What do you define as a "Hero"? - General

Tell me Facepunch, who do you define as a hero? Is it someone who saves someones life, putting themselves at risk, showing bravery? Maybe it is someone who has lived through a particularly traumatic experience, keeping himself together. Is a hero something we should aspire to be? Or is it something completely else? Interesting Responses, i think the best way to debate this would be with a case study. Obviously, Oskar Schindler is a Hero, but what about, say, Bou Meng? Most people how say someone who has had a traumatic experience a hero? But what if he uses that Traumatic experience to bring Justice, Bou Meng painted pictures, bring up painful memories, to help younger generations understand, and learn from, the Khmer Rouge's atrocities. Is he a Hero, or just someone who happened to survive, and is just a storyteller.

To me a hero is someone who does good to a person/public. Surviving an illness to me is not a heroic act really, maybe to your close members but even then I am not sure. The same way earning a million for yourself is not a heroic act. Admirable act is not the same as heroic act, I think.

Someone who puts others' needs before their own.

Someone who makes a large selfless sacrifice.

Someone willing to accomplish a goal without making their survival a primary objective.

[QUOTE=S31-Syntax;33230889]Someone willing to accomplish a goal without making their survival a primary objective.[/QUOTE] The terrorists in the planes during the 9/11 were heroes? :v: IMO a hero is someone who puts other people lives before his own.

[QUOTE=Kljunas;33232301]The terrorists in the planes during the 9/11 were heroes? :v: IMO a hero is someone who puts other people lives before his own.[/QUOTE] Yes, yes they were. Not to me, but they were heroes to someone.

[QUOTE=Kljunas;33232301]The terrorists in the planes during the 9/11 were heroes? :v:[/QUOTE] They were heroes to their respective organizations

A hero shouldn't kill innocents.

It's a very vague subjective term.

Someone that greatly helps people, no matter what the physical/financial cost is.

A hero is not somebody who lives with a terrible disease or survived something horrible. Well done for keeping a smile on your face. That's it. You are not a hero for that. A hero is for example, the British helicopter pilot (I don't remember the article too much) who saved an entire squad of soldiers from enemy territory while he, himself was shot in the head. Even with such a severe life threatening injury, he managed to get away from there.

Someone who lays down there life to save millions,thousands,hundreds,even a single person

[QUOTE=Kljunas;33232301]The terrorists in the planes during the 9/11 were heroes? :v:[/QUOTE] One man's terrorist is another man's freedom fighter (or hero in this case). They were heroes to their cells and organizations. Just like Americans see Seal Team 6 as heroes for killing Osama, it is the complete opposite to the militants, in which they see them as terrorists or enemies.

Dictionary defines a hero as anybody who sacrifices for someone elses good. Could be a big sacrifice, Could be small. I think that makes them a hero

well,there is no such thing of selfless acts,if you were too help a woman cross a street for example,that may be considered a selfless act,but its not. it may seem like you gain nothing,but you feel good,it pleasures you,and that is a gain.

Someone who puts the lives/rights of others above their own, at the possible expense of their own lives/rights.

[QUOTE=CommanderPT;33236208]A hero is not somebody who lives with a terrible disease or survived something horrible. Well done for keeping a smile on your face. That's it. You are not a hero for that. A hero is for example, the British helicopter pilot (I don't remember the article too much) who saved an entire squad of soldiers from enemy territory while he, himself was shot in the head. Even with such a severe life threatening injury, he managed to get away from there.[/QUOTE] This. This so much. Also, no one in war is a hero, unless they do something especially magnificent - running into a minefield to save a cat (bias here, I like cats), or letting themselves die (sacrifice is on my top 5 list of hated words) to save 5 or more people; bare minimum - and that's if it was guarenteed they'd live.

[QUOTE=Pelican;33268634]This. This so much. Also, no one in war is a hero, unless they do something especially magnificent - running into a minefield to save a cat (bias here, I like cats), or letting themselves die (sacrifice is on my top 5 list of hated words) to save 5 or more people; bare minimum - and that's if it was guarenteed they'd live.[/QUOTE] So you think the life of a cat is worth the same as that of five humans. Wow.

[QUOTE=masonrulz;33268656]So you think the life of a cat is worth the same as that of five humans. Wow.[/QUOTE] You're implying that all 'heroic' deeds are on the same wavelength. They certainly are not, and you're very close minded. I'll give you two more examples. Some guy charges a crazy gunman, without any kind of regard for his own life, to save his family. You can, no doubt, consider that a heroic deed. I can't think of anything else that would not be as significant, but you should hopefully get my point. And no, a cat is not worth the same as five human lives.

[QUOTE=Pelican;33268685]You're implying that all 'heroic' deeds are on the same wavelength. They certainly are not, and you're very close minded. I'll give you two more examples. Some guy charges a crazy gunman, without any kind of regard for his own life, to save his family. You can, no doubt, consider that a heroic deed. I can't think of anything else that would not be as significant, but you should hopefully get my point. And no, a cat is not worth the same as five human lives.[/QUOTE] I'm close minded? You just said that someone isn't a hero until they have saved at least FIVE people. That's a pretty damn tall order, and I'd say that YOU are the close-minded one.

[QUOTE=masonrulz;33268723]I'm close minded? You just said that someone isn't a hero until they have saved at least FIVE people. That's a pretty damn tall order, and I'd say that YOU are the close-minded one.[/QUOTE] This is in war. If you aren't familiar, people die in war. Nothing will change that. Five people wont make a hell of a difference to any army, but it could make that difference that counts. And I don't think you know what close minded means.

[QUOTE=Kljunas;33232456]A hero shouldn't kill innocents.[/QUOTE] according to what, ou'r morals system? not everyone follows the same beliefs, and whether we think it wrong or right, they WERE heroes. Most "bad guys" don't think what they are doing is wrong at all, infact. they think it is the most morally correct and best thing to do.

Heroism is consuming the flesh of your enemies after a glorious battle victory.

Jesus Contag, your definition of hero fits Hannibal Lector more then our western one.

[QUOTE=Contag;33270051]Heroism is consuming the flesh of your enemies after a glorious battle victory.[/QUOTE] Bask in crimson glory!

[QUOTE=krazipanda;33268831]according to what, ou'r morals system? not everyone follows the same beliefs, and whether we think it wrong or right, they WERE heroes. Most "bad guys" don't think what they are doing is wrong at all, infact. they think it is the most morally correct and best thing to do.[/QUOTE] I hate this argument. Of course everyone has a different belief system, which is exactly why we are debating it. Anyways, I believe a hero is one who contributes greatly to society while risking his personal safety in some way. A fireman is a hero because he contributes to public safety at his own risk. A revolutionary could be considered a hero as well. Going through a traumatizing experience and helping others with it isn't really heroic in my opinion. Although it contributes to society, it isn't done at their peril, which is a key part of heroism the way I see it.

Heroes are those who risk their lives to save others. For example, that RAF pilot who crashed and died earlier this year. He could have ejected at a safe height and lived, but instead he steered in to a field and crashed. If he hadn't steered away, many people could have been killed and homes destroyed.

It seems that everyone here thinks dying/nearly dying is a requirement to be a hero. Just thinking, if humans end up coming close to making earth uninhabitable, before having colonised other planets, then someone could kill 3/4 of the population, but be a hero because if they hadn't, all of the population would have died. Interesting concept.

In the hero context, I'm comparing three main subjects: Superman, a courageous average joe, and a hero from a play such as Hamlet. The three of these characters have a "larger than life" attitude about them. They appear to have a specific trait that stands out from everybody else that allows them to do something that relatively no one can do.