What is your heroic ideal?

[Mithalwen]

Faramir has always been my beau ideal (as well as a beau sabreur who made a beau geste). In fact he is at least the second best hero in my knowledge of literature (may be pipped by Kester Woodseaves who has similarly great qualities but is of much lower birth, which seems to me he should get credit for). Faramir is a verray parfit gentil knight and loves Eowyn for her inner self rather than her beauty.

However Beleg and Felagund score highly on the laying down your life for your unworthy friends scale (maybe a reason I hate Beren and Luthien so much is that I blame them for Finrod's death?) and Elrond's personal sacrifice when he might have done otherwise always seems heroic to me.

[Inziladun]

I think, out of all the characters I admire for various reasons, my 'hero' would be Frodo.

He accepted the burden of the Ring, first, with Gandalf's urging, agreeing to take the Ring to Rivendell. Arguably, he at that time knew little of the dangers he would face, but still: he did what he did out of love for his homeland, and he had no expectation of any kind of reward, not even great honour and glory.
At the Council of Elrond, after having endured many frightening and unexpected events, including nearly becoming a wraith for ever in the service of Sauron, he still agreed to take the Ring and bear it to Mordor, if he could. Again, he had no reward dangling in front of him; no promises of money of renown. He belived Elrond and Gandalf when they said he was meant to be the Ring-bearer, so he answered the call. That time, he had a much greater idea of the sort of perils that might await him, and he still did not hesitate when the moment of decision came.
I really admire that sort of courage and devotion to 'duty'. For duty was what he accepted: that he and he alone was the one chosen to get the Ring as far as he could, to leave all that he had known behind, as far as he knew, forever.

To aid him, he had no native 'angelic' power, as did Gandalf. He did not have the strength or fighting prowess of Boromir, or the sense of tradition as an enemy of Sauron. He lacked the motive of romantic love that helped Aragorn stay on the right path. Sam, Merry, and Pippin had the simple love and friendship of Frodo to drive them, but Frodo himself had no such inspiration. It seems to me that he was ultimately alone, and had nothing to guide him but his own sense of 'right', and he disregarded all else to follow that ideal.

Others were willing to lay down their lives for the cause, but it seems to me they had various props and comforts to aid them, and Frodo alone did not.

[Eorl of Rohan]

Wow. It's amazing how people read the same book and come up with so many different and colorful interpretations of the text. Even something as predictable as 'who do you think is the hero?' comes up with so many varied answers: Frodo, Sam, Aragorn, Beleg, Turin, Feanor, Faramir, Boromir, Fingolfin, Gandalf...

And as for Frodo, I must admit that I never thought of him as a hero, which is strange because he is the de facto main character and the ringbearer with the fate of middle-earth on his shoulders. In my mind heroes (1) either die tragically in the moment of their victory, or (2) courageously live on after their adventure is over. Instead, Frodo is broken forever. Examples of (1) are King Theoden or Boromir. Examples of (2) are Sam, who marries (I do not remember her name, but a cute holbytlan lass) and settles down to a quiet and happy domestic life, and King Elessar and Faramir as well. However, the cycle of life is denied to Frodo; he does not die or live on, but exists as a grey wraith, a scar on his heart that will never heal.
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