Heroes and Hero Worship Author:Thomas Carlyle

Lectures on Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History(1841)These ideas were influential in the development of Socialism, but – like the opinions of many deep thinkers of the time – are also considered to have influenced the rise of Fascism. Carlyle moved towards his later thinking during the 1840s, leading to a break with many old friends and allies, such as John Stuart Mill and, to a lesser extent, Ralph Waldo Emerson. His belief in the importance of heroic leadership found form in his book On Heroes, Hero-Worship, and the Heroic in History, in which he compares a wide range of different types of heroes, including Odin, Oliver Cromwell, Napoleon, William Shakespeare, Dante, Samuel Johnson, Jean Jacques Rousseau, Robert Burns, John Knox, Martin Luther and the Prophet Muhammad.--Submitted by Anonymous.