Wesley Hayden: A Silent Hero
A hero is not always a likable person, but is always someone who does their best to make sure justice is meted out. While there are many types of heroes, ranging from saviors to accidental heroes, a silent man hero is the best way to describe Wesley Hayden from Montana 1948, by Larry Watson. Though some may disagree, Wesley Hayden exemplifies a silent man hero through his choices, motivations, and the consequences of his decisions, he displays traits and tendencies commonly attributed to silent man heroes: saying little, doing thing with minimal fuss, and always doing what needs to be done. To begin, Wesley shows heroic qualities through his choices. Wesley is faced with many choices throughout the course of the novel, and when making decisions, he always says little, makes no fuss, and does what needs to be done. For instance, when Wesley’s father gives a speech describing his brother’s seemingly heroic actions, Wesley is uncomfortable and is faced with the decision of disrupting the speech in order to leave or slipping out silently. David, the narrator of the story, notes that his “father was not there. He had drifted back through the crowd and was picking up scraps of paper from the grass. With his bad leg, bending was difficult” (26). In this situation, Wesley could have chosen to make a spectacle out of his father’s speech, but instead …show more content…
Even though some may disagree due to the fact that he swept his brother’s crimes under the rug, he is a hero because he does what needs to be done, in this case, to protect his family. There was no longer any justice to mete out, seeing as Frank killed himself. Though he may be seen as a cold person, Wesley Hayden is a hero because he tried to right his brother’s injustice, even though he was stopped before he got the
A hero is not always a likable person, but is always someone who does their best to make sure justice is meted out. While there are many types of heroes, ranging from saviors to accidental heroes, a silent man hero is the best way to describe Wesley Hayden from Montana 1948, by Larry Watson. Though some may disagree, Wesley Hayden exemplifies a silent man hero through his choices, motivations, and the consequences of his decisions, he displays traits and tendencies commonly attributed to silent man heroes: saying little, doing thing with minimal fuss, and always doing what needs to be done. To begin, Wesley shows heroic qualities through his choices. Wesley is faced with many choices throughout the course of the novel, and when making decisions, he always says little, makes no fuss, and does what needs to be done. For instance, when Wesley’s father gives a speech describing his brother’s seemingly heroic actions, Wesley is uncomfortable and is faced with the decision of disrupting the speech in order to leave or slipping out silently. David, the narrator of the story, notes that his “father was not there. He had drifted back through the crowd and was picking up scraps of paper from the grass. With his bad leg, bending was difficult” (26). In this situation, Wesley could have chosen to make a spectacle out of his father’s speech, but instead …show more content…
Even though some may disagree due to the fact that he swept his brother’s crimes under the rug, he is a hero because he does what needs to be done, in this case, to protect his family. There was no longer any justice to mete out, seeing as Frank killed himself. Though he may be seen as a cold person, Wesley Hayden is a hero because he tried to right his brother’s injustice, even though he was stopped before he got the