History Main / CulturedWarrior

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Many soldiers in fiction are [[SociopathicSoldier rough, abrasive grunts]] who wouldn't know a work of poetry if it hit them during an artillery barrage.

* [[Characters/MarvelComicsSteveRogers Steve Rogers]] Comicbook/CaptainAmerica has generally been shown to be an artist before and after he was recruited and enhanced by Project Rebirth. He even drew for a comic book about his hero identity himself.

* [[Literature/TheThrawnTrilogy Grand Admiral Thrawn]], of the ''Franchise/StarWarsExpandedUniverse''. If it were not for his willingness to [[ILied lie]], cheat, express destructive hints of temper, and even destroy art if it would win him a battle, he might even qualify as an OfficerAndAGentleman. (He certainly does in the ''Literature/OutboundFlight'' prequel.)

* ''WesternAnimation/GIJoeARealAmericanHero'': Sgt. Slaughter, a SergeantRock if ever there was one, is revealed in the episode "G.I. Joe and the Golden Fleece", when a team is transported back in time, to be fluent in Ancient Greek (or at least one of the four dialects used at the time, each of which is ''very'' different from modern Greek):
-->'''Sgt. Slaughter''': I learned it in college. ''(grabs Lifeline)'' '''What's the matter? Surprised I went to college?!'''

* Wrestling/ScottSteiner likes to project this image by wearing chain mail, bragging about going to the UsefulNotes/UniversityOfMichigan, and reciting Latin phrases. He then usually shows himself to be a DumbJock with DelusionsOfEloquence.

* Steve Rogers' Comicbook/CaptainAmerica has generally been shown to be an artist before and after he was recruited and enhanced by Project Rebirth. He even drew for a comic book about his hero identity himself.

** ''WesternAnimation/TheLegendOfKorra'' gives us borderline example Amon in the first season. He knows his history well enough to draw parallels to Zuko and point out all the wars caused by bending, he maintains an air of dignity and intelligence even under high-stress situations, makes eloquent speeches, and is only violent towards benders. ''The Legend of Korra'' also has this for the second season's Big Bad, but it's hard to get into without massive spoilers.
** The clearest example in ''Korra'', though, is the third season's BigBad, [[WickedCultured Zaheer]]. He's a formidable combatant - fighting him one-on-one generally results in a CurbStompBattle (unless you're [[PhysicalGod the Avatar]], or [[SpinOffspring one of Aang's children]] - ruthless and fiercely dedicated to his goals, and well-versed in Air Nomad history, culture, philosophy, and poetry.

* [[ActionGirl Gunnery Sergeant Ashley Williams]] of ''Franchise/MassEffect'' happens to have a liking for classical poetry and makes a point to correct [[PlayerCharacter Shepard]] on his/her errors in military history. As of the [[VideoGame/MassEffect3 the third game]], she's quoted Henley, Tennyson, and Whitman at Shepard. She actually uses Whitman in an attempt to seduce him. Shepard is at least her equal in this, at least the ones she quotes.

* ''Franchise/StarTrek'': Worf is shown to be a cultured warrior even during the early seasons of ''Series/StarTrekTheNextGeneration'' who loves to recite Klingon poetry. In later seasons of ''The Next Generation'' and during his time on ''Series/StarTrekDeepSpaceNine'' Worf is shown to be a dedicated fan of Klingon opera. By the time the third season of ''Series/StarTrekPicard'' takes place in late 2401, Worf has broadened his horizons to include human opera that he listens to while performing his Klingon calisthenics.