Editing Hero (section)

== Modern fiction ==
{{Further|Vanity Fair (novel)|Superhero}}
[[File:Batman_and_Robin_1966.JPG|thumb|[[Batman]] ([[Adam West]]) and [[Robin (character)|Robin]] (Burt Ward) in the 1966–1968 television series, ''[[Batman (TV series)|Batman]]'']]
The word "hero" (or "heroine" in modern times), is sometimes used to describe the [[protagonist]] or the [[List of stock characters|romantic interest]] of a story, a usage which may conflict with the superhuman expectations of heroism.<ref name=":3" /> A good example is [[Anna Karenina]], the lead character in the novel of the same title by [[Leo Tolstoy]]. In modern literature the hero is more and more a problematic concept. In 1848, for example, [[William Makepeace Thackeray]] gave ''[[Vanity Fair (novel)|Vanity Fair]]'' the subtitle, ''A Novel without a Hero'', and imagined a world in which no sympathetic character was to be found.<ref>[[Northrop Frye]], ''[[Anatomy of Criticism]]'', p. 34, {{ISBN|0-691-01298-9}}</ref> ''Vanity Fair'' is a satirical representation of the absence of truly moral heroes in the modern world.<ref>Shmoop Editorial Team. (2008, November 11). ''Vanity Fair Theme of Morality and Ethics''. Retrieved December 6, 2015, from http://www.shmoop.com/vanity-fair-thackeray/morality-ethics-theme.html</ref> The story focuses on the characters, Emmy Sedley and Becky Sharpe (the latter as the clearly defined anti-hero), with the plot focused on the eventual marriage of these two characters to rich men, revealing character flaws as the story progresses. Even the most sympathetic characters, such as Captain Dobbin, are susceptible to weakness, as he is often narcissistic and melancholic.

The larger-than-life hero is a more common feature of [[fantasy]] (particularly in [[comic book]]s and [[High fantasy|epic fantasy]]) than more realist works.<ref name=":3">[[L. Sprague de Camp]], ''[[Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers]]: The Makers of Heroic Fantasy'', p. 5 {{ISBN|0-87054-076-9}}</ref> However, these larger-than life figures remain prevalent in society. The superhero genre is a multibillion-dollar industry that includes comic books, movies, toys, and video games. Superheroes usually possess extraordinary talents and powers that no living human could ever possess. The superhero stories often pit a [[Supervillain|super villain]] against the hero, with the hero fighting the crime caused by the super villain. Examples of long-running superheroes include [[Superman]], [[Wonder Woman]], [[Batman]], and [[Spider-Man]].

Research indicates that male writers are more likely to make heroines superhuman, whereas female writers tend to make heroines ordinary humans, as well as making their male heroes more powerful than their heroines, possibly due to sex differences in valued traits.<ref>Ingalls, Victoria. "Who creates warrior women? An investigation of the warrior characteristics of fictional female heroes based on the sex of the author." Evolutionary Behavioral Sciences 14, no. 1 (2020): 79.</ref>