Contrasting Spiderman and Hercules

Greek hero myths and stories often feature protagonists who must overcome a series of challenges or tasks. In Edith Hamilton's book, "Mythology," Hercules seeks to atone for his past mistakes by blindly accepting all the challenges presented to him by Eurystheus.

In contrast, Spiderman carefully considers his actions before taking them. The concept of achieving atonement has largely disappeared from modern cultural myths. Instead, in Stan Lee's "Spiderman" novels, the hero strives to bring security and stability to his community.

The contrasting motivations of Hercules and Spiderman towards serving society highlight a significant difference between the ancient Greek and modern concept of heroism. While Hercules is driven by guilt to serve society, Spiderman willingly dedicates himself to making his community a better place.

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This shows that the idea of atonement, central to ancient Greek myths, has lost its relevance in modern-day storytelling. Unlike modern heroes, Greek heroes like Hercules exhibit unparalleled bravery and impulsiveness. They undertake incredible feats without a second thought, like facing dangerous creatures and completing seemingly impossible tasks. For instance, in his pursuit of atonement, Hercules is tasked with bringing Cerberus, the three-headed dog from the underworld. Despite the immense challenge, he lifts the beast and carries it all the way to earth and on to Mycenae, displaying tremendous strength and courage. (Hamilton 174).

The completion of the twelve tasks by Hercules was impossible for anyone else to accomplish. These tasks only required strength and did not involve much intelligence or cleverness. Greek myths typically depict heroes performing senseless killing and other tests of strength. However, modern day heroes like Spiderman use their intelligence to perform their heroic acts.

By using his intelligence, Spiderman has a better chance of achieving his duty. For instance, when the Green Goblin tied him up, Spiderman had to quickly think of a way to escape. Greek myths have evolved from heroes performing actions blindly to heroes performing actions with the aid of intellect.

Modern day heroes do not typically perform lawful acts for their community, which is a contrast to many Greek heroes who served their community to achieve atonement for the wrongs they have committed. For example, Hercules killed his family while he was mad and spent the rest of his life seeking revenge. However, his friend Theseus encouraged him to suffer and be strong instead of killing himself.

Theseus advised Hercules to be strong and wait for death, as he believed that Hercules was not guilty of murder since he did not know what he was doing. Subsequently, Hercules went to his cousin Eurystheus, who assigned him twelve tasks to accomplish in order to attain death. Hercules almost completed the tasks effortlessly, but when he finished them all, he did not die, so he took his own life to avenge his actions against his family.

On the other hand, Spiderman serves his community willingly to ensure safety and security for himself and his city. He risks his life to keep his community safe.

In conclusion, the idea of atonement has evolved in modern myths, and heroes such as Spiderman serve their communities willingly. Unlike Hercules, who performed his duties and heroic acts without much thought, Spiderman uses intelligence and strategy to perform his heroic duties. This difference highlights the evolution of myths and stories, where heroes perform deeds for others rather than achieving eternal peace.

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