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Not just comics...the greatest fictional character ever created was....

Started by Comicsarefun,

Greatest Fictional character  

453 members have voted

  1. 1. Greatest Fictional character

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279 posts in this topic

Bosco685

Bosco685

Posted
Posted

 

Actually Superman was created by two young Jewish men and modeled after Moses...

 

lol

 

Be careful. Stan Lee has discussed how many of his quotes and ideas were influenced by reflecting on the Bible. This could become an extremely short list fast.

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Aces

Aces

Posted
Posted
Well, having Santa there is a religious tie in, being that he was originally based on a Catholic Saint. I know that he is not considered that anymore, but it is there.

 

Nope. Santa is exclusively a non religious figure...nice try...even baby Jesus cried when he found out Santa wasn't real.

 

 

Saint Nicholas was/is real. Just like Abraham Lincoln.

 

Now if in a thousand years from now people tell stories of how Santa Abraham Lincoln flew around on his sled being pulled by flying raindeer so he could free the slaves doesn't mean that Abraham Lincoln wasn't a real person.

 

We have officailly entered the Twilight Zone. Are we really going to have this discussion?

 

No we're not going to discuss this because Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus are two different things. Santa is as non religious as you can get....it's not where his roots are...it's what he is now.

 

R.

 

 

Then make sure you put out your Santa decorations for earth day too and not just Christ-Mass. :kidaround:

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jools&jim

jools&jim

Posted
Posted
Santa Claus is more mythological or legendary than "fictional", and is at least partially historical (i.e., as Saint Nicholas). He's a creation of a much higher and broader order than Mickey Mouse or Superman...

 

Like Dracula, his roots go deep, but he was actually popularized and imaged by:

 

1. A cartoon by Thomas Nast.

2. A poem by Clement Moore from 1822.

 

Fictional words and pictures (sound familiar).

 

Before those two events, he was just a Dutch myth concerning St. Nicholas (Sinter Klaas).

 

 

All that's true of course (and then some -- don't forget a long list of other sources, from Dickens to Coca Cola!). But Santa Claus's point of origin is much murkier than even Dracula's.

 

I think a better list of characters would differentiate between discrete creations of mostly writers (or writers and artists) of primarily literary fiction for entertainment and commercial purposes (which is what we generally mean by "fiction" these days), and more deeply archetypal characters from myth, legend, and folklore which were not "created" by any one person or team in any traditional artistic sense, but rather grew out of--and/or were transformed by--the history, culture, and customs of the various societies and ages through which they passed.

 

In that sense, "Santa Claus" has much more in common with King Arthur (or, better, Merlin), Hercules, or Robin Hood than he does with Tarzan and Frankenstein's monster.

 

 

 

 

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Aces

Aces

Posted
Posted
I understand your point and I do not have a religious agenda.

 

But I would like to add that Santa comes on Dec. 25th (and we all know what day that is supposed to represent), and he comes bearing gifts (again,we all know what that is supposed to represent).

 

But, I will drop it.

 

I'll vote for Superman, because he is truly and for sure, fictional. (he is, right?).

 

Actually Superman was created by two young Jewish men and modeled after Moses...

 

lol

 

Moses could fly!? :o

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jools&jim

jools&jim

Posted
Posted

 

I have heard the Jewish thing in relation to Superman before, but it is a stretch IMO. There is absolutely nothing close in the two characters.

 

Moses was set adrift in a basket to save his life, grew to manhood in a civilization not his own, and eventually became a heroic figure. Sounds pretty familiar to me...

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PovertyRow

PovertyRow

Posted
Posted

I voted Dracula (no surprise there!).

 

As has been said, a tremendous influence in many genres. The character known as Dracula, as popularized by Stoker, was influenced by a real person as is well known, just as Doyle's creation, Sherlock Holmes, was influenced by Dr. John Bell (a real person).

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conditionfreak

conditionfreak

Posted
Posted

Surprised no one has mentioned Donald Duck (if they did, I missed it).

 

I would think that the criteria to use would be a name that most people in most parts of the world would recognize. You know. If you go to Japan or China, many will recognize the name Michael Jordan.

 

So what fictional character would be recognized in just about any country on the planet, if said in English?

 

I say Superman.

 

Mickey Mouse may be second.

 

Santa though, may tie or even beat out Superman, if we leave Santa on the list.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
Modeled after Moses?

 

Didn't Superman originally have blond hair?

