Who is the hero of The Godfather? I believe that the hero of the film is Vito Corleone. I believe that he is the hero because of the deeds that he does for others. In the very first scene of the movie, Bonasero comes to him for help. According to dictionary.com, a hero is, "a person who, in the opinion of others has heroic qualities" (dictionary.com). I have not watched a lot of the film yet and I do not know the whole story; however, i have watched enough to distinguish a hero to the point that I am at. In the eyes of Bonasero, Vito is a hero because he has provided him with the justice that the courts could not. He has performed a heroic deed by making the kids that beat on his daughter suffer. Another character that could consider Vito a hero is Johnny Fontaine. Vito has done many things that have helped him. He got him out of a contract so that he could begin his career. Then he convinced the director of a movie to give him a part in a movie. These are deeds that normal people could not accomplish. Whenever Johnny Fontaine has needed help, he has turned to Vito Corleone. Every time that he has turned to Vito, the Don has been able to help him. That is one reason that Vito is the hero of the story.
Michael Corleone could be considered to be the hero of the film. I, however, do not believe that. In the parts that I have watched, Michael has not been a factor in the story. From what I have watched, Vito has been, not only the main character, but the hero as well. "There are certain characteristics that every hero's journey has" (Joseph Campbell). Vito has either done or is in the process of many of these characteristics. Vito lost his parents when he was a young boy and had to cross the Atlantic Ocean. Vito has a loyal band of followers in the Mafia. His sons to Luca Brasi to other smaller families are all his followers and under his control. While I think that there are certain parts that Michael will go through, he has not shown that he has embarked on a journey so he can not be considered a hero.
I perfectly agree with your opinion. I think you did great job on making some good points of Vito Corleone's power and the word 'justice.' If you want to support your idea farther, I suggest you to consider about why people call him a godfather. The interesting fact what i found is that audiences view Vito Corleone as a hero even though he's a leader of mafia.
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