According to the dictionary definition of hero: A hero is a person who has distinguished ability or courage and is admired by other people for the brave deeds as well as noble qualities displayed by him . Being a hero does not necessarily mean the same as it is considered by other people and not by one’s own idea of a hero. There are certain traits that makes a person distinguishable from the rest of the people. These traits may make a person a hero or a villain depending on the nature of the traits. A person is hence considered a hero only if a majority of other people call him/her so based on the heroic traits exhibited by him/her. There can be a large number of traits that define a hero; however, few significant traits include creativity, compassion, and honesty. These traits are discussed below along with the presence of these in the celebrity under discussion i.e. Neil Patrick Harris.
Before proceeding to defining the heroic traits and the presence of these traits in the personality of Neil Patrick Harris, it is deemed essential to mention his brief introduction. Neil Patrick Harris was born on 15th of June, 1973 in Albuquerque with blue eyes and blonde color of hair to a couple who were lawyers. Neil spent his childhood in a small municipality named Ruidoso which is at a distance of 120 miles in the south of Albuquerque. He is a renowned actor, director, singer and producer and earned huge part of fame from his impish nature of acting. He is married to David Burtka and a happy father of two children.
Creativity
Creativity is perhaps the most significant trait of a hero. Creativity is the trait that makes a hero stand out of the crowd. General public may reach to a general solution of almost every problem in a given situation. On the other hand, the cost effective, time saving and least efforts requiring solution can be given by a hero through exercising the creative qualities possessed by the hero. People recognize heroes based on their exceptional way of thinking that brings changes around them. Creativity leads to better solutions of the problems. People who are creative heroes feel boredom in repeating the same type of work over and over.
Neil Patrick Harris is the hero who fulfills the criteria of creativity that can be seen in lots of TV shows. He is seen to be highly creative in giving his interviews during which he is often seen to be stating creative statements. His most famous role as Barney Stinson in “How I Met Your Mother” TV show also displayed a high level of creativity through introducing new and creative ideas in almost every episode of the TV show. His famous saying also confirms his creative thinking and actions as he states that according to his idea it is important to avoid using same trick multiple times . This increases the attention span of audience hence projecting more and more charisma of the personality of a hero. Neil Patrick Harris fulfills the criteria of creativity as can be seen in many of his interesting interviews. He often cracks humorous jokes that no one has ever heard and these jokes are well in-line with the situation faced by him. He infuses the spirit of energy and liveliness in his role and plays each character in its best possible form to entertain the audience. He has been singing since childhood and has good grasp on playing folk guitar to amuse the audience. His creative sense in the field of acting and singing are quite rampant from his work. His naughty characters in different television and theater shows have bought him a huge fan following worldwide. He looks very jolly and always smiling which shows his creative mind that always brings a reason to smile.
Compassion
The prime difference that can be seen between a villain and a hero is the concern displayed by the hero for others. A hero is a person who puts the needs of others before his own. He is a humble person and often requires delicate balance and conscious efforts. The practice of compassion is a regular trait exhibited by almost every hero. A hero does not care whether his act of compassion is small of big, he just does it for others. A hero keeps his/her eyes open for better opportunities to serve humanity . Neil Patrick Harris does charity work and can be seen in many of his TV shows supporting compassionate work. He is often seen to be indulged in helping people and often news are running report these instances. He is not merely an actor of popular TV shows but he stars in a Broadway play named “Hedwig and Angry Inch” while exercising the opportunity of fighting homelessness faced by LGBTQ people .He has played numerous roles depicting a substantial act of helping out others and this gives out a message to the audience that people should be helpful towards each other and especially to the needy class of society.
Honesty
Honesty is a trait that is present in almost all of the heroes. Honesty is speaking the truth is the most critical part of being a hero. A hero always strives for being an honest person. Dishonest people are never considered as heroes in any society. Honesty requires truth speaking from a person and is often judged on the difficult truths like opening up about one’s private matters. People who are open and honest about their statements in general public are the ones who are the most honest. It is quite hard for the showbiz personalities to honestly unveil their personal life affairs to public as it brings along negative connotation for the future success. Neil Patrick Harris, however has been very courageous in this respect and has honestly stated and admitted the personal life activities. Neil Patrick Harris who is a gay person does not conceal his sexual orientation and honestly admits at any open forum. He honestly stated about his sexuality during 2006 with the statement that he is a content gay and is proud to be one while dispelling any misconceptions. He also stated that he is living his life to the fullest and feels quite fortunate for working with good and wonderful people present in the show business . Neil Patrick Harris is often seen on various interviews as a blunt and open spoken person. He never hides behind the subtle behavior and is often seen to act overtly. He has been very open and honest about his personal life affairs and his fans deeply admire this trait in his personality.
Works Cited
Culzac, Natasha. "Neil Patrick Harris: 'I realised I was gay after kiss from Burt Reynolds' ." 15 October 2014. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/news/neil-patrick-harris-i-realised-i-was-gay-after-kiss-from-burt-reynolds-9796831.html. 19 October 2014.
Davidson, Danica. "Sweet Tweet: You Could Meet Neil Patrick Harris By Battling LGBTQ Homelessness." 24 April 2014. http://act.mtv.com/posts/neil-patrick-harris-true-colors-foundation/. 19 October 2014.
Harris, Neil Patrick. "Famous ENTPs." n.d. http://www.celebritytypes.com/entp.php. 20 October 2014.
"hero." n.d. http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/hero. 19 October 2014.
Kile, J. "5 Traits of a Hero." 01 December 2012. http://moralheroes.org/how-to-become-a-hero. 19 Ocober 2014.
