15 famous literary heroes and their unknown prototypes

2024 Author: Richard Flannagan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 23:55

Literary heroes, as a rule, are fictional fiction of the author. But some of them still have real prototypes that lived at the time of the author, or famous historical figures. We will tell you who these figures were unfamiliar to a wide circle of readers.

1. Sherlock Holmes

Even the author himself admitted that Sherlock Holmes has many similarities with his mentor Joe Bell. On the pages of his autobiography, one could read that the writer often remembered his teacher, talked about his eagle profile, inquiring mind and amazing intuition. According to him, the doctor could turn any case into an accurate systematized scientific discipline.

Often Dr. Bell used deductive methods of inquiry. Only one kind of person could he tell about his habits, about his biography, and even sometimes made a diagnosis. After the release of the novel, Conan Doyle corresponded with the "prototype" of Holmes, and he told him that perhaps this was how his career would have turned out if he had chosen a different path.

2. James Bond

The literary history of James Bond began with a series of books written by intelligence officer Ian Fleming. The first book in the series, Casino Royale, was released in 1953, a few years after Fleming was assigned to follow Prince Bernard, who had switched from German service to British intelligence. After much mutual suspicion, the scouts became good friends. Bond took over from Prince Bernard to order Vodka Martini, while adding the legendary Shake Not Stir.

3. Ostap Bender

The man who became the prototype of the great combinator of the "12 chairs" Ilf and Petrov in his 80 years still worked as a conductor on the railway on a train from Moscow to Tashkent. Born from Odessa, Ostap Shor was prone to adventures from delicate nails. He introduced himself as an artist, then as a chess grandmaster, and even acted as a member of one of the anti-Soviet parties.

Only thanks to his remarkable imagination Ostap Shor managed to return from Moscow to Odessa, where he served in the criminal investigation department and fought against local banditry. This is probably the reason for Ostap Bender's respectful attitude to the Criminal Code.

4. Professor Preobrazhensky

Professor Preobrazhensky from the famous Bulgakov's novel "Heart of a Dog" also had a real prototype - a French surgeon of Russian origin Samuil Abramovich Voronov. At the beginning of the 20th century, this man made a splash in Europe by transplanting the glands of a monkey to a person to rejuvenate the body. The first operations showed a striking effect: in elderly patients, there was a resumption of sexual activity, improved memory and vision, ease of movement, and children with mental retardation gained mental alertness.

Thousands of people were treated in Voronova, and the doctor himself opened his own monkey nursery on the French Riviera. But it wasn't long before the patients of the miracle doctor began to feel worse. There were rumors that the result of the treatment was just self-hypnosis, and Voronov was called a charlatan.

5. Peter Pan

The boy with the beautiful fairy Tinker Bell to the world and to James Barry himself - the author of the written work was presented by the couple Davis (Arthur and Sylvia). The prototype for Peter Pan was Michael - one of their sons. The fairytale hero received from a real boy not only age and character, but also nightmares. And the novel itself is a dedication to the author's brother, David, who died a day before his 14th birthday while skating.

6. Dorian Gray

It's a shame, but the protagonist of the novel "The Picture of Dorian Gray" has significantly spoiled his life's original reputation. John Gray, who was a protégé and close friend of Oscar Wilde in his youth, was beautiful, tough and had the appearance of a 15-year-old boy. But their happy union came to an end when journalists became aware of their relationship. An angry Gray went to court, got an apology from the newspaper, but after that his friendship with Wilde ended. Soon John Gray met Andre Raffalovich, a poet and a native of Russia. They converted to Catholicism, and after a while Gray became a priest at St. Patrick's Church in Edinburgh.

7. Alice

The story of Alice in Wonderland began on the day of Lewis Carroll's walk with the daughters of the rector of Oxford University, Henry Lydell, among whom was Alice Lydell. Carroll came up with a story on the go at the request of the children, but next times he did not forget about it, but began to compose a sequel. Two years later, the author presented Alice with a manuscript consisting of four chapters, to which was attached a photograph of Alice herself at the age of seven. It was titled "A Christmas present for a dear girl in memory of a summer day."

