Themes in world literature

Hero as a Model of Behavior

In the course of human history, one of the interesting things about past literature is the way the heroic appears again and again. In fact, this appearance becomes an archetype in that we see very similar themes in literature, religion, mythology, and culture. This is perhaps because as humans we have the need to explain and explore the unknown, but also because we tend to psychologically need a guide through the complexities of life. The idea of the hero as a role model for behavior, in fact, is so tied to human culture that one need only look at popular culture -- television and motion pictures for certain, to epitomize the need for particular story themes to remain popular. Whatever the genre -- science fiction, fantasy, western, war, even politics -- the classic nature of human values become clear when one continues to see the character traits of the hero through a series of tasks, through personal and character flaws, and finally through the triumph of the human spirit and the restoration of good (until the next story) (Voytilla).

One of the major functions of myth, then, is to establish models for behavior. The figures often described in myth are sacred and are the worthy role model for humans. Myths then not only entertain, they function to uphold current societal and cultural attributes that are considered valuable. We find this in a number of themes in some of the great works of the past: Home's Iliad and Odyssey, Beowulf, and The Canterbury Tales. There are, of course, numerous themes in common in these class works, but the theme of the quest, revenge, personality flaw and redemption help us understand the way each culture thought about the human experience, and indeed how it is eerily similar to our contemporary culture (Campbell and Moyers).

In each of the abovementioned works, the idea of "quest" is at the very heart of the plot. Beowulf must quest to free the Kingdom from Evil, the entire Homeric epic is one of questing, not only from Helen's return, but throughout the Ancient Aegean - the Gods could not make it easy, could they, to journey far and retain much? Chaucer certainly found reasons to quest: for love, for morality, and pining back into Ancient Greece in The Knight's Tale, to win both the heart and joys of romance and to triumph over Evil (Bittarello).

Revenge, too, is prominent in all of these works: Beowulf must destroy the monster our of revenge for the havoc on the Kingdom; the Greeks must avenge the kidnapping of Helen and the slights against their lands; the Knight, the Miller and the Wife of Bath all must seek revenge for perceived wrongs. Poems like Canterbury Tales, Beowulf, and the Iliad and Odyssey, especially as oral tradition, frame the journey of the hero through trials and tribulations to, eventually success. The saving of society, though, is often met with grave personal sacrifice, sometimes of tangible wealth, more often of loved ones, or, in the case of Beowulf, the ultimate sacrifice -- giving up one's own life in the service of society.

Yet in each of the tales there is at least one, and frankly many more, characters that have a fatal personality flaw that causes not only consternation, but increases the drama for the reader and gives the impression that the hero does not always succeed. These flaws are often personality traits shared by many humans: greed, avarice and pride (Achilles, Odysseus, Priam, Agamemnon); arrogance and lust (Beowulf); and even exaggerations of being too prideful and good vs. slovenly and judgmental for the Knight, Squire, Monk, and Plowman in Chaucer.