Eastern Hero compared to the Western Hero Archetype
Human experiences, stories, and certain events are heroic, depending on how each views
it. Some events are shared as a community as they affect certain people similarly. Their heroism
is told repeatedly over generations. Heroes become a source of comparison whenever a person or
event acts in a certain way that resembled a particular hero. In context, Eastern heroes are
portrayed as individuals who use their resources and personality to restore something affecting
the community over a long time (Viperv94, n. p). On the other hand, western heroes are
portrayed by their strong willingness to conquer and defend themselves and are associated with a
strong temper and hate for any attempt to bruise their ego (Classic western, n. p). Da Yu the
Great becomes the Eastern Hero of choice.
Da Yu the Great is the epitome of heroism in ancient China, noted for his ability to tame
floods (Travel China Guide, n. p). Born in prehistoric times, Yu the great took over his father’s
legacy of finding a solution to end the floods in the Yellow River that were a menace to the
community. It was during the reign of Shun that the waters were at their worst. Yu’s father, Gun,
built dams and dykes to prevent the raging waters from destroying people’s houses. The method
worked but for only a short period. Da Yu took over and dedicated his time to finding techniques
to control the floods by channeling the water to the sea and digging canals. Thirteen years later,
Yu had managed to curb the floods and urged people to rebuild their houses and plant crops.
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Once the floods were in control, the Emperor was impressed and asked Yu to succeed (Travel
China Guide, n. p). To top it up, during the thirteen years, Yu never stepped into his home after
he had left four days into marriage. He passed by three times, and even during his son’s delivery,
he did not show up.
On the other hand, Achilles was a renowned Greek hero who won the battle of the Trojan
war. He was known to be of great courage and loyal to people he held closely. He was also
vengeful and of great anger (History.com, n. p). The war was imposed to reduce mortals, and
Achilles was chosen to fight as a Greek warrior; he remained undefeated nine years into the war.
Due to his vengeful attitude, he killed the Trojan Prince, Hector, by slitting his throat after killing
his friend Patroclus in the war. Yu differs from Achilles in that he fought to restore his
community and help them rebuild their lives while Achilles fought just for personal interests. Yu
has been relatable since my husband is an industrial engineer, and he works in the same field of
creating pathways and digging dredges and just like Yu to help people access ease and comfort
in curbing floods. The ability to relate with Yu is because of his selfless nature of improving the
world around him and helping people’s lives become easier and better.
After conquering the floods, Emperor Shun was impressed, and he asked Yu to succeed
him because of his problem-solving ability. He built the Xia Dynasty during his reign and
divided it into nine states for better management. He also made more channels to drain the water
and made leveled soils on large scales to plant crops (Travel China Guide, n. p). Da Yu valued
cultural and military beliefs to maintain peace in his country. His selflessness and the love for his
people and country are a great lesson to humans, especially people in authority, to better the lives
of the people they serve.
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Works Cited
Classic Western. “The Classic Western Protagonist Archetype.” 13 March 2015,
https://classicwestern.wordpress.com/2015/03/13/the-classic-western-protagonist-
archetype/
History.com Editors. “Achilles.” A&E Television Networks, 07 June 2019,
https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-history/achilles. Assessed 01 September 2021.
Travel China Guide. “Yu the Great.” 12 November 2020.
https://www.travelchinaguide.com/intro/history/prehistoric/great_yu.html
Viperv94. “World Literature: Western versus Eastern Hero.” blog@wordpress.com, 30
September 2015, https://viperv94.wordpress.com/2015/09/30/western-versus-eastern-
hero/
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