8. Karabas-Barabas

As you know, Aleksey Tolstoy only planned to present Carlo Collodio's "Pinocchio" in Russian, but it turned out that he wrote an independent story in which analogies are clearly drawn with cultural figures of that time. Since Tolstoy had no weakness for Meyerhold's theater and its biomechanics, it was the director of this theater that got the role of Karabas-Barabas. A parody can be guessed even in the name: Karabas is the Marquis Carabas from Perrault's tale, and Barabas is from the Italian word for swindler - baraba. But the no less telling role of the seller of leeches Duremar went to Meyerhold's assistant, who works under the pseudonym Voldemar Luccinius.

9. Lolita

According to the memoirs of Brian Boyd, biographer of Vladimir Nabokov, when the writer was working on his scandalous novel "Lolita", he regularly looked through newspaper columns, which published reports of murder and violence. His attention was drawn to the controversial story of Sally Horner and Frank Lasalle in 1948: a middle-aged man kidnapped 12-year-old Sally Horner and kept her with him for almost 2 years until police found her in another California hotel. Lasalle, like Nabokov's hero, passed off the girl as his daughter. Nabokov even casually mentions this incident in the book in the words of Humbert: "Did I do to Dolly what Frank Lasalle, a 50-year-old mechanic, did to 11-year-old Sally Horner in 48?"

10. Carlson

The story of Carlson's creation is mythologized and incredible. Literary critics claim that Hermann Goering became a possible prototype for this funny character. And although the relatives of Astrid Lindgren deny this version, such rumors still take place today.

Astrid Lindgren met Goering in the 1920s when he organized an air show in Sweden. At that time, Goering was just "in his prime", a famous pilot-ace, a man with charisma and great appetite. The motor behind Carlson's back is an interpretation on the theme of Goering's flight experience.

Adherents of this version note that for some time Astrid Lindgren was an ardent fan of the National Socialist Party of Sweden. The book about Carlson was published in 1955, so there could be no direct analogy. Nevertheless, it is possible that the charismatic image of the young Goering influenced the appearance of the charming Carlson.

11. One-legged John Silver

Robert Louis Stevenson in the novel "Treasure Island" portrayed his friend Williams Hansley not as a critic and poet, who he was in fact, but as a real villain. During his childhood, William suffered from tuberculosis, and his leg was amputated to the knee. Before the book appeared on the shelves of stores, Stevenson said to a friend: “I have to confess to you, Evil in appearance, but good at heart, John Silver was written off from you. You're not offended, are you?"

12. Winnie the Pooh bear

According to one of the versions, the world-famous teddy bear got its name in honor of the favorite toy of the son of the writer Milne Christopher Robin. However, like all the other heroes of the book. But in fact, this name is from the nickname Winnipeg - that was the name of the bear who lived at the London Zoo from 1915 to 1934. This bear had many kids admirers, including Christopher Robin.

13. Dean Moriarty and Sal Paradise

Despite the fact that the main characters in the book are named Sal and Dean, Jack Kerouac's On the Road is purely autobiographical. One can only guess why Kerouac abandoned his name in the most famous book for the beatniks.

14. Daisy Buchanan

In The Great Gatsby, author Francis Scott Fitzgerald described Ginevra King, his first love, deeply and soulfully. Their romance lasted from 1915 to 1917. But due to different social statuses, they broke up, after which Fitzgerald wrote that "poor boys should not even think about marrying rich girls." This phrase was included not only in the book, but also in the film of the same name. Ginevra King also became the prototype for Isabelle Borge in Beyond Paradise and Judy Jones in Winter Dreams.

Especially for those who like to sit reading 9 books that are read in one breath per night … Choosing these books, you will definitely not be disappointed.