Everyone has their own view of what makes a hero. Everyone has different perspectives, and it is debatable whether or not Peter is a hero, and what kind of hero he is, because everyone has different standards for someone or something to be considered a hero in their books. Everyone has their own view of what makes a hero. There is a very long list of possible qualifications, and in the eyes of many, he would indeed meet the criteria to be acknowledged as a true hero.
What did he do to get nominated for the position of a hero? Peter played a major role in saving the life of Queen Elizabeth, one of the most important and powerful people of his time. A person beneficial and helpful in maintaining order and playing a huge role in helping the people of England lead peaceful, happy lives. He rescued one of the most critical people in existance at his time.
Now don't get the wrong idea, Osama Bin Laden was considered important by some select few, and powerful in the eyes of many. Simply saving one's life cannot instantly make one a hero, the person who one saves can have a huge impact on if the savior can be considered a hero. If Peter had saved an antagonist of the story, such as the knights of treason instead of Elizabeth, knights that seek power and control because of selfishness, he would certainly be out of the running to be considered a hero, in fact, many could reasonably consider him a villian. The knights of treason are short-sighted people, only seeking great wealth and power through greed, not taking into consideration the impact their future actions could have on all of the people of England by assassinating Elizabeth. A few possible outcomes could be a corrupted nation, hyperinflation, and rebellion. Because of how the conspirators' intents have consequences for humanity that far outweigh the benefits, the knights of treason can be considered evil and on opposite poles in comparison to benign people such as Elizabeth. As a result, there is no way that Peter could be considered a hero if he had saved one of the knights of treason, or any antagonist. He saved Elizabeth, a beneficial person dedicated to advancing, healing, and easing the lives of people in England.
Furthermore, while trying to save Elizabeth, he put his own life in danger to complete the task. Many people would agree that if someone has knowingly put their own life on the line in order to save another peaceful, benign person or people, they can already be considered a hero, though one does not have to in order to be considered a hero. For example, a person who performs CPR on someone who undergoes severe cardiac arrest and is credited with keeping him or her alive until an ambulance arrives can be considered a hero. One does not have to put their own life at risk in order to be considered a hero, though they should be aware of how dire the situation is.
If one does not realize the massive consequences their actions could have in the future, then they do not deserve to be recognized with hero status. If a blind man walked into a burning building thinking everything was normal and pulled out an unconscious person, wanting them to walk with him somewhere, could he be considered a hero? Though this is a highly unlikely scenario, it is possible, and there would no doubt be some debate over whether or not the man could be considered a savior. He was not aware that he was risking his own life, nor was he aware that he was saving another's life. This would have taken off enormous pressure off the rescuer. One could ask "Would you have rescued that person if you knew the building was on fire?" and not get an honest answer. This was not how Peter saved Elizabeth. He knew he was fighting a battle against experienced, well armed soldiers. He knew he ran quite a high risk of death. Most of all, he knew that if he did not achieve success, there would be dire consequences for the humanity of England, and took the pressure.
So, Peter can easily be considered a hero. What kind of hero is he? Again, this is a question that is largely influenced by opinion, and there is no right or wrong answer like one plus one. Though this is a highly debatable question, Peter can very much be considered an accidental hero depending on one's criteria. Peter never chose or was chosen for a noble, heroic, and deadly path in life. Never once in the text does it ever say that Peter was one of Queen Elizabeth's chosen spies, specialized and trained to hunt, track, and kill off possible treason. From the text, it never once occurred to Peter that he would be living a life somewhat similar to an outcast, and then a soldier, before he had thrown a stone at Sir Philip. He never knew he would become one of Elizabeth's helpers and be sent on a mission, it only became so because of sudden, unexpected, dire circumstances that forced him to make a life-changing decision, he never planned or prepared for it. As a result, Peter is an accidental hero. The unexpected twist in the path of his life, which he never trained for or anticipated, was accidental. It would be the same idea as if someone shoved a weapon you've never seen before into your hands and told you to travel to another country to kill a swordsman and at the same time avoid capture by an elite force of experienced, well-armed soldiers. A good example of someone who became an accidental hero in a similar manor to Peter is the fictional character 'Pendragon,' from the Pendragon novel series. He was thrown into a complex quest because of someone else, unexpectedly of course, and resolved the conflict through evil through unknown ways prior to his beginning of the quest. His story is similar to Peter's story of heroism, though is not precise. The most significant similarity between the two stories is that the heroes were not prepared.
Peter never anticipated the path he suddenly walked. Yet, despite being completely untrained and unprepared for the task of becoming one of Elizabeth's spies, he took the job on, in an attempt to aid the humanity of England. He could have declined and said he did not want to die, but he did not. He could have walked out on the job when all seemed lost, which was multiple times in the plot, yet he did not. His accomplishment of saving queen Elizabeth, while risking his own life despite being totally untrained, is definitely one large enough so that anyone can reasonably acknowledge Peter as an accidental hero.
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