If you'll take a look here, you'll see the post that inspired this one.  I'll post my thoughts, along with a quick explaination why (in no particular order other than what I typed it in).  I'd love to hear your thoughts, as well as if you agree/disagree with mine.

Mr. Darcy: As I'm sure you know, I absolutely adore Mr. Darcy.  He is by far my favourite literary character of all time.  I think he makes my list because he is so blinded by his pride.  Very influential, huh?  But the best thing is -- he was man enough to change.  People in this any day and age can learn from Mr. Darcy.  I feel like now it is a direly needed example... how to overcome pride.

Elizabeth Bennet: The opposite of Mr. Darcy is true of Elizabeth.  I dearly love her as a character, mostly because I can relate so closely to her.  Her prejudices colour her views as badly as Darcy's pride colours his.  It is also something she learns to overcome.  I think many people can learn a lot from the book and A&E movie version of both characters (as the new movie romanticizes it to a point where this becomes lost).

A majority of Lord of the Rings Characters: By this, I mean I can't think of a single character that's mentioned for more than a few sentences that isn't influential in some way or another.  However, I chose three I personally find to be the most influential.

Faramir: He is a wonderful and complex character, sadly massacred by the movies (sorry... I'm a purist... what can I say?).  He is probably my favourite character in Lord of the Rings because a) he is in my estimate, the "perfect" guy -- loyal, humble, sweet, selfless... and on and on; b) I'm a helpless romantic; and c) because of his undying love for others, even when he wasn't loved in return.  To me, this makes him more than just influential, but a man for all ages.  He's almost equal to Mr. Darcy in my book, and he just might replace him someday.  But we'll see.

Frodo Baggins: Frodo is the a great example of resistance to tempation, what finally happens when you cave, and how the most unlikely thing can save you from sin.  Many have compared Frodo as an aspect of Christ, the selfless, sacrifical part (Gandalf as the prophet, and Aragorn as the King).  I think it's a fairly accurate comparision, and he has had such an influence in recent years, it's hard to not put him on a list.

Gollum: This is the best example of the Lutheran belief in "Simul justus et pecador" (I hope google isn't lying, so it may be wrong, but I can't remember what it exactly is), basically meaning "simultaneous sinner and saint", or "at the same time, both sinner and saint".  Basically, the doctrine holds that all people are constantly sinner and saint.  Gollum is the perfect embodiment of this doctrine.

Sherlock Holmes: Elementary, my dear readers!  Sherlock Holmes was my beginning into the great realm of mystery, now my second favourite genre (classical Greek is the best). He is insane, and drives me batty, but his logic is impecible, and I think it's helped me significantly in debate and life in general.

Hercule Peroit: I love this guy.  So much nicer than Sherlock.  Although he's not as good in my opinion as Sherlock, I tend to feel more for him because he seems so much more human to me.  And he's a genious, too.

The Professor in The Time Machine: This guy learns such a lesson, and that lesson is don't mess with time unless you mean to truly mess with it!  :wink:  Seriously, he's what sparked my interest in the fantasy/sci-fi-ish realm (I'm far more into fantasy, but I love Jules Verne and such... the classic sci-fi).

Scarlet O'Hara: I love Scarlet.  She's a total brat.  She is one of the more influential characters in my life because I've read the book!  In the book, she is so much better, and she learns and growns significantly more thans she does in the movie.  I've often been compared to her (no idea why, though... because it's the movie Scarlet), and I've thought at times that may not be a bad thing.  Everyone learns and grows, and she certainly does.

Rhett Butler: Well, frankly my dear, I love Rhett.  He reminds me of Mr. Darcy.  He's the rugged, rough and ready type that seems to appeal to me.  He also knows when enough is enough.  He had a great thing with Scarlet, she refused to see it, and so he had to show her the hard way.  Sometimes as Christians, that's something we have to do.  Do things the hard way.  It's not easy, but sometimes can be the best thing possible.

Odysseus: Odysseus is cunning and wise, brave and bold.  There's not much not to love.  And his wife is cool too.  He has a strength of character that many lack, and I find him to be influential mostly (for me) on my logical and analytical skills.

Paris: I know.  Putting a wimp played by Orlando Bloom on here.  But there is a purpose, I promise!  Besides being all of that, he does learn a few lessons.  But his influence isn't necessarily good.  He's one of the first "girly men" written about, and sadly, there are too many of them today.

Achilles: Sigh.  I love Achilles, too.  He is another Darcy-esque character.  He has a lot to learn to overcome his pride, and he is willing to end his life as a warrior for love (sigh...).  He is jolted back into war for honour.  How much better can you get?  :grin:

The Phantom of the Opera: Who can't love him?  He's this gosh-awful person that you want to hate, but you can't seem to.  You have to feel sorry for him.  I mean... on the rooftop... and his crying... :tear:

Psyche (from Til We Have Faces): I haven't actually read the book.  :gasps:  It's on my list.  But I am beyond familiar with the story through my Ancient Greek Mythologies studies!  Her patience is insane.  End of story.

Mr. Rochester: Another Phantom.  You want to hate him, you do for a while, then you can't help but fall in love with him.  He's the "we've all got skeletons (or crazied wives) in their closet" type.  And his ability to adapt to his disability.  He's a love/hate guy, to be sure.

And there are so many more... but I'll stop now, unless I come up with something dazzling, then I'll edit it in.  :grin:

Mari