English Literature: Heroes

Themes
1. War
2. Love
3. Forgivness
4. Loss of Innocence
5. Concealment / Revealment
6. Heroism
  1. There are different examples of people being made heroes in the book
    1. Before they even go to war, Larry LaSalle is a hero to the kids of the Wreck Centre, he brings out the best in them and they adore him, even at the end he is still making Francis feel better about himself, and prevents him from becoming a murderer
      1. Is this more or less heroic than his war record?
      2. Francis is something of a peacetime hero as well - by becoming table tennis champio and beating Larry LaSalle he becomes an icon to other children
      3. The scrapbook kept by the 'Strangler' at the St. Jude's club contains newspaper clippings about the 'heroes' of Frenchtown, including both LaSalle and Francis, the other men regard it as something of a symbol, something to be proud of, but Francis is ambivalent.
  2. Silver Star
    1. The Silver Star is the only medal awarded for 'heroism', we are told
    2. Both LaSalle and Francis have been awarded this medal, for saving lives of their fellow soliers, LaSalle does does so by taking out a machine gun nest, Francis by falling on a grenade - the grenade that destroys his face
    3. It is significant that one wins it by commiting an act of violence, whereas the other wins by taking the damage himself?
      1. It impresses the townsfolf - but Francis wants to remain anonymous
  3. "We weren't heroes, we were only there"
    1. Francis finds Arthur drunk outside the back of the St Jude club one night, Arthur is crying because he is haunted by the war but nobody will talk about it, he scoffs at the idea of 'heroes' and says they were all just scared boys, and that there was no glamour involved, hesays 'We weren't heores. We were only there."
The Writer
1. Robert Cormier
  1. 1925 - 2000
    1. He was born and brought up in Leominster in Massachusetts, in the French-Canadian section of the town called French Hill, it is this place whcih is loosely fictionalised in Heroes as Frenchtown
  2. He was an American noveslist, best known for his many young adult novels, the most famous one being The Chocolate War
  3. He was in his last years at high school when the USA joined the war - making him roughly the same age as Francis Cassavant in the novel, Cormeir had poor eyesight though, which meant he could not join the army, he studied and worked instead
Characters
1. Marie LaCroix
  1. Marie lives in the same apartments as Francis and provides a link between Francis and Nicole
  2. Marie acts as a confidante for Francis as he reveals to her he likes Nicole
  3. Towards the end of the novel readers learn that Marie has continued to provide a link between the two as she has informed Nicole about Francis' Silver Star for bravery
2. Sister Mathilde & Sister Gertrude
  1. Sister Mathilde is a figure from Francis' past who had an influence on him when he was at school
    1. Francis visits her to ask for information about Nicole
      1. Chapter 15
      2. She tells Francis that everyone has their secrets
  2. Sister Gertrude was one of Francis' teachers
    1. As he prays in St. Judes Church, it is Sister Gertrude's words which come into his head
      1. Chapter 1
        "Pray for your enemies, for those who have done you harm. It is easy to pray for those you love, she said. But it counts more to pray for those who don’t love you, that you don’t love."
3. Uncle Louis
  1. Looks after Francis after his parents die
  2. It is possible that Francis inherited his quiet personality from Uncle Louis
    1. Page 33
      1. "a silent giant of a man"
  3. Although he provided a home for Francis, and cared for him, he seldom spoke to him from asking him about his day at school
4. Mr Laureir
  1. Owner of the local drugstore and is a part of Francis' past
  2. Francis enjoyed working in
5. Members of the Platoon
  1. Norman Rocheleau, Eddie Richards, Erwin Eisenberg, Blinky Chambers, Jack Smith, Sonny Orlandi, Reilly, Billy O'Brian and Henry Johnson
    1. All of these were wartime comrade of Francis and (with the exception of Norman Rocheleau) were all members of his platoon
    2. They are mentioned in Francis' nightmare and all either die or received injuries in the war
      1. Chapter 3
    3. When Francis considers what it means to be a hero and these are the men he thinks about
      1. Chapter 17
6. Francis
  1. Disfigurement
    1. Physical
      1. Face
      2. Francis is very open about his injuries
        Chapter 1
        "The war is over and I have no face."
      3. His injuries were caused by the act which awarded him the Silver Star for Bravery
        He threw himself onto a grenade which saved members if his platoon
        At first his injuries isolate him from other people, but later of he uses it to hide is identity from people
        Chapter 1
        "Anyway, this gives you an idea of what I look like when I walk down the street. People glance at me in suprise and look away quickly or cross the street when they see me coming. I don't blame them."
