Gabrielle ''Coco'' Chanel

Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel, 1920 (Internet (Hal Vaughn))

The word "hero" has so many definitions. Everyone defines what a hero is according to the traits that they value themselves. For some people, a hero is physically strong, and for others a hero is caring. My definition of a hero is someone who is brave, helpful, and strong. Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel is my hero because she used these traits and many others to revolutionize not only women's fashion but also to inspire and change what is expected of women.

Coco Chanel helped change the lives of women all over the world. With her work, she forever changed the way women are expected to dress. For example, she didn't like corsets because she felt that they were difficult to work in and unnecessary, so she didn't use them in her designs. She also used more comfortable and inexpensive materials such as jersey for many of her designs. Although Chanel's accomplishments in women's fashion were of great significance, in my opinion, they weren't the most important. I believe that her most important accomplishments were how many women she inspired, how she changed society's view of women, and how she changed the way that women were expected to act. She lived a very free willed and independent life that inspired many women then and now to do the same.

One of the traits that I admire most in Chanel was her bravery. She completely rebelled against the way that women were expected to look and dress with her designs. She risked everything to make her dreams come true and to foster change in the lives of many women. One very important example of Chanel's bravery, was when she opened her own store in Paris in 1913 to sell her own designs even while knowing that she might not be successful; putting everything on the line to pursue her greatest passion.

Chanel was a very strong and motivated person. She endured a very difficult and impoverished childhood with her mother dying while she was still a little girl, and eventually being sent to an orphanage. Chanel, however, used these struggles as motivation and inspiration for her work. She worked hard for all of her fame and fortune even when other people tried to stop her or get in her way. She dealt with having little funds and a small support system all throughout the beginning of her career. Lastly, I think that she was a strong person because even when she didn't succeed she didn't give up. In 1939 when France joined World War II, Chanel had to close the doors to her shop and she didn't know if she would ever be able to open them again. Although she faced many challenges, she did indeed open her store again and continued her once successful business. Chanel's strength, endurance, and motivation is something that I admire and am greatly inspired by.

Coco Chanel was a strong, brave, and talented woman that put everything on the line to pursue her dreams and make a difference in the world. She fought through all of her adversities to be successful in many different ways. Thousands of people know Coco Chanel as a fashion designer, but she was so much more, she was a hero.