Final answer:
The new hero in realist drama represents a complex, middle-class individual dealing with realistic struggles, reflecting the everyday mundane over the glorified heroism of previous literary movements. This character is often developed through detailed, accurate descriptions and an omniscient narrative that reveals their inner lives amidst the pressures of mundane existence.
Step-by-step explanation:
The notion of a new hero in realist drama contrasts with the heroic ideals of previous movements such as Romanticism. This new hero is typically more complex, neither wholly good nor bad, and faces realistic struggles that may not have tidy resolutions. Realist characters are typically middle-class, three-dimensional, and engage with real-life conflicts that shape the plot. Their actions and outcomes are plausible, reflecting true-to-life scenarios over dramatized, romanticized, or idealized ones. The inner lives of these characters are often revealed through omniscient narration, underscoring their multifaceted natures. The question suggests a comparison with other character archetypes, such as the intellectual hero or the perplexed hero, highlighting the realist rejection of black-and-white characterization and the embrace of moral ambiguity and everyday struggles.
In realist literature, characters grapple with a multitude of internal and external forces, such as social expectations or ethical dilemmas, that do not allow for simple or glorious solutions. This is evident in the excerpts provided, where characters like George Gearson struggle with the concepts of heroism and war, and Stalin's portrayal as a warrior and father represents the complex nature of political and military leadership through history. Overall, realist drama seeks to reflect the mundane reality by subverting the classical notion of a hero and replacing it with a more relatable, ordinary individual dealing with commonplace issues.