Haroun Blog

Blog – On p. 107, Blabbermouth gives Haroun a piece of feminist advice. She basically says that girls aren’t able to be strong (or heroic) characters because of the ways people stereotype them. Think about contemporary female heroes. Do we have any? Do we value the fact that they are female?

Do female heroes exist? The answer to that question is of course. Female heroes are everywhere. They do not have to be based off of a book or movie; they can be real women from real life situations. The real question here is, do female heroes get the credit they deserve. I can honestly say, without hesitation, no. Female heroes are not acknowledged like they should be.
Last year, during January term, I took a class, Mean Girls and Bad Boys. This course studied the differences between men and women. Among our many class discussions, we talked about women in the work force. Women are very powerful, yet often underestimated in large or small corporations.
A woman and a man are at a job interview. They each have good recommendations from their previous employers, but the woman has “one-upped” the man. She is a college graduate. In many cases, the employers will higher the man, even though the woman has a higher education. This is because the CEO or President of the company does not believe that the woman will have the ability to work and cope under stressful and tiring situations.
Well take this men: women are starting to take over the work force. Crystal Dehaan, the woman who commissioned the pyramids downtown to be built is not a billionaire.
Of course there are many female heroes, but they are not always recognized. Men are usually given the credit to their work because that is what is expected from our society. Men always get the credit.

Batman

Analyze Batman in terms of the three different types of heroes we have discussed (archetypal, tragic and anti-hero). Which type of hero is he? Is it possible that he is multiple types?

There is the tragic hero, the anti-hero, and the contemporary hero. I believe that Batman best represents the tragic hero. Through out the Dark Night, Batman is portrayed in various ways. In this movie, there is no doubt that Batman is not a valid hero. He is always saving the day from evil. Everyone knows that Batman is a hero, but they are getting tired of having a hero with out a face. Even Batman’s closest friend Rachel says that their relationship cannot go any further if he does not lose his Batman identity.
In the meantime, Rachel has fallen madly in love with Harvey Dent, the District Attorney. Dent is very vivacious and handsome. He is also very strict. He went to Japan, found the man in charge of squandering money, and got the names of the people he was doing business with, and locked them all up. First of all, Batman was extremely envious of the relationship Dent shared with Rachel because Batman longed to be with her and second, to make matters worse, Dent was able to put away the criminals without any casualties; something Batman is not particularly good at.
Now, one might ask, “Why is Batman classified as the tragic hero?” The tragic hero is typically the main character of a tragedy. Let’s use Othello as an example. Othello was a strong and courageous soldier who was deeply in love with his wife Desdemona. Their relationship was strong and secure until Iago walked into his life and started playing mind games with him. Othello went from being a noble and honorary soldier, to a man who killed his wife out of spite. Othello believed a lie and refused to believe the innocence of his wife. Batman’s case is very similar to Othello’s. Harvey Dent has everything Batman does not. Harvey Dent is new and intriguing. People are bored of Batman. Harvey Dent does not destroy a city in the midst of catching criminals. Batman does. Lastly, Harvey Dent has Rachel. Batman lost her.
I do not believe all three types of heroes can characterize Batman. I believe that Batman is solely a tragic hero. He is a tragic hero because someone else has everything he wants and needs.