History Main / HumbleHero

* In [[Creator/DanteAlighieri Dante]]'s ''Literature/VitaNuova'', Beatrice is so devoid of {{Pride}} that it astonishes {{God}} and merits her entrance into the heaven of humility, sitting within reach of the Virgin Mary herself.

---> '''Picard:''' I have been...pleased to offer occasional assistance to the Klingon people in the past.\\

* After [[CharacterDevelopment maturing]] over the course of the TimeSkip, Franchise/Ben10 became this in ''WesternAnimation/Ben10AlienForce''. When referred to by a [[SpacePolice Plumber]] as "the legendary Ben 10" his response is to shrug and say "Guess so." This falls by the wayside in ''WesternAnimation/Ben10UltimateAlien'' when he gets a severe case of AcquiredSituationalNarcissism from becoming a celebrity in TheUnmasquedWorld, although he becomes much less haughty following this arc.

* While he would rather devote his free time to saving more lives, Samaritan of ''ComicBook/AstroCity'' attends tribute dinners and accepts awards only because he doesn't want to hurt the feelings of the people who give them to him.

* [[ComicBook/SpiderMan Peter Parker/Spider-Man]] as portrayed by Creator/TobeyMaguire in Creator/SamRaimi's ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' even though he temporarily acts like a Big Name, Big Ego {{Jerkass}} in the third movie as a side-effect of [[TheCorruption the alien symbiote]].

* Mario's contemporary, Link from ''Franchise/TheLegendOfZelda'' is as well. Along with his trademark courage, being humble is generally his only canon personality trait.

* ''Film/GodzillaKingOfTheMonsters2019'': According to his Monarch Sciences bio, [[Characters/MonsterVerseMonarch Serizawa]] is only the ''de facto'' spearhead of Monarch because, despite everyone's admiration of him and the world governments looking to him, he refuses to carry an official title; believing that "to maintain a balance between mankind and [[{{Kaiju}} Titans]], we must first maintain an equal balance of self".

* [[Franchise/SpiderMan Peter Parker/Spider-Man]] as portrayed by Creator/TobeyMaguire in Creator/SamRaimi's ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' even though he temporarily acts like a Big Name, Big Ego {{Jerkass}} in the third movie as a side-effect of [[TheCorruption the alien symbiote]].

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': It is implied that, long after the end of the Quincy Blood War, virtually no one but a select few people are aware of the crucial role Ichigo played in Yhwach's defeat (whereas the official story is that he was defeated by the [[PraetorianGuard Royal Guard]]). When called a hero to his face, Ichigo goes so far as to deny being one. Nel explicitly points out that he doesn't care for that kind of fame; while Ichigo's friends in Soul Society aren't entirely happy with this at first, they choose to respect his wishes out of gratitude.

* In ''Fanfic/JonathanJoestarTheFirstJoJo'', Jonathan repeatedly states that the incredible feats he accomplishes aren't that impressive.
* In the ''Literature/{{Worm}}'' x ''VideoGame/{{Dishonored}}'' crossover fanfic ''Fanfic/AChangeOfPace'', according to the [[AllPowerfulBystander Outsider]], Legend struggles with this, wondering if he's doing good because it needs to be done, or if there's an ulterior motive he doesn't want to admit.
* In ''Fanfic/{{Bait and Switch|STO}}'' Lieutenant Commander Reshek Gaarra got a medal for saving the USS ''Spruance'' from a warp core breach, but he doesn't consider what he specifically did to be all that noteworthy, even though his captain did.
* Greg from ''Fanfic/FriendshipIsOptimalAlwaysSayNo'' is very modest about his heroic actions and quick to pass them off as nothing special.
* Kyoshi from the ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'' fic ''Fanfic/KyoshiRising''; she is uncomfortable with receiving special treatment from anyone and insists that people call her "Kyoshi" instead of "Avatar".
* ''Fanfic/RacerAndTheGeek'' gives us Sunny Breeze, a badass veteran and unsung hero with a tendency towards self-deprecation.
* The uncle of ''[[http://www.fimfiction.net/story/81159/1/racer-and-the-geek/predawn Songs Uncle Sings]]'' is like this.
* Surprisingly, Stormfront from ''Blog/StoriesFromTheFront''. Surprisingly, because as a [[EthicalSlut nymphomaniac]] Pegasus mare, she's exactly the sort of character whom one would ''expect'' to boast, but she doesn't -- about anything. Save by implication, and only to her own diary.
--> "I knew enough to operate a welding torch and reseal the coolant line and I suppose they considered that worth a medal."
* In the ''Franchise/StarTrek'' fan-made video ''WebVideo/PreludeToAxanar'', this is how Captain Sonya Alexander describes fellow captain Kelvar Garth. She says that he likes to downplay his heroism during the Four Years' War, especially in the Battle of Cygnus III; he certainly does so, attributing his successful maneuver to luck and Alexander giving him the opening he needed.
* Kyoshi in ''Fanfic/{{Ageless}}'' felt guilty that she outshined Ban -- the Avatar that led a splinter group of the water tribe to populate what would eventually become Kyoshi Island -- so she made sure to erect a shrine for him.
* In ''Fanfic/NeitherABirdNorAPlaneItsDeku'', Izuku is a Kryptonian with a whole host of ComboPlatterPowers, including SuperStrength, NighInvulnerability, and [[SuperSenses seven types of vision]]. He doesn't think they're all that impressive when compared to All Might's Quirk, even as All Might's jaw is hitting the floor after hearing about Izuku's abilities. When he gets to U.A., he insists that he's just a normal guy when the rest of his class is gaping in awe at what he's capable of.
-->'''Kyouka:''' So I know you asked us to stop talking about you so much, but your power is really amazing, Midoriya.\\
'''Izuku:''' Yeah, people keep saying that, but I don't really think I'm that special. I'm only able to do all of that because of the way my body absorbs sunlight, so without that, I'm just a normal guy.\\
'''Itsuka:''' [[LampshadeHanging Good to know we can beat you just by sitting around for five billion years.]]
* In ''Fanfic/CodexEquus'', there are many individuals of this type in the Codexverse, despite the setting being a WorldOfBadass.

