--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: But protagonists are protagonists and…" description: "\"But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes.\" — David Baldacci" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png" --- # But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes. ![“But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes.” quote by David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png) > “But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes.” [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Emphasizes that characters retain their core identities regardless of circumstances. **In simple terms:** Characters stay true to their roles. Key Takeaway Recognize core traits in people. Themes identity role characterization Mood reflective analytical Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - storytelling - leadership - personal relationships Key Concepts consistency archetype narrative function Questions to Reflect On - Can a protagonist evolve without losing heroism? - When does a hero become a villain? A Different Perspective Overlooks growth or change. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) [Heroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroes/) [Heroes Heroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroes-heroes-364460/) [Protagonists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protagonists/) [Protagonists Heroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protagonists-heroes-5430592/) [Protagonists Protagonists](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/protagonists-protagonists-5430593/) ## Related quotes > [Heroes became heroes flaws and all gives us hope. "You mean I don't have to be perfect to fulfill my Dream, to make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mcwilliams/heroes-became-heroes-flaws-and-all-gives-us-hope-you-mean-i-don-t/) [Peter McWilliams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mcwilliams/) > [My heroes are all dead. I've lots of heroes. My mum is a hero. She had to put up with me and my dad.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-friday/my-heroes-are-all-dead-i-ve-lots-of-heroes-my-mum-is-a-hero-she-had/) [Gavin Friday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-friday/) > [Everyone relates to the heroes - that's why they're the heroes. But I've realized there are just more layers to characters who have been…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-plummer/everyone-relates-to-the-heroes-that-s-why-they-re-the-heroes-but-i-ve/) [Charlie Plummer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-plummer/) > [I admire the military. I guess in a world of villains and heroes, they're my heroes. Their dedication, their commitment, their discipline, their code…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-cena/i-admire-the-military-i-guess-in-a-world-of-villains-and-heroes-they/) [John Cena](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-cena/) > [If someone comes to me with a script and says, 'Sir, this hero...' I'm like, 'Is there a name, or he is just called…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rajkummar-rao/if-someone-comes-to-me-with-a-script-and-says-sir-this-hero-i-m-like/) [Rajkummar Rao](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rajkummar-rao/) > [Heroes are heroes because they are heroic in behavior, not because they won or lost.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nassim-nicholas-taleb/heroes-are-heroes-because-they-are-heroic-in-behavior-not-because/) [Nassim Nicholas Taleb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nassim-nicholas-taleb/) > [What are Heroes? Heroes are Men, Women and Children who do an act of Freedom, Bravery, Courage and/or Intellect in their lives to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melchor-lim/what-are-heroes-heroes-are-men-women-and-children-who-do-an-act-of/) [Melchor Lim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melchor-lim/) > [A lot of my characters are anti-heroes that became heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvine-welsh/a-lot-of-my-characters-are-anti-heroes-that-became-heroes/) [Irvine Welsh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvine-welsh/) > [There are no heroes; we are all heroes on the street.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wael-ghonim/there-are-no-heroes-we-are-all-heroes-on-the-street/) [Wael Ghonim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wael-ghonim/) > [“Today the word "hero" has been diminished. confused with "celebrity." But in my father's generation the word meant something. celebrities seek fame. They take…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-bradley/today-the-word-hero-has-been-diminished-confused-with-celebrity-but/) [james bradley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-bradley/) > [Heroes became heroes flaws and all. You don’t have to be perfect to fulfill your dream.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-mcwilliams/heroes-became-heroes-flaws-and-all-you-don-t-have-to-be-perfect-to/) [Peter McWilliams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-mcwilliams/) > [You are the heroes. You are the heroes everyday.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miep-gies/you-are-the-heroes-you-are-the-heroes-everyday/) [Miep Gies](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miep-gies/) > [Your country requires heroes; be heroes; your duty is to go on working, and then everything will follow of itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/swami-vivekananda/your-country-requires-heroes-be-heroes-your-duty-is-to-go-on-working/) [Swami Vivekananda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/swami-vivekananda/) > [“It’s hard when you lose someone. I’ve had it happen. It changes your world, everything, but it doesn’t change who you are. People who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-flinn/it-s-hard-when-you-lose-someone-i-ve-had-it-happen-it-changes-your/) [Alex Flinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-flinn/) > [“Every society needs heroes. And every society has them. The reason we don't often see them is because we don't bother to look. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susilo-bambang-yudhoyono/every-society-needs-heroes-and-every-society-has-them-the-reason-we/) [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susilo-bambang-yudhoyono/) ## More by David Baldacci > [Why waste time trying to discover the truth, when you can so easily create it?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/why-waste-time-trying-to-discover-the-truth-when-you-can-so-easily/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [It's the hardest thing in the world to put yourself in someone else's place, try to really feel what they feel, figure out why…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/it-s-the-hardest-thing-in-the-world-to-put-yourself-in-someone-else-s/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“That’s what’s called a ‘valley fill.’ What they fill it with the coal companies call ‘overburden.’ That’s basically everything they tore off the land:…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/that-s-what-s-called-a-valley-fill-what-they-fill-it-with-the-coal/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [But if I worried too much about publishers' expectations, I'd probably paralyze myself and not be able to write anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/but-if-i-worried-too-much-about-publishers-expectations-i-d-probably/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [That's what civilization sometimes did to threats, real or perceived. They walled them off. Us against them. Survival of the fittest. You die so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/that-s-what-civilization-sometimes-did-to-threats-real-or-perceived/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“You could have been a great scientist or something. Or a writer.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/you-could-have-been-a-great-scientist-or-something-or-a-writer/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“That’s good to hear, Billy. Kids have enough shit to deal with without somebody who is supposed to love them beating the crap out…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/that-s-good-to-hear-billy-kids-have-enough-shit-to-deal-with-without/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [Most people associate reading with laying on the beach. They don't see that it's crucial for a democracy!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/most-people-associate-reading-with-laying-on-the-beach-they-don-t-see/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [I'm ever curious about the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/i-m-ever-curious-about-the-world/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“There was a time when Stone would have rated a platoon of crackerjack killers coming for him by land, sea and air. Those days…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/there-was-a-time-when-stone-would-have-rated-a-platoon-of-crackerjack/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [I'm driven to go out and find new things to write about.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/i-m-driven-to-go-out-and-find-new-things-to-write-about/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [It's hard, Cotton. To let yourself love something you know you may never have.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/it-s-hard-cotton-to-let-yourself-love-something-you-know-you-may/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [I'm a wicked ping-pong player.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/i-m-a-wicked-ping-pong-player/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“He could compartmentalize at an astonishing level. It came from not giving a shit. And”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/he-could-compartmentalize-at-an-astonishing-level-it-came-from-not/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) > [“two unconscious, bleeding men and then over at the girl behind the bar. She was staring at him openmouthed, the glass-rag and beer mug…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/two-unconscious-bleeding-men-and-then-over-at-the-girl-behind-the-bar/) [David Baldacci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) [Explore all 214 David Baldacci quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/) ## More Hero quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > ['Melanin Man' was inspired by the words of an Uber driver in L.A. Before I got out of the car he said, 'They're scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masego/melanin-man-was-inspired-by-the-words-of-an-uber-driver-in-l-a-before/) [Masego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masego/) > [Once the state has been founded, there can no longer be any heroes. They come on the scene only in uncivilized conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/once-the-state-has-been-founded-there-can-no-longer-be-any-heroes/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [You know, I often thought that the gangster and the artist are the same in the eyes of the masses. They're admired and hero-worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/you-know-i-often-thought-that-the-gangster-and-the-artist-are-the/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [“A hero is not know by the number of battles he has won, but rather by the kind of battles he chooses to fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonny-k-brown/a-hero-is-not-know-by-the-number-of-battles-he-has-won-but-rather-by/) [Tonny K. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tonny-k-brown/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Teachers are heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-best/teachers-are-heroes/) [Charles Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-best/) > [“Forgotten hero was never the real hero, real hero can not be forgotten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/forgotten-hero-was-never-the-real-hero-real-hero-can-not-be-forgotten/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > ['Sex and The City' was made to correct the myth that if you were single at a certain age, you were a leper. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-king/sex-and-the-city-was-made-to-correct-the-myth-that-if-you-were-single/) [Michael Patrick King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-king/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. There are moments that I admire…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/orhan-pamuk/i-believe-in-a-world-where-there-are-no-heroes-and-i-ve-read-and-know/) [Orhan Pamuk](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/orhan-pamuk/) > [O it's Tommy this, and Tommy that, and Tommy 'ow's your soul/But it's thin red line of heroes when the drums begin to roll.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rudyard-kipling/o-it-s-tommy-this-and-tommy-that-and-tommy-ow-s-your-soul-but-it-s/) [Rudyard Kipling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rudyard-kipling/) > [Benny Carter came up to me and said to me, "You know, in the whole history of the alto, I think Phil is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-gordon/benny-carter-came-up-to-me-and-said-to-me-you-know-in-the-whole/) [Jon Gordon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-gordon/) [Browse all 5,602 Hero quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "David Baldacci" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-heroes-are-heroes/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Hero" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-heroes-are-heroes/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/5a2/david-baldacci-1558_hero_but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-he_1486829.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“But protagonists are protagonists and heroes are heroes.” — David Baldacci", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "David Baldacci", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-baldacci/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "But protagonists are protagonists and heroes...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-heroes-are-heroes/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-baldacci/but-protagonists-are-protagonists-and-heroes-are-heroes/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```