The Hero In The Short Story 'The Form Of The Sword'

Macbeth channels his likely evolutionary desire to conquer and kill into something socially acceptable, like fighting for his country’s army. This shows his Ego performing its job as the mediator, balancing out intense desire with internal moral constructs, in a justifiable, if not beneficial, way. Another character who showcases a strong Ego, commonly found in a healthy individual, according to Freud, is Banquo. Banquo receives a prophecy from the witches, but instead of trusting these supernatural tricksters who aim to “win [him] with honest trifles, to betray’s in deepest consequence,” Banquo’s Ego emerges, creating a wary man who wants success but refuses to accept such sudden action (1.3.127-128). His Ego performs its job, by keeping him out of trouble. This occurs again when Macbeth asks Banquo to help him, Banquo will, as long as he stays honorable and can keep his “allegiance clear” (2.1.28). This shows the Freudian interplay of Banquo’s instinct to stay loyal to his friend, but his Ego deciding he will only do so if his moral constructs remain

One example come from the quote ”The draft notice arrived on June 17, 1968. It was a humid afternoon, I remember, cloudy and very quiet, and I'd just come in from a round of golf. My mother and father were having lunch out in the kitchen.” I see this as the last normal day the character had before his life went up. The way that he says I remember” shows how this was a moment that he would not forget anytime soon if ever. A little farther in the story from this quote he talk about how he thinks that he is too good to go to war. I think that this part of the story sets the tone for his arrogance and frustration. One can see that how he reacted is a big sign of arrogance beginning in this story.

“I would go to the war-I would kill and maybe die-because I was embarrassed not to.” (pg 16) Reveals he has given into societal expectations of men during those times and uphold the reputation he’s established for himself.

In “To Build a Fire”, the man ignores the advice that he has been given to survive in the Yukon environment: “The man had been very serious when he said that no man should travel alone in that country after 50 below zero. Well, here he was; he had had the accident; he was alone; and he had saved himself. Those old men were rather womanish, he thought” (London 72). The egotistical nature of the man is harmful to his own survival, which leads to dire consequences later on in the story. Ignoring the advice he had been given, the man is used to portray how people can become very haughty, too prideful for their own good. A similar message is conveyed in Crane’s “An Episode of War”, in which arrogance leads to malicious warfare in our own society. When the lieutenant is shot and injured, his pride hinders him from accepting assistance from the men he is commanding: “There were others who proffered assistance. One timidly presented his shoulder and asked the lieutenant if he cared to lean upon it, but the latter waved him away mournfully. He wore the look of one who knows he is the victim of a terrible disease and understands his helplessness”(---). Injured and in need of help, the lieutenant warrants away assistance from his subordinates, as it would be modest to do so. His arrogance prevents his wound from receiving immediate and proper attention from those who rank below him, with the lieutenant only accepting help from other officers on the battlefield. Both London and Crane display similar examples of how human egotism and close-mindedness can lead to harmful effects, especially when people choose to ignore nature’s power. This naturalist style is incorporated in their perspectives, and helps shape some of the many ideas and themes that the reader can pick out from both author’s

Hunter steps back and smirks as Carter climbs to his feet and brushes off his clothes. Carter resists the urge to trip hunter as he runs toward the beach and up to Hillcrest. Carter walks up the dirt hill to the chapel. The path winds through the woods and the roots of the closely grown trees are used in place of stairs. Carter arrives at the chapel. They don’t use the space as often as they should. It is simple with large screen windows, a plain wooden cross, and unadorned altar at the front. They sing inside occasionally, but the campers often don’t care for the building, they find it oppressive. Carter pauses at the top of the hill. Surveying the camp spread out below him,

He calls himself a coward for going to war which sounds very weird. The quote means it is very hard to be brave during a war like Vietnam. Since the author turned in to a coward right when he was on the edge of the border, this quote relates well to this story.

decides to lie about his war stories and his experiences to make his family and his hometown

“Run!” the little boy cried. The roman soldiers came attacking at village and killing 2 dozen men and women. The little boy was named Damon. His father is a god, his name was Mercury, the god of speed. Damon was just a demigod.

Its Passover and I’m flying over a table in an empty room all by myself until I hear a noise. Twelve men including Jesus Christ walk in and sat down. Jesus took a seat at the end of the table talking to the other twelve. They were all talking to each other and having a good time. Jesus Christ, sitting at the end of the table, told all of the men around the table to the, “I tell you the truth, one of you will betray me”. I didn’t know what he was talking about at first until One of the men stood up and replied,” Surely not I, Rabbi?”. Jesus then turned to the man and said, “yes, it is you.” everyone continued to eat and converse with each other until Jesus took the loaf of unleavened bread, stood up, and declared to all the men at the table,”

The ego puts its own interest first and twists every argument, word, even fact to suit that interest. " Egoism is, in simple terms, acting in one's own self interest. Many people use egoism in storytelling by trying to get a lesson or moral across, adding "flavor" to a story, rally others for a cause, etc. There are differing reasons for this, exaggerating may make a storyteller feel more dominance, power, tougher, or even just more popular amongst their peers. In O'Brien's case, he is striving to tell a true war story based on his own personal experiences gathered during the Vietnam

His loud voice brought about a crowd of scouts to the area. Seeing that there were several younger scouts present I chose not to respond. All eyes were on me. My mind was filled with conflicting emotions. On one hand, I wanted to storm back and argue my case but on the other hand I was both scared and unwilling to show weakness to the younger scouts. I refused to counter disrespect with the same. My head hung low as I walked away.

Screams filled the air. Only then did Jessie Grant realize they were his. He had been having this dream for some time, his dad’s and mom’s death. Before they boarded a cruiser when he was seventeen, his parents were his best friends, now he had nothing.

Heike Monogatari, with its multitude of battles and skirmishes, provides a wonderful chance to analyze the way of the warrior in ancient Japan. There aren't a great number of surviving works from this period that show in such great detail both the brute and the compassion of the Japanese warriors. They followed carefully a distinct set of principles which made up the well-rounded warrior. Loyalty to one's master, bravery and glory in any situation, strength, martial skills, compassion, and interest in the arts were all held with the highest esteem. Few warriors could become well known without possessing each of these skills. Religious beliefs shaped a warrior's behavior tremendously.

Throughout history, stories have been passed down from generation to generation of heroes that display incredible inspiring characteristics. From Greek mythology of Hercules, to bedtime stories of princes slaying dragons, the concept of heroes has captivated society. Heroes are shown to go on a journey and to be altruistic, courageous, tenacious and have integrity. Although the category of heroes is wide, three main ones exist that are portrayed in literature; archetypal heroes, anti-heroes and tragic heroes. Archetypal heroes are the typical heroes represented in texts; they go through a typical hero journey and are able to show bravery in the face of hardship. An anti-hero is a main character in a text that has noticeable flaws yet possesses heroic qualities. Lastly, a tragic hero typically starts off as an archetypal hero yet has one major flaw that leads to the demise. Heroes within literature still exist and have laid the bench mark for humanity. Humanity is positioned to be inspired by heroes as we are always striving to achieve better and by having archetypal heroes, human have something to aim for.

For once, his dissatisfaction with his life was specific. He was reacting to an outrage that would be regarded as such by almost any man in any period of history. He had been told to turn informer on his friend… This was about as basic as an attack on integrity could