The Hunk-O-Licious Men of Manliness in (Some) Literature By Debralee Mede

I was thinking about what makes a romantic hero and who the most romantic men are in literature, to me.  Generally I was looking for and thinking about that archetypal type of romantic man who is a lover, is strong in character.  For me this man is someone who tends to be mature in quality because he can overcome emotional challenges while still being empathetic, compassionate and of course passionate.  He is not afraid to find his own truth and live it; He is not afraid of living up to a set of standards in spite of popular belief or acceptable norms.  He does the "right thing" and has an inner strength because he knows what he stands for and lives within that set of principles.  The following very short list of myths and novels have some of my favorite male characters that have the qualities of a great man and because of this make great male romantic characters.  Many of them stand the test of time.

The Greek Myth of Orpheus and Eurydice is story of desperate love.  Orpheus, a lonely shepherd, more than mortal, was son of one of the Muses who had the gift of music that was unsurpassed anywhere. When he saw Eurydice, a beautiful wood nymph, he immediately fell in love. One day love-sick Eurydice ran into the forest searching for her love and was bitten by a poisonous snake which killed her.  Orpheus did not want his love to suffer in the Underworld so he went there using his music to win her back from the rulers of the Underworld.   The one drawback was that he could not look back to see Eurydice until they reached the land of the living but was unable to and so Eurydice was returned to the world of the dead.  Of course he tried to rush after her and follow her down to the Underworld but was not allowed as the gods would not allow him to return until he was also dead.  Returning to the land of the living he found comfort in playing his lyre for the creatures of the forest.  One day he was killed by a group or wandering women who carried him to the shores of Lesbos where the gods found his dismembered body buried in a sanctuary on the island.  The gods later placed all his remains in a tomb at the foot of Mount Olympus where the birds sing sweetly, better than anywhere else in the world.  His gift of manliness was the defense and faithfulness at all costs for his love forever. 

Odysseus and Penelope are separated when Odysseus has to leave to fight in the Trojan War.  In his attempt to return home to his wife and son he meets with several obstacles causing him to be delayed for twenty years: ten years for the war and ten years to get back.  His wife Penelope, though, would not give up on her husband rejecting 108 suitors who she cleverly puts off telling them that she would consider marriage after she finished weaving a shroud for her grieving father-in-law, Laertes.  Not so because each night she would secretly unravel her work. Good thing because this proved to give her husband time.  Still Odysseus continued to be true to his love by refusing the desires of a beautiful sorceress who offered him everlasting love and eternal youth (not many men could refuse that offer).  He wants nothing more than to return to his wife and son and, disguised as a beggar, convinces Penelope that it's really him by winning the archery contest, killing all the suitors and later passing a test involving a secret about his and his wife's marriage.  I wonder if it had anything to do with remembering their anniversary; probably not a very ancient Greek problem.  And so happily the lovers are reunited.  Odysseus and understood sacrifice and was willing to do what he had to in order to reunite with his love.

In Charlotte Bronte's tale, "Jane Eyre", Jane, an abused orphan of low social rank is employed as a governess by Edward Rochester for his charge.  He is generally an abrasive, but very rich nobleman who is prone to moodiness and lacks good looks. These two grow close as Rochester reveals that he actually has a kind and loving heart beneath his rough and caustic exterior. He proposes and, on their wedding day, Jane discovers that he, in fact, is already married. Jane is heartbroken and runs away later returning, with inherited wealth of her own, after a fire destroys his mansion, have killed his insane, wife who has been locked in the attic, leaving him blind. Love triumphs, and the two reunite and live in shared marital bliss with family and fortune. Rochester really ends up submitting and is conquered by love despite the obvious differences in their social standing in order to satisfy their souls.  He is a complex character that allows his true kinder, romantic and loving nature to finally emerge so that tenderness and warmth shines through and love wins out.  I know don't wait for someone to change and Jane didn't but Rochester did and to a sublime marriage.

In Margaret Mitchell's work "Gone with the wind" the love and hate relationship between Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler is detailed.  Yes one has to overlook the obvious problems like stair sex/sex against-her-will and desertion after miscarriage among other things but the novel is set in a different time period.  But in terms of character, Rhett is handsome, daring, and courageous. And he is definitely dangerous.  Well suited to Scarlett in that both are flawed and self-centered.  Rhett though has some noble qualities like he is less fickle than Scarlett and he is pragmatic and sentimental; he is a true loving heart and doesn't give up on O'Hara until he sees her fickle and devious nature are more than he can or wants to handle.  I think that Scarlett realizes this when she continues to hope stating at the novel's end, "Tomorrow is another day."  I think that I am a sucker for strong, sexy and dangerous men, at least in literature anyway.

Last but not least there is Atticus Finch in "To Kill a Mockingbird," who stands out as an unlikely romantic hero but one with subtle and incredible manliness.   He does his job well even when no one else wants to and his romantic manliness is displayed in his quiet strength, his self-possession, and in standing for what he believes in.  Finch is an attorney in the South during the 1930s who has to defend a black man wrongly accused of raping a white woman.  He does so honorably and fairly even with the threat of harm from his neighbors.  Atticus had integrity and understood that honor made a man strong and a force of good for both family and community.  He displayed a great moral courage and that meant he had to stick to what he believed in even though he was tormented, insulted and threatened.  A widower with gentleness who managed to carry himself with dignity in the way he cared for and taught his children, did his work, and made difficult choices.  He decidedly lived a life of quiet dignity, empathy and taught his children by example.

I enjoy these characters.  How about you? Who are your favorite hunk-o-licious, powerful men of literature?  Even if the author didn't set out to make them romantic, they are because they stand for what you think is masculine and sexy.

HUNK-O-MY-HEART (though not mentioned).

 

Filed under: romance