Presented at the CiRCE Fall Regional Conference 2023.

In stories through the ages, we learn about heroes and what makes an ideal man: This is the tyrannizing image of what man ought to be for a particular culture. The Greeks gave us Odysseus, and the Romans gave us Aeneas. Medieval literature gave us Beowulf and King Arthur. But where and to whom do we look for the Ideal Type in today’s world? Which stories should we and our students pay attention to in order to find the perfect man? Join us as we seek and find possible answers to this eternal question.