* Used against Severus Snape in ''[[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/7118223/1/Elsewhere-but-not-Elsewhen Elsewhere, but not Elsewhen]]''. After banishing Harry to an AlternateUniverse, Voldemort strolls into Diagon Alley in the full light of day. When Dumbledore tries to confront him, Voldemort doesn't rise to the bait and instead gives Dumbledore all the rope he needs to hang himself by letting him declare Harry is safe. Pulling one of the kids' adventure books featuring Harry from Flourish and Blotts, he savages the entire line and the idea that he was ever the brilliant promised prince, instead showing his awful life at the Dursleys' and Dumbledore's willing complicity in it. This immediately destroys Snape's entire image of Dumbledore and prompts him to immediately attack him, certain in the knowledge he'd completely failed Lily's memory by collaborating with Dumbledore.

* [[Characters/SamuraiJackJack The titular]] WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack is highly skilled in several areas of combat, especially in the way of [[MasterSwordsman the sword]], and he frequently delays his quest to return to his own time by [[ChronicHeroSyndrome helping people in need]]. He's also [[TheQuietOne quiet]], polite, and never brags about his accomplishments or the fact that he's a [[WarriorPrince prince]].

* ''WesternAnimation/DuckTales2017'': Franchise/DonaldDuck. While in his younger days he was "one of the greatest adventurers of all time!", now he's a RetiredBadass who just wants to lead a normal, boring life and ensure a good, safe upbringing for his nephews. Of course, although he wants to be done with adventure, [[TheCallKnowsWhereYouLive it seems adventure's not quite done with him.]]

** [[ModestRoyalty Twilight Sparkle]] is the personal student of the supreme ruler of the nation, is perhaps the most powerful unicorn alive, and has personally been involved in saving the world on multiple separate occasions. Despite all this, she doesn't brag and actually gets a bit timid when her assistant Spike brags about her. She seems more interested in learning about magic and spending time with her TrueCompanions. She retains her humble nature even after she is turned into a princess with a rank that equals her teacher's; blushing and giving an embarrassed grin when acknowledged or praised is something characteristic of her. Even becoming [[PhysicalGod an alicorn princess]] doesn't make her haughty; she rarely invokes her title.
** All of the Mane Six. While [[JerkWithAheartOfGold Rainbow Dash]] does have the occasional GlorySeeker moment, the girls don't talk loudly about their achievements and would rather spend their time hanging out together between them or with their families than being celebrated for their exploits. They may be willing to confront powerful antagonists, but only because it's the right thing to do and they greatly care about their beloved land.

* The titular WesternAnimation/SamuraiJack is highly skilled in several areas of combat, especially in the way of [[MasterSwordsman the sword]], and he frequently delays his quest to return to his own time by [[ChronicHeroSyndrome helping people in need]]. He's also [[TheQuietOne quiet]], polite, and never brags about his accomplishments or the fact that he's a [[WarriorPrince prince]].

