The Reasons Why Ned Kelly Should Be Considered a Hero

Ned Kelly, an infamous, Australian bushranger was an iconic, courageous individual. He is believed to be a hero, fighting for his rights, a villain and outlaw that killed police officers, or a victim targeted by authorities. Ned Kelly was born in December 1854 in Beveridge, Victoria and was eventually sentenced by hanging in November 1880 in the Old Melbourne Goal, yet 32 000 people had signed a petition to spare Kelly’s life. Clearly, Ned Kelly was a hero before his untimely death. Ned Kelly was devoted to his family, as he committed his crimes to keep them out of poverty, as well as making many sacrifices to keep them out of trouble. Ned also contributed in helping out unprivileged people out of his generosity and kindness.

Ned Kelly - a Hero Who Was Mistaken for a Villain

At the young age of 11, Ned proved that he wasn’t just a boy with bad intentions. A 7-year-old boy fell into a nearby river while trying to retrieve his hat that flew into the water. ‘Ned Kelly was 11 years of age when he was acknowledged in the community for saving a drowning boy, who was 7 years of age.’ The Shelton family recognised Ned for his bravery, as they rewarded him with a sash. ‘It was a specially made green silk sash, seven feet long and trimmed with a fringe made of real gold threads.’ It is clear that Ned Kelly is a hero with good intentions, as he knew it was the right thing to do to save a person in need of help.

Ned Kelly was also very protective and devoted towards his family, as he had made sacrifices and took heroic actions to keep them safe. One night, Constable Fitzpatrick was accused for molesting Ned’s sister, Kate Kelly inappropriately. “If you touch my sister again,” said Ned, his voice trembling with rage. “There’ll be a bullet in your head the next time”. It was unfair for Ned’s family as many authorities took the Kelly family as an advantage as they had many charges and arrests that were laid on them in previous years. Ned just wanted to make sure his family wasn’t harmed again, so this clearly proves Ned’s bravery, which showed that Ned hated seeing his family being mistreated by the police.

Another reason why Ned Kelly is a person with heroic personalities is how he set multiple mortgages alight. These mortgages belonged to poorer people that couldn’t afford to pay off their taxes, which left them struggling to scrape up as much money as they could. ‘Kelly then pulled out a number of documents – deeds, mortgages and the like’. ‘He set light to them while he ranted about banks being the enemy of the poor.’ This meant that Ned and his gang disliked seeing people living in poverty without money, mainly struggling families, similar to his own family in the past. This also proves that Ned had sympathy for other struggling families, as he acted on this out of his own generosity.

p>In conclusion, Ned Kelly and his gang only had good intentions for the people as they did good deeds to the community, therefore, he is depicted as a fearless hero. He has heroic traits such as being a devoted and protective man for his family, showing his generosity to the community and proving his bravery and courage by saving a drowning boy. Thus, I believe Ned Kelly was a hero fighting for his rights and beliefs.