The Flawed Philosophy of the Hero -- Insights and Analysis
Updated: Jan 4
The Folly of Heroism And The Philosophy of the Hero
The hero. We want to be him, for he is the most desirable character in the story. We want to be him because the hero is a powerful paladin who beats the bad guys and saves the day. With it, he gains prestige, attractiveness, and desirability. The hero is supposed to present to us an ideal version of our best selves; something to aspire to.
However, in the name of good, the hero might as well be an all-powerful idiot; a blind zealot to a morality that isn't catered, nor cared for. A blind follower of everything good, and a vengeful warrior against everything that opposes it. In return, the noble hero may subvert himself or herself by a less-than-ideal world.
Such noble heroes, with just one bad day, may be casted away from the very lands they have protected and saved because of flawed manipulators who may use them as scapegoats for false accusations, regarded however as true by the public's shared perception.
The Case of Lazlo
Lazlo was my favorite hero as a child. In fact, he is the most heroic character I may ever meet. And yet, despite his extremely forgiving attitude, those who played his game, at least some of them, hate him with a burning passion.
Why would that ever be a possibility? He has done so many good things in the game, despite his controversial reputation, in the eyes of people who played the game of Suikoden IV, marked as one of the worst Suikoden games....
He sacrificed his health many times in the name of his comrades, using his parasite rune.
He liberated the land that exiled him disgracefully, for a crime he didn't commit.
Some of the followers he recruited, attempted to kill him, and yet he chose to recruit them nonetheless.
The Price of Extreme Heroism
In a way, he is the "perfect" hero. Razro/Lazlo is defined by his ability to spare those he is willing to recruit to his side. Furthermore, he remains emotionally unattached from his heroic paramilitary organization, for he already understands he deserves to spare people from getting infected with his cursed Rune, which punishes him every time he uses it.
And therefore, with his behavior of great virtue, he remains lonely and physically ill. He purposefully stays aloof and a-social, rarely communicating with his many subordinates. It could serve as the reason why many of his subordinates remain in the shadows of our understanding.
Despite his heroic acts, he also united many obscure outsiders under his leadership, such as criminals and pirates.
He rejects the affection of 3 ladies who guard his private quarters. A mysterious woman named Millay develops a crush on him, but not much interaction is between them.
Razro remains a solitary man despite being a war hero. After defeating the Kooluk Empire's southern invasion forces, he lies low, working as a mere errand boy for a king.
Nonetheless, despite his heroic deeds, the biggest, good thing he did, was to forgive the very person who has been his arch nemesis. The one who framed him for murder; the one who betrayed their friendship and their common nation when he joined the evil Kooluk Empire.
His former friend, the cowardly Snowe, can be executed by the player whenever he attempts to attack Lazlo's forces....
Lazlo, once his loyal subordinate, and knew him from childhood, ever since he was taken in as an orphan.
However, in the end, their common history meant zero for Snowe, the game's archnemesis, the traitor, the backstabber. Yet, over time, one could witness Snowe's growing jealousy of the very subordinate that surpassed him greatly.
The only reason many players would choose to forgive Snowe for selling their island village to the enemy, was because doing so would get the good ending of that game.
The good ending is where the heroic Lazlo survives the ordeal of his cursed, life-consuming power.
The only way for Razro to survive the ordeal of his parasitic, cursed rune, is to recruit a set amount of people, and to forgive Snowe.
Lazlo kind of had to make very extreme acts simply to survive his magical disease, whom he used to repel many of his enemies after having no choice but to do so.
For saving many people from a harsh fate, Lazlo's pain and anguish will always remain misunderstood.
Liberating a Forsaking Place of Origin
Snowe was the son of the lord of their home island, the village of Razril, Lord Vingerhut. A corrupt lord, he escaped Razril after Razro's forces took it away from Kooluk.
Lazlo liberating the very island that forsaken him, instead of plotting revenge on it, showcases his hyper-moral nature as a hero.
Very few figures would've just forgave such acts as being expelled from one's own hometown, home island, or homeland.
Many others would just move from place to place like nomads, never to return.
The Philosophical Teachings of Suikoden IV
Lazlo is a moralist who follows a doctrine of forgiveness very radically. Using forgiveness, he survives and gains a greater powerbase of his own. Thus, for characters (and people) like Razro, it pays to do good.
Suikoden IV is a game that encourages you to forgive in cases most people would not have the strength of heart to do so.
It requires much strength to forgive people who were sent to kill you, like assassins, and then hire them to work for you.
It requires much strength to refuse executing members of the enemy factions, such as the young Helmut, and instead choosing to spare them and get them to join you.
It requires much virtue, all the while, to not be tempted to go on a pay-back rampage against the very people that decided to discard you.
Overall, it is a game that teaches you that true strength always comes from within.
The Highly-Limited Life of the Hero
To be heroic, is to be limited to a very specific set of actions and beliefs.
Please take note that this code of conduct must make you a hero.
If someone is in trouble, they must help them if possible. If someone is capable of being forgiven, then they must be forgiven, for that is the right thing to do as the lawfully good hero.
When that code of conduct and honor makes you the enemy, as you follow it as religiously as the hero, you become a noble anti villain.
The game's final opponent, Troy, a superior naval officer of the Kooluk Empire, is also an anti-villain.
A proper hero is not just a relentless warrior who disposes the forces of evil like a one man army.
A proper hero is one who is able to overcome bloodthirst and vengeance.
In the name of good, for all they do in their existence, or at least try to do, is good.
The double-edged sword of being such a moral paragon is that you might find yourself alone in your journey, not properly understood by the very people that follow under your banner.
Conclusions
In short, the hero is basically a paladin; a leading authority and champion of justice. This is a very great double-edged sword, because once you turn good, the only way out is to be morally flawed, or even evil. And evil is something that tempts.
Lazlo sacrificed himself many times, to the point of being on the verge of death by his cursed, irremovable rune.
Looking into his bittersweet past of heroism or glory, one might ask: Was it any good? To fatally sacrifice yourself, multiple times, so that others would survive in your stead, until the next sacrifice of yourself?
Was it any good to lead to great victories against foreign oppressors while finding oneself purposefully resigning to ethical isolation?
It just goes to show, that there is no exclusive correlation between morality and a well-lived life of greater health and fortune.
To be good, of course, requires sacrifice in many instances. Being evil or even morally neutral, far less so.
And, when you sacrifice yourself, you might leave yourself weakened, with no one to necessarily support you. Please, do not sacrifice yourself for people who might likely to forsake you. Please, do not sacrifice for those who refuse to give up on their own weakness.
In the end, my lifelong role model, was, in a way, a heroic idiot. Society allowed Razro to become the best version of himself. Real life society did not allow me that, so I cannot be lawfully good as Razro, resorting instead to an anti-villainous lifestyle.
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Good article that explains the good side of playing video games such as learning a new language if you so happen to not speak English, also such as learning how to behave facing adversities in a secure game environment!
Thanks for sharing!
roland_