Character Analysis: The Hero's Beginning

The Hero’s Beginning

What is a hero? Is it a person with unnatural superpowers or simply a person who is courageous enough to stand up to the forces that oppress society. In a society where the people in control are corrupt, hero’s are needed to point out the injustices that cast over society. Ready Player One by Ernest Cline describes a society where the corrupt seek control of a virtual OASIS, through a series of challenges set up by the deceased creator. Although the protagonist Wade Willets starts off as a overweight, awkward person he develops into a hero that stands up against the oppressors of the Oasis.

Wade Watts story is one of transformation, not just heroism, but one of humanity as well. Wade at the beginning the book would in

Wade’s self perception is the antithesis of what a hero is, how could others see him as a heroic figure, if he believes there is not a single heroic trait about him. The closest trait that applies to him, is that he feels isolated and tries to escape the harsh realities of life, by entering the oasis. Well finding the first of three keys that lead to Holiday’s heir helps his case; “In the OASIS [...] I was a legend. Nay, a god”. After years of no one deciphering the first clue, self pitiful Wade Watts, is the first one to possess the first key, earning him respect from the Oasis platform. The fame that Wade received from discovering the key, changed many aspects of Wade’s life, Wade gained confidence as a person, and wealth allowing him to be a bigger part in the quest. Watts has not

Wade realization of the future, not only brings insight to the reader, of why an IOI controlled OASIS is unwanted, but also draws him personally to stop IOI. Although Wade has done little against the IOI in real life, he puts forth a plan to attack the IOI, after learning they killed Daito in real life. Where he infiltrates the IOI by becoming an indentured servant, by doing this it allowed him to use passwords he found online, to gain access to all of the files from IOI. Wade demonstrates to the reader he is willing to put everything on the line, to stop IOI, he is aware that the IOI is trying to dispose of him and still decides to enter the belly of the beast. Wade heroism has expanded from the confines of the OASIS into the real world as well, displaying to the readers, that he no longer can only fight online, in the safety of his secret spot. Wade greatest feat, is that he communicated, between all OASIS users, a rebellion against the IOI. If there was anyone disputing that Wade is a hero before this point in the book, their argument would be that a hero leads, so this feat acts like the last piece of the