The “hiro” of Neuromancer?

Hiro Protagonist is aptly named because of his position as the main character of the book, as well as his role as the story’s “hero”. The direct language of Neal Stephenson is evident here, because he clearly states Hiro’s role through just the naming of the character. In addition, the name hints at his character’s arrogance especially in comparison to Case from Neuromancer. While both characters are portrayed as hackers who are past their prime faced with a situation in which they can change the world, their personalities are revealed in different ways. Intrinsically as characters they may be similar, but Case’s actions speak for themselves in Neuromancer, while the narration about Hiro gives the reader a very direct, humorous interpretation of his character. Hiro also self-identifies as the greatest sword fighter of the world, supporting the power of swords by saying, “swords require no demonstrations” (Stephenson 2). However, despite this proclaimed skill and passion, he still feels lost in the beginning after losing his job as a pizza delivery driver for the Mafia. It is mentioned rather cynically that, “Until a man is twenty-five, he still thinks, every so often, that under the right circumstances he could be the baddest motherfucker in the world.”  (36). Similarly, Case feels defeated with the bad situations he has ended up in after losing his job as a hacker as well. These sentiments vanish quite conveniently when both protagonists meet their fellow sidekicks YT and Molly, who each allow their counterparts to fulfill their ultimate duty to the cyberspace and Metaverse universes. As the novel progresses we see both characters develop into their roles as “heroes”, trying to impact the world by saving it. However, a question can then be posed if a reader can say if one character is better than the other.