* ''VideoGame/SonicTheHedgehog'': Miles "Tails" Prower is more humble than his speedy, blue friend. Not that that's hard.

** It also puts Saitama in opposition to ''most'' of the Hero League, particular the S Rank heroes. Just about every S Rank hero is in it for the glory and the fame, but Saitama is the one that actually ''solves'' problems, while the S Rank heroes frequently do very little in comparison, and sometimes nothing at all, because they consider the threat beneath them.

* WesternAnimation/KimPossible fights {{supervillain}}s and saves the world as a hobby, but plays it down whenever she gets attention for it, and when a movie producer decides to make a film about her, it doesn't seem to have ever occurred to her that her adventures [[WhoWouldWantToWatchUs would be worth retelling]]. [[CatchPhrase As she would say,]] [[ThinkNothingOfIt "No big."]]

[[folder:Real Life]]
* Cincinnatus: In 458 BC, when the Romans needed someone to lead them during their war with the Aequians and the Sabines, they gave retired Senator-[[CallToAgriculture turned-farmer]] Cincinnatus absolute dictatorial authority when it came to dealing with the situation. Sixteen days later, after ''winning the war'', he resigned as absolute ruler of Rome and went back to his farm. Twenty years later, in 439 BC, when the Romans were at war with the Plebians and again needed effective leadership, they ''again'' gave Cincinnatus absolute power, and again, as soon as the crisis was over, he gave it back and went back to farming.
* The 1st American President, UsefulNotes/GeorgeWashington. After the Constitution was written he was selected as the first president unanimously by the Electoral College and while various parties thought up ideas like fancy garments and royal titles, Washington himself insisted on setting a precedent of humility, dressing in standard gentleman's attire (for the time) and came up with and enforced the simple term, "Mr. President." He was reluctant to take a second term as President but did when asked, ''again'' being elected unanimously. However, he flat out rejected a third term, setting a precedent for two-term presidents (something that would only be written into law a century and a half later when [[UsefulNotes/FranklinDRoosevelt FDR]] finally broke the precedent) and retired to his plantation. As a CulturedBadass, he was greatly inspired by Cincinnatus (he was one of the founding members, and the first President, of the Society of Cincinnati, an organization devoted to the ideals of Cincinnatus).
* From the perspective of UsefulNotes/ImperialJapan, UsefulNotes/HidekiTojo is one such example. In his own words, "I am just an ordinary man possessing no shining talents. Anything I have achieved I owe to my capacity for hard work and never giving up."
* UsefulNotes/EinarGerhardsen, Norwegian prime minister for eighteen years. He was known for his modest living -- he lived in a flat in the eastern part of Oslo, not having a standard that surpassed any other citizen [[TheFifties at the time]]. When he visited a factory or industrial plant, he made a point of making small talk with the workers, stressing the point that he was one of them -- and in fact, he started out as one. This tradition was not held up by later Labor prime ministers in Norway, who, rather than speak ''with'' the workers, preferred to speak ''to'' them.
* Most if not all living recipients of the Medal of Honor, Victoria Cross or any other country's highest decorations for valor in combat insist they were [[ImNotAHeroIm just doing what they had to do]], and there's nothing special about them. Of particular note is Captain Charles Upham, the only combat soldier ever to earn the Victoria Cross twice. On being told of the award, his response: "It's meant for the men."
* Wrestling/ElSanto claimed in a newspaper interview that he was utterly confused about how he got so popular. To this day, over thirty years after his death, he's ''still'' a legend.
%%* By all means, UsefulNotes/JackieRobinson was an example of this.
* The donors behind the [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kalamazoo_Promise Kalamazoo Promise]]. And, by extension, anyone that donates their time or money anonymously.
* Some of the main, philosophical teachings of Tae Kwon Do are to be respectful of all peers and to not be too much of a braggart. In fact, many martial arts attempt to teach this to their students. Sadly, [[ArrogantKungFuGuy this doesn't always work]].
* Stanislav Petrov made the decision to not launch a nuclear missile during a false alarm, even though if he followed protocol he should have done so. His heroism wasn't acknowledged until after the fall of the USSR (the Soviet military actually reprimanded him for not taking better notes during the incident). When asked if he wanted anything for saving the world, he [[MundaneWish asked for a vacuum cleaner]] and said he didn't really feel like a hero because anyone should have done what he did.
* There is a famous anecdote by Creator/NeilGaiman, who was invited to attend a gathering of other writers, scientists, and various other contributors to society. He happened to meet another Neil (Armstrong, the first man to walk on the moon), who confessed that he felt out of place at the gathering, because "I just went where they sent me."
[[/folder]]

