What kind of hero do you prefer in fantasy/sci-fi? [edited thread]

[Turanil]

EDIT: Lets refocus the thread with a simple question:

For a sci-fi / fantasy novel, what do you think is more interesting to read: about a powerful hero all the way, or about an unfortunate whimp who, after much efforts and intelligence, eventually becomes the powerful guy?

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I believe that fantasy and sci-fi litteracy is before all enjoyed by a public of geeks, who turn out to be most of the time fat or skinny nerds who love to read about larger than life stories involving muscled barbarians (or clever wizards, but it's still about personnal power). And why so, if not to forget who we really are? I tell you, most of us are nice, obedient, and politically correct whimps. (I mean, even if we are professionally successful and happily married, we still are whimps) Anyway, if we didn't become otherwise, it's because we didn't get the right model to follow as children, and our mothers, fearful of real men, didn't want us to become conquering warlords but obedient good little boys instead. So now, and unless becoming aware of it through some genius insight or long psychotherapy, we are still unconscious that to please our mothers, we remain nice whimps all the while secretely dreaming of being Conan, Aragorn, or the Gray Mouser.

For those who would scream "speak for yourself dude!", I must unfortunately admit that I am writing this while eating a chocolate dessert...


So now discuss!!

And then answer my side question:

For a sci-fi / fantasy novel, what do you think is more interesting to read: about a powerful hero all the way, or about an unfortunate whimp who, after much efforts and intelligence, eventually becomes the powerful guy?

 

[Angel Tarragon]

I don't know. You may be right. I may be an overweight gamer that dreams of donning a cloak and casting spells, but that doesn't mean I am a wimp. I stand up for what I believe in. I let my voice be heard. I don't want to be a follower, but know I'm not cut from the cloth of leaders. So I live my own lifeand don't let the opinions of others sway my thoughts. I speak and think for myself.

My best friend is overweight and a gamer too. He doesn't that amount of confidence that I do, but he will not stnad idly by and let father time take a brutal whacking to him. My friend is quite physical and a bit explosive at time. He is by far a wimp. He has a side to him theat if he let it dominate his personality, could be a threat to society. He has no qualms with taking lives, whereas I do. I see good in everyone, no matter who they are. My friend wouldn't care any less than to put the worlds worst drivers, lawyers and gang members in one spot and have it nuked.

I always try to be the steady individual but he can fray on me at times. Heck, when I am around him I have to have to be just a little bit more assertive, so that I don't let him dominate me. I have built up a relationship of give and take with him. Mainly being that I have been overly kind to him and giving with him as in the way of gifts. I realized that I had to rectify that to be considered being taken seriously with him. So I have changed. I am still giving, but not so much as I used to be.

Anyway, I'm sorry if this sounded a bit like a rant, but I can honestly say that him and I are not wimps.

 

[Darkness]

I believe that fantasy and sci-fi litteracy is before all enjoyed by a public of geeks, who turn out to be most of the time fat or skinny nerds

Please don't resort to such blanket generalizations about groups of people. This goes for everyone, of course. Thanks.

Also, moved to the fantasy/sci-fi books forum.

 

[Turanil]

Anyway, I'm sorry if this sounded a bit like a rant, but I can honestly say that him and I are not wimps.

Please don't resort to such blanket generalizations about groups of people.

Okay, sorry, lets forget about "whimps"! Instead, let your responses focus on this point alone:

For a sci-fi / fantasy novel, what do you think is more interesting to read: about a powerful hero all the way, or about an unfortunate whimp who, after much efforts and intelligence, eventually becomes the powerful guy?

 

[Angel Tarragon]

For a sci-fi / fantasy novel, what do you think is more interesting to read: about a powerful hero all the way, or about an unfortunate whimp who, after much efforts and intelligence, eventually becomes the powerful guy?

The latter.

 

[Turanil]

I have begun to work on my sci-fi novel. I have the main theme and backbone, but I am now refining the scenario. I was trying to figure out what people search in fantasy/sci-fi litteracy, and why we like to read fantasy/sci-fi in the first place. Hence my original post. Anyway, I know the main theme, but I have not yet clearly determined who the hero will be. Such threads help me to get ideas...

More about my novel: On Earth in the future, the world is dominated by "artilects" (powerful sentient AI), and has become a mixture of virtual and real reality, where information is everything. An artilect has created (cloned) genetically enhanced humans for some objective of its own. As such there are several powerful humans (like superheroes) that appear throughout the story (and act much as a RPG character party). Yet, I am not set up on the main central hero. Hence this question...

Thanks.

 

[WayneLigon]

Nice non-edit, there...

I go for either one, really; either of the orver-arching premises you present could be done well or done poorly. If you're asking about novel characterization help, you need to adjust the filter smaller For me, at least, two of the basic considerations are Male or Female? and Young or Old? All other things being roughly the same, I'm much more likely to pick up a book with a male protagonist than a female one, or a book with a younger protagonist over a more mature one.

You say 'powerful... like superheroes', but I'd need more information. As in 'like superheroes' do you mean like most American superheroes: they can do things like fly, lift small buildings, vaporize oil tankers with a glance, break the speed of light, etc, or are you talking a much smaller power scale? That needs to be addressed first. What are the limits and capabilities of these 'powers' and then how (or if) the hero is different from that. Is he more or less powerful? Does he like or dislike that power? (That is a one major turn-off for me: when someone has a superpower that is not in and of itself dangerous to himself or others, but yet whines about how it sets him apart and how he yearns to be like the rest of the people around him. I don't encounter it often, but when I do more often than not I close the book and return it to the place I purchased it. Unless the author has really, really thrilled me with every other aspect of the book; then I may keep reading to see what he's getting at.)

 

[JRRNeiklot]

EDIT: Lets refocus the thread with a simple question:

For a sci-fi / fantasy novel, what do you think is more interesting to read: about a powerful hero all the way, or about an unfortunate whimp who, after much efforts and intelligence, eventually becomes the powerful guy?

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[/S]

I prefer to read about a non-wimp, not so powerful, ordinary guy. Not a wimp, but not superman either. Someone like myself, minus the beer belly and allergies.

 

[LostSoul]

I like my heroes hard-boiled.

Which doesn't really answer the question. So let's say "ordinary" (as in not a super-dude) and hard-boiled.

 

[Wombat]

I have to say I would prefer the wimp, but, as a couple of people have already stated, I simply prefer ordinary, everyday folks as heroes. The "I can do everything perfectly the first time" types really annoy me. No one is like that in real life. Whether this is written as high literature, pulp fiction, or anything in between, such characters rarely impress me. I want my characters at least somewhat fallible.

This probably explains why I love the character of Samwise above all others in The Lord of the Rings -- he's just a simple gardener thrust into an epic quest, but his qualities, fine and human, show through.