The word hero comes from a Greek word that literally means protector or defender. Traditionally, people think of a hero as someone who protects or defends others. A hero does something courageous and brave such as running into a fire to save a child. We also tend to think of a hero as a warrior. For instance, we often refer to soldiers who fight to protect our country as heroes. A heroine is simply the name for a female hero.
Other than bravery, we tend to associate certain characteristics with heroes and heroines. Heroes are usually unselfish. They put other people before themselves and sacrifice themselves to save others. They are tenacious. They don’t give up, even when they are scared or tired. Heroes can be afraid, but they don’t let that stop them. Heroes have compassion for people, even bad guys. Heroes don’t believe that the end justifies the mean. They believe that it’s important to act morally, even when their enemies don’t. Finally, we tend to think of heroes and heroines as physically strong, but that isn’t necessarily the case. Many heroes and heroines exist in literature who are physically small, such as Matilda in the Ronald Dahl novel.
In literature, the hero is still brave and courageous, but he is also something else. He is usually the protagonist. A protagonist is the leading character in a story or poem. He’s usually the character for whom the audience cheers. Think about some of the most popular children’s books, and you can easily identify the protagonists: Harry Potter, Anne of Green Gables and Huck Finn. All protagonists require an antagonist. This is the villain of the story and the person or thing against whom the hero fights. For example, Harry Potter’s antagonist is Lord Voldemort. However, an antagonist does not just have to be a person. For instance, the novel "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" has several antagonists, but the racist attitudes of the south are as much antagonists as any of the characters in this book.
A special name for a unique kind of hero in literature is an anti-hero. An anti-hero is a flawed hero. He isn’t perfect, good and kind like a usual hero is supposed to be. However, he usually ends up doing something heroic despite himself. A few examples of anti-heroes in literature are Artemis Fowl, criminal mastermind, and selfish Scarlett O’Hara from "Gone With the Wind." Many people find anti-heroes more interesting than heroes because they are more like real people. Even real-life heroes aren’t perfect. They are usually just regular people who do something especially brave or unselfish.