 

I have heard the Jewish thing in relation to Superman before, but it is a stretch IMO. There is absolutely nothing close in the two characters.

 

It's been discussed in many circles...basically Superman was placed in a vessel to save him from death and was adopted by another set of people and raised to be a defender of his new people...anyhow I was just messing around...if you want to talk about types and arch types there will be no end to it.

 

Superman and Santa are both completely non religious characters today regardless of where they drew their inspiration from.

 

R.

 

 

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bronze_rules

bronze_rules

Posted
Posted
Santa Claus is more mythological or legendary than "fictional", and is at least partially historical (i.e., as Saint Nicholas). He's a creation of a much higher and broader order than Mickey Mouse or Superman...

 

Like Dracula, his roots go deep, but he was actually popularized and imaged by:

 

1. A cartoon by Thomas Nast.

2. A poem by Clement Moore from 1822.

 

Fictional words and pictures (sound familiar).

 

Before those two events, he was just a Dutch myth concerning St. Nicholas (Sinter Klaas).

 

All that's true of course (and then some -- don't forget a long list of other sources, from Dickens to Coca Cola!). But Santa Claus's point of origin is much murkier than even Dracula's.

 

I think a better list of characters would differentiate between discrete creations of mostly writers (or writers and artists) of primarily literary fiction for entertainment and commercial purposes (which is what we generally mean by "fiction" these days), and more deeply archetypal characters from myth, legend, and folklore which were not "created" by any one person or team in any traditional artistic sense, but rather grew out of--and/or were transformed by--the history, culture, and customs of the various societies and ages through which they passed.

 

In that sense, "Santa Claus" has much more in common with King Arthur (or, better, Merlin), Hercules, or Robin Hood than he does with Tarzan and Frankenstein's monster.

 

 

 

 

King Arthur and Merlin would most certainly belong on the list. (thumbs u

 

It seems a bit limited.

And greatest in what way? Most well known, most influential??

 

And where's Gilgamesh?

 

Captain Kirk, Spock? Neo?

See most of the popular fiction heroes that resonate are generally from films and not so much from literature, due to the far reaching impact of the medium IMO (and the limited audience of readers).

 

What about huckleberry Finn, Tom Sawyer?

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conditionfreak

conditionfreak

Posted
Posted

 

I have heard the Jewish thing in relation to Superman before, but it is a stretch IMO. There is absolutely nothing close in the two characters.

 

Moses was set adrift in a basket to save his life, grew to manhood in a civilization not his own, and eventually became a heroic figure. Sounds pretty familiar to me...

 

So, being set adrift in a basket equates to coming from a rocket ship to another planet? Growing up with humans equates to growing up with aliens (us)? Wasn't Moses Jewish (a civilization not his own?)? There are many similar stories in literature and fairy tales. What about Romelus and Remus? They were supposedly raised by wolves.

 

Nope. Other than the creators of Superman being Jewish, there is no comparison between Moses and Superman (without really stretching it). The fundamentals could fit many. Superman fits more closely to Samson than Moses.

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bronze_rules

bronze_rules

Posted
Posted

 

I have heard the Jewish thing in relation to Superman before, but it is a stretch IMO. There is absolutely nothing close in the two characters.

 

Moses was set adrift in a basket to save his life, grew to manhood in a civilization not his own, and eventually became a heroic figure. Sounds pretty familiar to me...

 

So, being set adrift in a basket equates to coming from a rocket ship to another planet? Growing up with humans equates to growing up with aliens (us)? Wasn't Moses Jewish (a civilization not his own?)? There are many similar stories in literature and fairy tales. What about Romelus and Remus? They were supposedly raised by wolves.

 

Nope. Other than the creators of Superman being Jewish, there is no comparison between Moses and Superman (without really stretching it). The fundamentals could fit many. Superman fits more closely to Samson than Moses.

 

I think this goes back to the point of Mikey's other post; that is to say that, most great fictional characters are typically derivative of prior historical archetypes that have resonated around for centuries. I for one, clearly agree with the comparison made by Mikey.

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jools&jim

jools&jim

Posted
Posted
So, being set adrift in a basket equates to coming from a rocket ship to another planet? etc., etc. ...

 

Yes, roughly.

 

Nobody claimed that the story of Superman is an allegory for the story of Moses, with a perfect 1-to-1 correspondence between the various elements. But the resonance is very clearly there, whether intended or not...

 

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