"Lean, Mean, Extreme-Machine" -- This essay is on how Cyrano de Bergerac is able to exceed every man in the realms of art, battle, and love by the extremes.

In today's world, it is accepted that, no matter the ability of an individual, somebody has a greater gift than him. Whether power, knowledge, or character, any person can equally find a talent to compare with another's. In Cyrano de Bergerac, however, one man has more skill in everything than anyone he faces. Cyrano, with his gentle spirit and vibrant swordsmanship, proves to surpass mankind by taking his actions in art, battle, and love to …

…of any other. Cyrano de Bergerac is a man of many talents: poetry, swordplay, and devotion, all of which no person, dead or alive, could ever obtain. As his life progresses, Cyrano's mind, body, and soul fade away one by one, lost by his own inability to retain perfection. He eventually loses all in the end, except for his sacred white plume, demonstrating how a downfall symbolizes complete victory when one goes to the extremes.