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The Great Courses' "Heroes and Legends: The Most Influential Characters of Literature"

Listed below are many different types of heroes with an example of each type. "Heroes hold a special place in our imagination. Names such as Odysseus, Beowulf, and Queen Guinevere summon up mythic legends, while Sherlock Holmes, Dracula, and Huckleberry Finn are some of the most recognizable figures in all of world literature. Robinson Crusoe and Elizabeth Bennet are as real to us today as they were when Daniel Defoe and Jane Austen first created them. Meanwhile, Frodo Baggins, Harry Potter, and Lisbeth Salander are heroes for our age and the legends of the future." (The Great Courses lecture series by Professor Thomas A. Shippey )
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1984--Winston Smith (The Hero We Never Want to Be)
1984--Winston Smith
1
The Hero We Never Want to Be
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn--"Huck" Finn (Free Spirit of America)
Adventures of Huckleberry Finn--"Huck" Finn
2
Free Spirit of America
Aeneid--Aeneas (The Straight Arrow)
Aeneid--Aeneas
3
The Straight Arrow
Any Sherlock Holmes Tale--Sherlock Holmes (First Great Detective)
Any Sherlock Holmes Tale--Sherlock Holmes
4
First Great Detective
Beowulf--Beowulf (A Hero With Hidden Depths)
Beowulf--Beowulf
5
A Hero With Hidden Depths
The Canterbury Tales--Alyson, Wife of Bath (An Independent Woman)
The Canterbury Tales--Alyson, Wife of Bath
6
An Independent Woman
The Color Purple--Celie (A Woman Who Wins Through)
The Color Purple--Celie
7
A Woman Who Wins Through
Don Quixote--Don Quixote (The First of the Wannabes)
Don Quixote--Don Quixote
8
The First of the Wannabes
Dracula--Count Dracula (Allure of the Monster)
Dracula--Count Dracula
9
Allure of the Monster
Fairy Tale Heroines--Female Leads (New Style Princesses)
Fairy Tale Heroines--Female Leads
10
New Style Princesses
German Mythology--Thor the God (A Very Human God)
German Mythology--Thor the God
11
A Very Human God
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo--Lisbeth Salander (Avenging Female Fury)
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo--Lisbeth Salander
12
Avenging Female Fury
Harry Potter Series--Harry Potter (Whistle Blower Hero)
Harry Potter Series--Harry Potter
13
Whistle Blower Hero
Iliad & Odyssey--Odysseus / Ulysses (The Trickster Hero)
Iliad & Odyssey--Odysseus / Ulysses
14
The Trickster Hero
James Bond Series--Commander James Bond (A Dangerous Protector)
James Bond Series--Commander James Bond
15
A Dangerous Protector
The Jungle Book--Mowgli (The Wolf Child)
The Jungle Book--Mowgli
16
The Wolf Child
The Last of the Mohicans--Nathaniel "Natty" Bumppo (Frontier Hero)
The Last of the Mohicans--Nathaniel "Natty" Bumppo
17
Frontier Hero
The Last of the Mohicans--Woodrow Call (Frontier Hero)
The Last of the Mohicans--Woodrow Call
18
Frontier Hero
Le Morte D'Arthur--Guinevere (A Heroine With Many Faces)
Le Morte D'Arthur--Guinevere
19
A Heroine With Many Faces
Lord of the Rings Series--Frodo Baggins (A Reluctant Hero)
Lord of the Rings Series--Frodo Baggins
20
A Reluctant Hero
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood--Robin Hood (The Outlaw Hero)
The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood--Robin Hood
21
The Outlaw Hero
Pride and Prejudice--Elizabeth Bennet (A Proper Pride)
Pride and Prejudice--Elizabeth Bennet
22
A Proper Pride
Robinson Crusoe--Robinson Crusoe (A Lone Survivor)
Robinson Crusoe--Robinson Crusoe
23
A Lone Survivor
Troilus and Cressida--Cressida (A Love Betrayed)
Troilus and Cressida--Cressida
24
A Love Betrayed
Uncle Tom's Cabin--Uncle Tom (The Hero as Martyr)
Uncle Tom's Cabin--Uncle Tom
25
The Hero as Martyr
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