for a lonely soul, you're having such a nice time
so since i've been reading so much about twilight these days, i keep on coming across the term "byronic hero" over and over again, though i rarely gave it much thought. you'd think that being an english major i would know what it meant, but i never cared much for the romantics and figured it was some uninteresting archetype. and i was pretty much right, though it is one that has created some of my favorite characters. sexy and intellectual but also brooding and conflicted - the byronic hero in fact has become so commonplace in today's society, you might even regard it as the equivalent of a gary stu, and seems hardly remarkable enough to have a phrase to name it. bruce wayne and lestat are probably the best products of it that i know of - they fit the mold so essentially, but at the same time have very distinct, individual personalities and histories. the wikipedia article i read on it has suggests that the prevalence of the archetype in literature and society is a result of byron's widespread influence and allure, though i think it has more to do with the fact that its a reflection of western culture's own interests and norms.
but since i've also started getting back into reading bleach, i was very happy to notice that japan doesn't seem very interested in byron's view of heroism, and in fact its protagonists are often times very anti-byronic. ichigo of bleach, who i've always considered to be a perfect and very likable example of the typical japanese hero, is of course a full-time brooder and like any good hero very conflicted, but he's also a product of the lower class, sometimes clever but by no means sophisticated or well-read, and rather sexually awkward. i mean, sure, ichigo is a good-looking kid and plenty of fangirls are nuts about him, but the fact that of his two most likely love interests one is actually an incorporeal being and the other is more likely into chicks says something. that and when he is directly confronted with outright female sexuality he is either completely oblivious or he cowers in fear. come to think of it, i don't think i know of a single heterosexual male protagonist in anime or manga that is regarded as a sexual being in any way. hmmm, so for women in japan the ideal man is a young, brutish, slightly stupid man who protects them, eats their food with enthusiasm and has no interest whatsoever in having sex with them. why am i not surprised? though that's not to say that this anti-byronic hero is exclusive to japan - will perry of his dark materials could be put under that category, and joss whedon is a very frequent user of the archetype as well, but they are not often not nearly as sexually impotent as ichigo, though usually just as awkward.
and in watching the dark knight for the second time this week today, i couldn't help but notice as well that the character-type that the joker inhabits is actually quite prevalent in anime and manga, and bleach includes many of them in several different forms. it seems that the theme of order vs chaos is one that japanese people are very concerned about, and in that i think is where byron's place is in the eastern world. if there is any character in bleach that resembles the byronic hero at all, its byakuya - he's got the high social status, sophistication, intellect, as well as the self-loathing. but again it comes down to the sex thing - byakuya is so controlled he has effectively neutered himself, swearing to follow laws at all cost, never allowing himself to indulge in anything earthly or sentimental. the fact that a guy lacking almost entirely in facial expressions is the closest thing japan has to the "classic romantic" could be seen as kind of sad, but who am i to judge? i hate the romantics.
but since i've also started getting back into reading bleach, i was very happy to notice that japan doesn't seem very interested in byron's view of heroism, and in fact its protagonists are often times very anti-byronic. ichigo of bleach, who i've always considered to be a perfect and very likable example of the typical japanese hero, is of course a full-time brooder and like any good hero very conflicted, but he's also a product of the lower class, sometimes clever but by no means sophisticated or well-read, and rather sexually awkward. i mean, sure, ichigo is a good-looking kid and plenty of fangirls are nuts about him, but the fact that of his two most likely love interests one is actually an incorporeal being and the other is more likely into chicks says something. that and when he is directly confronted with outright female sexuality he is either completely oblivious or he cowers in fear. come to think of it, i don't think i know of a single heterosexual male protagonist in anime or manga that is regarded as a sexual being in any way. hmmm, so for women in japan the ideal man is a young, brutish, slightly stupid man who protects them, eats their food with enthusiasm and has no interest whatsoever in having sex with them. why am i not surprised? though that's not to say that this anti-byronic hero is exclusive to japan - will perry of his dark materials could be put under that category, and joss whedon is a very frequent user of the archetype as well, but they are not often not nearly as sexually impotent as ichigo, though usually just as awkward.
and in watching the dark knight for the second time this week today, i couldn't help but notice as well that the character-type that the joker inhabits is actually quite prevalent in anime and manga, and bleach includes many of them in several different forms. it seems that the theme of order vs chaos is one that japanese people are very concerned about, and in that i think is where byron's place is in the eastern world. if there is any character in bleach that resembles the byronic hero at all, its byakuya - he's got the high social status, sophistication, intellect, as well as the self-loathing. but again it comes down to the sex thing - byakuya is so controlled he has effectively neutered himself, swearing to follow laws at all cost, never allowing himself to indulge in anything earthly or sentimental. the fact that a guy lacking almost entirely in facial expressions is the closest thing japan has to the "classic romantic" could be seen as kind of sad, but who am i to judge? i hate the romantics.