Great Character: Indiana Jones (“Raiders of the Lost Ark”)

Source: Go Into The Story

Who doesn’t love Indiana Jones?

Perhaps the definitive Harrison Ford role, Indiana Jones is the paradigmatic action-adventure hero. From Wikipedia:

Indiana Jones remains one of cinema’s most revered movie characters. In 2003, he was ranked as the second greatest movie hero of all time by the American Film Institute. He was also named the sixth greatest movie character by Empire magazine. Entertainment Weekly ranked Indy 2nd on their list of The All-Time Coolest Heroes in Pop Culture. Premiere magazine also placed Indy at number 7 on their list of The 100 Greatest Movie Characters of All Time. Since his first appearance in Raiders of the Lost Ark, he has become a worldwide star. On their list of the 100 Greatest Fictional Characters, Fandomania.com ranked Indy at number 10. In 2010, he ranked #2 on Time Magazine’s list of the greatest fictional characters of all time, surpassed only by Sherlock Holmes.

What is it about Jones that makes him such a great character? First he gets into some serious action:

He gets in over his head, but always figures his way out:

He proves he’s human because he’s afraid of snakes:

And he has one of the coolest female co-stars ever:

He also says cool things:

Marion: You’re not the man I knew ten years ago.
Indiana: It’s not the years, honey, it’s the mileage.

Dietrich: Dr. Jones, surely you don’t think you can escape from this island?
Indiana: That depends on how reasonable we’re all willing to be. All I want is the girl.
Dietrich: And if we refuse?
Indiana: Then your Führer has no prize.

Indiana: Meet me at Omar’s. Be ready for me. I’m going after that truck.
Sallah: How?
Indiana: I don’t know, I’m making this up as I go!

Once when I was talking with screenwriter Jeff Boam, who wrote the third installment in the Indiana Jones franchise, he told me about meeting with George Lucas who showed him what I believe was this book:

Serials and Series: A World Filmography, 1912-1956

Lucas had dog-eared a bunch of pages. So Indy’s bullwhip, fedora, leather jacket, fighting around moving airplanes, chase scenes involving trucks, crazed Nazis? That all had its inspiration in photos from those serials.

Here is a terrific find: “Raiders of the Lost Archives,” an homage both to Raiders and many of the movies that probably influenced Lucas and Spielberg:

Whatever the inspiration, no character could match the combo plate that is Indiana Jones:

Why do you love Indiana Jones and Raiders of the Lost Ark?

UPDATE: Via @PensAndPaws:

Indiana is my favorite example of a Hemingway Code Hero. When I taught high school Lit, we referenced him all the time.

Good point. What is the Hemingway code hero you ask? A quick Google search reveals this:

Closely related to the concept of stoicism is the “Code Hero,” a phrase used to describe the main character in many of Hemingway’s novels. Some critics regard Santiago as the finest, most developed example of these code heroes.

In this phrase, “code” means a set of rules or guidelines for conduct. In Hemingway’s code, the principal ideals are honor, courage, and endurance in a life of stress, misfortune, and pain. Often in Hemingway’s stories, the hero’s world is violent and disorderly; moreover, the violence and disorder seem to win.

The “code” dictates that the hero act honorably in the midst of what will be a losing battle. In doing so he finds fulfillment: he becomes a man or proves his manhood and his worth. The phrase “grace under pressure” is often used to describe the conduct of the code hero.

Hemingway defined the Code Hero as “a man who lives correctly, following the ideals of honor, courage and endurance in a world that is sometimes chaotic, often stressful, and always painful.” He measures himself by how well he handle the difficult situations that life throws at him.

Doesn’t that sound like Indiana Jones? And that would help to explain how unlike most Protagonists who go through some sort of metamorphosis, heroes like Jones and James Bond do not change, but rather their journey is about steadfastness in the face of chaos. Thoughts?

Source: Go Into The Story