* Mob of ''Manga/MobPsycho100'' possessed godlike PsychicPowers, but believed that it didn't make him any different from others and chose to live life as a normal kid. Mob is admirable because he doesn't hold himself above other people despite his unmatched psychic abilities, and challenges himself to address his weaknesses instead of just trying to get a free ride based on something he didn't earn. Most of the antagonists are individuals who want an easy way to being feared or adored, and think that having an innate psychic ability that enables them to charm or coerce weaker people [[SuperSupremacist makes them entitled to something]]. Mob's combination of overwhelming power and humility [[BreakTheHaughty causes his foes to realize that just having supernatural powers doesn't make them entitled to special treatment]], and that they have to make themselves worthy of being respected just like anybody else.

* ''Anime/PokemonTheSeries'': Ash Ketchum is a SpiritedCompetitor who is immensely proud of his team, but he never lords it over his friends and he always helps those in need [[ThinkNothingOfIt without demanding anything in return]]. He even forgets to mention he's [[spoiler:Alola's first Champion]] in ''Journeys'' until some fans bring it up in front of Goh!

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': It is implied that, long after the end of the Quincy Blood War, virtually no one but a select few people are aware of the crucial role Ichigo played in Yhwach's defeat (whereas the official story is that he was defeated by the [[PraetorianGuard Royal Guard]]). When called a hero to his face, Ichigo goes so far as to deny being one. Nel explicitly points out that he doesn't care for that kind of fame; Ichigo's friends in Soul Society simply respect his wishes out of gratitude.

* ''ComicBook/CaptainAmerica'', and to be honest, that's the [[AnAesop Aesop]] to his character. Captain America embodies what he believes to be the idyllic and optimal standards of his countrymen. If he believed he were better than everyone else, his principles would be wrong by default. This trope is the reason why most attempts at replicating Cap end in failure. That, and shady government programs from across the world keep bringing in serial killers and [[SociopathicSoldier sociopathic soldiers]] for their experiments with predictable results.

* ''Manga/{{Bleach}}'': It is implied that, long after the end of the Quincy Blood War, virtually no one but a select few people are aware of the crucial role Ichigo played in Yhwach's defeat. When called a hero to his face, Ichigo goes so far as to deny being one. Nel explicitly points out that he doesn't care for that kind of fame; Ichigo's friends in Soul Society simply respect his wishes out of gratitude.

* Azusa in ''LightNovel/IveBeenKillingSlimesFor300YearsAndMaxedOutMyLevel'' scoffs at the idea of her being an [[TheArchmage almighty witch]]. She's just a simple herbalist who hunts [[CuteSlimeMook slimes]]. She does this deliberately, hoping to avoid the attention that being an almighty witch would attract. However, she also downplays all the legitimate hard work she put into curing Flatta's sick and quelling its plagues.

* In ''LightNovel/ACertainMagicalIndex'', Touma Kamijou saves anybody in trouble he sees and has even saved the world a few times, but he doesn't care at all that [[TheGreatestStoryNeverTold nobody really notices his efforts]].

* Played with in the case of Rudeus Greyrat from ''LightNovel/MushokuTenseiJoblessReincarnation''. In terms of raw magical power, he's probably the most powerful magician in history, but he never realised, because he didn't interact with other magicians so much. By the time he actually came to accept it, he doesn't care, because he's already met people who could easily defeat him, so he assumes there are others. He also cannot wear [[BattleAura Touki]], so he is [[GlassCannon weak against any attacks that actually hit him]]. However, he does try to gather fame in an attempt that family and friends lost in the Teleportation Incident members might hear about him. In the end, his greatest ambition is to live in peace with his family and friends.

* In ''Literature/SidStillsBluesThreeQuartersInTheBagInAlphabetCity'', Sid thinks he's just an old has-been and doesn't understand at first how popular he still is. When he meets Nathan's new bandmates, he checks behind him because he can't believe that they're so surprised and excited to see him.

* [[Franchise/SpiderMan Peter Parker/Spider-Man]] as portrayed by Creator/TobeyMaguire in Creator/SamRaimi's ''Film/SpiderManTrilogy'' even though he temporarily acts like a Big Name, Big Ego {{Jerkass}} in the third movie as a side-effect of the alien symbiont.