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Atara Stein wriote a book about the
Byronic Hero in popular culture (too early for House
to be included): The Byronic Hero in Film, Fiction,
and Television. and sees the character of House as fitting that model.
This is from that author:
House "fits the
archetype of the Byronic hero, a type Byron didn't
necessarily invent, but perfected, and which has had a
huge influence on subsequent popular culture. In
short, the Byronic Hero is an outlaw who follows his
own moral code and has contempt for the rules and laws
and conventions of society. He is moody and brooding,
narcissistic, and isolated, often choosing to be alone
and feeling isolated within society. He has supernatural
or superhuman abilities or abilities that seem almost
superhuman; one example is the Western hero who never
misses a shot. He's a misanthrope, feeling superior
to most of the human race, and avoiding contact with
them. His social skills are pretty much nonexistent,
and he often is separated from the woman he loves. He
sees her as a superior being like himself and a
mirror/soulmate, but he cannot be with her. She
usually, but not always, ends up dead, often because of
his narcissism. He's not physically wounded, but he
is depressed in a big way, and he sees his depression
as a mark of his superiority to other humans--his
suffering is on such a higher level." |