    2. Phycological
      1. Isolation
        The loss of his family shows how Francis is rootless without the closeness of his family that he obvisouly needs
        He idolises Larry as a role model and that he wants to be close to Nicole and share his life with her
        He doesn't want to lose anyone else which is close to him
      2. Guilt
        Survivor Guilt
        Is a mental condition that occurs when a person thinks they have done wrong by surviving a traumatic event when others did not
        We know that Francis actually wanted to die in the war, when he dived on top of the grenade
        This is made worse by the fact that everyone thinks he is a hero for doing it, because they do not know why he dived on top of the grenade. He actually did it to punish himself for letting Larry LaSalle rape Nicole
        "I looked for chances to die and instead killed others, and two of them kids like me... When I fell on my grenade I wan't trying to save those GIs. I saw my chance to end it all in a second."
  2. Relationships
    1. Nicole
      1. Love
        He is insecure and unable to speak to her, he then tells Marie LaCroix that he likes her - telling Marie not to say another to Nicole while hoping that Marie will say something to her
        Chapter 1
        "I knelt there like a knight at her feet, her sword having touched my shoulder. I silently pledged my love and loyalty forever."
      2. Worship
        francis idolises Nicole from the first moment he sees her, he wants to dedicate himself to her and protect her
        Chapter 1
        "The pale purity of her face reminded me of the statue of St. Therese"
      3. Nicole is more mature than Francis and seems to know that he likes her, so that in a way she teases him
        Chapter 4
        ""Hello Francis." That same strange teasing in her voice that I'd heard when she'd warned me about falling off the banister."
      4. Francis seem jealous of the physical intimacy between Larry LaSalle and Nicole while they are dancing
        Chapter 5
        "Jealousy streaked through me as Larry LaSalle tossed her in the air."
      5. When he wins the table tennis, Nicole casts in the role of him being his 'Champion'
        Chapter 5
        "she was suddenly in front of me, radiant, clasping my hand, whispering "My champion"."
      6. Francis still doesn't ask her out, and so Nicole starts coming to Laurier's drugstore where he works, after she tells him that she likes movies as well as book he finally asks her out
        Her reply "that would be nice" is perfect because their relationship is nice - sweet and tender and to a large extent innocent
        Chapter 6
        ""The earth paused in its orbit.
        "That would be nice," she said at last."
      7. Francis blames himself for what happen to Nicole when he left her with Larry
        "I stood there thinking of what I had seen in Nicole's eyes. It's amazing that the heart makes no noise when cracking."
        Her reaction when she sees him afterwards drives him to consider suicide, and when he decides against this, he changes his date of birth on his birth certificate to join the army
        "Finally I asked "What can I do?"
        "Poor Francis" she said at last. But no pity in her voice."
  3. Family
    1. Uncle
      1. Lives with his uncle after his Dad dies
    2. Orphaned
      1. Mother
        Died giving birth to his brother, Rymond
        Francis was 6 at the time
      2. Father
        Died when Francis was a teenager
    3. Rymond
      1. His brother who died at birth
7. Armand Telliere, Joe LaFontaine, George Richelieu, The Strangler
  1. These are the men that are regulars at the St. Jude Club where the war veterans meet
  2. The Strangler is the bartender who keeps a scrapbook of Frenchtown heroes in which both Francis and Larry LaSalle figure
8. Larry LaSalle
Plot
Background
1. Pearl Habour
  1. The attack on Peal Harbor was a suprise millitary strike cinducted by the imperial Japanse Navy against the United Statesnaval base at Pearl Habour, Hawaii, on the morning of December 7, 1941. The attack led to the United States entry into World War II
2. Inspiration for Book
  1. Heroes was published in 1998, Robert Cormier said that he was inspired to write the book by the 50th anniversary celebrations of the D-Day landing of World War II, and the desire to recognise the heroic acts of ordinary people
3. Dancing in the Dark
4. Fred Astaire
  1. Larry LaSalle is compared to Fred Astaire
  2. He was an American film and Broadway stage dancer, choreographer, singer, musician and actor, his stage and subsquent film and television carees spanned a total 76 years, during which he made 31 musical films, several award winning television specials, and issued numerous recordings.
  3. He was named the fifth Greatest Male Star of All Time by the American Film insitite

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