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Definition and critique

Every person has some noble and some ignoble qualities. What makes a hero? A hero is a person, who may be flawed, but persistently develops and displays (personally and socially) noble traits, and does great deeds.

Heroes do not function in a vaccum: rather, they are able achieve their deeds building upon the deeds of others, and only due to cooperation and help from others. Of course, one should remember that the traits themselves should be the focus of admiration, and one should not descend to chauvinism which tries to deny unpleasent truths about these people.