or victim/seeker)- reacts to the donor and weds the 'princess'
• The false hero/usurper/anti-hero- we think they're a hero but they turn out twisted. 

Levi-strauss: Binary opposites- If you have no oppositions, you have no story (good Vs. evil)

The villain/antagonist- thwarting the heroes attempts to 'save' the princess and usually loses at the end.

The Blocker- people that work for the antagonist and constantly creates obstacles for the hero on his journey.

There are many interpretations of what a hero is and research seems to suggest that heroes have to be all or most of the following: Intelligent, strong, resilient, selfless, caring, charismatic, reliable and inspiring. In film terms, we often use the term hero just to mean the lead role or main character. But to be a truly 'heroic' hero, the lead role also has to follow specific narrative lines. Some structuralists (people who see an underlying structure beneath), Joseph Campbell in particular,  suggested that the hero quest is a myth common to almost all cultures; a basic storyline that everyone understands and that every society has. 

Vladimir Propp, another structuralist, went further, saying that all stories relied on 8 basic character types (those listed above). Hero's are a very easy character type or archetype for film makers to work with and can be a simple stereotype. They're easy to use for film makers,easy to fit into story lines and sell to audiences, but are they quite so good for the rest of us?

We usually find that the hero is a he! Perhaps as audiences, we find it easier to match characteristics like strength, bravery, charisma, leadership, individuality and so on with men rather than women. This links back to generic conventions and representation. They may use men as it is reflective: they reflect what is actually true and real in society? Are men actually braver, stronger and more resilient, better leaders and more charismatic than women?

Stuart Hall, in his 1981 book on representations of race suggested that representations are always constructed, never natural, always put together in a certain specific ways. Seeing the typical male hero as a constructed representation means that it takes some truth from the way things really are and adds onto it. This has built upon the stereotype over the years and its reflected back us us so often that we start to believe its the way it should be, this is natural and normal. Films make it seem normal for men to be heroic, brave, strong, individualistic and not so normal for women to be like this. 

The down side to heroism is him gaining overconfidence and invulnerability. He can often be bad for the team in any organisation and shine at the expense of the team. A hero by definition is not a team player. This is what films tells us heroic: Shoot your enemy or he'll shoot you first- after all, everyone's out to get you (but what if he's innocent, or just a bystander? He's dead and your heading to prison); fight for what you believe in even if no one else believes in it; sacrifice everything for the cause; never look back at the trail of destruction and never ever give up!

In real life, a hero makes you a selfish, obsessive, paranoid, aggressive nutcase who ruins businesses, damages the economy and has a short-lived political career. 

Hegemony

In fact, this describes the process of hegemony where cultural norms are presented as just that: as normal. Anyone who steps outside of them is seen as abnormal, and therefore bad or wrong in some way. We don't even know we're doing it at times.

Information from Sara Mills, media at Helston community college, cornwall, AQA examiner. (Media Magazine, December 2011)