Defining a Romantic Hero

[Vicky]

It's been said several times in the Outlander thread that Jamie isn't a "heroic" character, which got me thinking about what a romantic hero really is.

It seems that many readers look at the leading romantic couple, label them as "hero" and "heroine," expect them to live up to some expectation of heroism and are disappointed when they don't.

Looking back on the previous reads the only male lead that really jumped out at me as heroic was Jocelyn from Kushiel's Dart.

Rhys from The Iron Duke, Jamie from Outlander, and Daemon from Daughter of the Blood are all far from heroic - though I don't think they are quite immoral enough to be anti-heroes. More subdued "beta" males like Seth from Succubus Blues are just there on the scale of hero to anti-hero.

I keep thinking of Prince Charming. He is Cinderella's soul mate, her happily-ever-after - is there anything heroic about him? He rides around trying shoes on every girl in the kingdom to find a girl he doesn't seem to remember anything about. He could have at least remembered she was blonde!



So what is a romantic hero? Does a male lead necessarily have to perform heroic feats and be more-or-less perfect or is it enough that they can be a hero for their lady and provide whatever it is she needs from a relationship?

[C.G.]

That's an interesting topic for discussion. I read someplace that we all consider ourselves the hero or heroine of our own life stories, so maybe we are just projecting that onto the stories we read?

I grew up on fairy tales and romances where the main male character was automatically the hero and the main female character likewise the heroine. I'm not sure I even like those titles any more. They - especially 'hero' - seem to be used so lightly these days.

I guess I would say that a hero in simple fantasy is one who does noble and heroic deeds, rescuing damsels in distress, killing monsters, etc., but my definition of a hero - or indeed a leading man - has definitely changed. I prefer reading about men who have some flaws, a sense of humour (not always present in SF/F genre), and who not only lets the leading woman enjoy some action of her own, but encourages it - and likes that she does.

[Kamil]

For his clansmen Jaimie was heroic. Yet (due to his age, experiences and social pressure) he's flawed; yet like Byron's romantic heroes he has one quality that could redeem all his vices . A romantic hero could sell papers and yet be defined as romantic if he was devoted to the female protagonist

[Philippa]

I think that being heroic in this genre in particular is often demonstrated by showing a set of principles and by being courageous. Seth would definitely qualify as would Jamie since both had ideals they held to in respect to their romantic interests and both were willing to defend their leading ladies from harm.

I also think that many heros in romances are cast as anti-heros in that they are defined as rakes or "bad boys" or "wicked". I'm not sure that actually makes them anti-heros since they often also demonstrate that they have been mistaken by society and that they have a firm moral code and are only a little bit dangerous. Just dangerous enough to be titillating usually.

[Melita]

I think Jaimie was heroic. Overcoming what he went through makes him more of a hero to me than anytime he defended Claire. But conversely, that is definitely what makes her the heroine of the story. To not give up in the face of that type of adversity is very heroic.

[Justine]

@Melita : agreed, Jaime definitely was heroic. And even if he was very level-headed and pragmatic he also possessed a romantic heart - vide: the dress he wanted Claire to wear for their wedding.

I find that the best romantic heroes for me have that contradiction: like with Jaqueline Carey's Hyacinthe. He was Phedre's best childhood friend, a lot more tolerant of Phedre's S&M side and at the same time had his own conflict with his people as well as commitment issues (from my point of view) which he had to overcome over the course of his plotline. I find his inner struggle and close, yet difficult relationship with Phedre more romantic than Phedre and Joscelin's (Joscelin IS a good alpha male nonetheless, very likeable, just my personal preference is for Hyacinthe)
Sometimes it takes a simple contrast - Death (Grave Witch series, Kalayna Price) is a reaper and main character's 'friend'. He's been composed, distant and unavailable, but we get to see his warm and affectionate side when he fights for Alex. So a fight out of his comfort zone - very romantic.

[Cayt]

For me heroic characters do not need to be perfect. In fact flaws and mistakes make any character more interesting and well rounded. A hero to me is someone who is good at heart and has a certain moral code that they stick to. Jamie Fraser is definitely a hero to me. He is young, immature in some situations, and makes mistakes, but he has a gentle soul, he is loving, and he is incredibly loyal. He would do absolutely anything to save Claire and he loves her with all of his heart. That's good enough for me. And there's no way I could see him as an anti-hero certainly.