Tuesday, January 18, 2011

Top 10 Inspirational Fictional Characters

The good news is we actually have 10 choices this week, the bad news... actually, we don’t have any bad news.  Hooray for us!

Head on over to The Broke and the Bookish to join the fun!

The question: Top 10 Inspirational Fictional Characters.

The list:  Yes, we added the fictional part to the question, but only to qualify our picks.  As painful as it is to admit, real life heroes are probably cause for more celebration, however, fictional characters are much more fun to rank...

  1. Willy Wonka (Charlie and the Chocolate Factory) – Seriously, he owned an enormous chocolate factory and by all accounts, managed to maintain a reasonable BMI.    
  2. Neville Longbottom (Harry Potter series) – Maybe Neville wasn’t the chosen one, but talk about someone rising to the occasion.  Plus, he didn’t feel the need to ransack someone’s office like one of his other Gryffindor classmates that will remain nameless.  Our only wish is that he would have been able to place a nasty spell of his choosing on Professor Snape for the brutal treatment he received for 7 years!
  3. Cassandra Mortmain (I Capture the Castle) – Rarely has someone suffered more in the name of love!  She wouldn’t settle for anything less than the real thing.  Cassandra, we truly believe you found what you were looking for in the unwritten sequel.
  4. Atticus Finch (To Kill a Mockingbird) – A perfect example of someone who talked the talk and walked the walk.  Plus, he’s a great dad and all around good guy!
  5. Sam Gamgee (Lord of the Rings) – This friend of friends is an inspiration to friendships everywhere. 
  6. Hassan (The Kite Runner) – Poor, poor Hassan.  “For you, a thousand times over.”
  7. Equality 7-2521 (Anthem) – When he isn’t rebelling against a repressive government he’s finding love and rediscovering electricity.  Plus, he’s not afraid to use first-person, singular personal pronouns.  On the surface this might not seem too hard core, but to the World Council, he’s like Rambo incarnate.
  8. Mr. Fox (Fantastic Mr. Fox) – While his trade might not exactly be moral, remember he’s governed by the laws of the animal kingdom... don’t judge.  Nobody’s more cunning or determined to keep their family fed.
  9. Jason Bourne (The Bourne Identity) – Because every now and then it takes a good ole’ fashion butt-kicking to inspire.  Jason handed out more than a few in his day.
  10. Elinor Loredan (Inkheart) – By many accounts Elinor is a true fictional bibliomaniac.  Her massive (and inspirational) home library is burnt to the ground by a group of deplorable vagabonds, yet, the travesty is met with only mild gnashing of teeth. 

24 comments:

  1. What a great idea to clarify it as fiction! It didn't even occur to me, but you're completely right that there are several books I've read about real-life heroes (Mariane Pearl of A Mighty Heart comes to mind) that definitely deserve to be on my list. Will have to give this further thought. An addendum may be coming...

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  2. Oh yes, Neville and Sam are truly inspirational. I had trouble making a list this week, but those two make up half of it.

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  3. I would have never thought of Willy Wonka, but that's a fun reason. ;-)

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  4. Love that Sam made your list-he was a very inspirational character, particularly in Return of the King when all the odds were against him.

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  5. oh and you have a new follower-great blog you've got here!

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  6. Willy Wonka is a fun choice, hah! And your reasoning is even better.

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  7. Neville is a great choice! I love Neville and I loved watching his character grow. I'm so glad he finally got a shining moment in Deathly Hallows! Thanks for stopping by my blog.

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  8. WILLY WONKA! Great choice!

    I also loved the Kite Runner, I say that is my #11. :)

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  9. I thought about Neville. He's such a great character.
    Good list!

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  10. Neville! What a great choice!

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  11. I love Neville, and Sam! I usually like supporting characters even more than the heroes.

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  12. Non-fictional characters never even occurred to me while I was writing my list! Some great characters on your list

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  13. Neville Longbottom, of course. I seem to have forgotten to add any Harry Potter charsters, yet again. Hassen from Kite Runner. Poor Hassen!

    Thanks for stopping by.

    -Anne
    My Head is Full of Books

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  14. Yeah for Neville and Atticus. I love seeing them on lists other than my own.

    Reading Lark's Top 10

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  15. I always felt so sorry for Elinor! Good to include her on your list.

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  16. Elinor. Of course! She is an inspiration to all of us who love books.

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  17. Totally agree with ALL of them on your list :) and thanx for dropping by my blog!

    Rabiah @ Confessions of a Readaholic

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  18. Neville is definitely an inspiration and so is Sam, I have always said Frodo may have been the one to carry the ring but Sam was the one who carried Frodo, he is the true hero of the story. And Atticus, oh Atticus one of my all time fav characters. Great list.

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