Cory Doctorow’s Radicalized employs archetypal theory by using the Hero, Everyman, archetypes and several thematic plots to reveal deep insights that are relevant to real life. These archetypes are developed from fictional stories to create a digestible format for readers. Analyzing this novel through the archetypal lens highlights the realistic challenges of heroism, the unpredictability of humans, and how fundamental plot archetypes can accurately portray prominent issues in the present world. The portrayal of the Hero archetype through American Eagle reflects some real-world challenges in displaying heroism. In “Model Minority,” he attempts to combat police brutality and racism, but his efforts are met with criticism from all fronts: No …show more content…
Even the people who were sympathetic to him thought that he was being naive, believing that he could “solve racism by beating it up.” (Doctorow 124) Additionally, after Bruce orders Eagle to stop “[punching] racism until it sees the error of its ways,” the judge handling Wilbur Robinson’s case sets a $500,000 bail. Doctorow narrates Eagle’s knowledge “that this astronomical sum was the result of his own actions” (130-135). The opposition American Eagle faces from several sides parallels the challenges that privileged people may face when advocating for just cause and emphasizes how heroism can inadvertently cause harm despite good intentions. Through elements of form, including the third-person narrative viewpoint, readers can grasp the possible pitfalls of such bold acts. The Everyman archetype, represented through Joseph Gorman, showcases the complexities and unpredictability of human attitudes. Amidst the anger in the forum, Joe initially attempts to steer new members away from vengeful ways: “Joe decided he had a duty to FCRIIFF.He’d private-message the new ones who [joined the forum] all twisted in knots and do his best to untwist them” (Doctorow
... about an ordinary hero, someone who merely did his job, and stood up to adversity, despite the cost to his career, himself and his family. These should not have been exceptional tasks, but the society that surrounded them caused them to stand out. Guilty or innocent, the Negro man did not stand a chance in the Depression Era rural South.
The popular film from 1977 known as Star Wars Episode IV: A New Hope written and directed by George Lucas, there are many uses of archetypes, which include use of the colors blue and green in light sabers, and the color gold in the character, Luke Skywalker’s, clothing at the end of the movie. The use of these colors throughout the movie help to show the heroic cycle of Luke Skywalker by bringing out the changes he goes through from his purity, to his rebirth, and then finally when Luke gains wisdom from his journey.
In Tom Brokaw’s book, The Greatest Generation, the author portrays ordinary people of a certain generation as having qualities of greatness and heroism. He tells stories of average people that lived inspiring lives through many hardships, and declares today’s society as the beneficiary of their challenging work and commitment. Brokaw’s generous and proficient use of imagery helps to persuade the reader to believe that the people of “the greatest generation” are, indeed, heroic. He defines the strength and resilience of “the greatest generation” by what they were able to confront and overcome.
" The hero within: Six archetypes we live by.
...forming the reader of what happened to the main character, George Wilson, after his act hit the news. All any person could see was either: A) He was using his constitutional right to defend his home and B) He was a white pasty man who took pleasure in killing blacks. The creativeness Sherman Alexie used to show how Americans are quick to assume he was white just because his skin was a couple shades lighter than expected is amazing. George was so consumed by the death of the kid he killed, he didn’t notice at first what people were saying. News teams were calling him white. The irony of this story is George was not white; he in fact is a registered member of a Native American tribe. This story shows a prime example that society in the United States are fast to judge and base assumptions strictly off of appearance; which is what Sherman Alexie was trying to pin out.
One's identity is a very valuable part of their life, it affects the Day to day treatment others give them which can lead to how the individual feels emotionally. Atticus, defending Tom Robinson, who is an african american man from the plaintiff of the case, Mayella Ewell, who is a caucasian woman, accusing that Tom raped her is supposivly a lob sided case. During the great depression, any court session that contained a person of color against a caucasian would always contain the “white” individual winning the case. The cause of the bias outcome comes from the lawyer of the african american does not try to defend or the jury goes against the person of color simply because their black, this shows the effect of racism to anyone’s identity in the courtroom for a case simply because of race. Atticus, deciding to take Tom Robinson’s case seriously sacrifices his identity as the noble man he is, to being called many names for this action, such as “nigger lover”. He is questioned by
As the American people’s standards and principles has evolved over time, it’s easy to forget the pain we’ve caused. However, this growth doesn’t excuse the racism and violence that thrived within our young country not even a century previous. This discrimination, based solely on an ideology that one’s race is superior to another, is what put many people of color in miserable places and situations we couldn’t even imagine today. It allowed many Caucasian individuals to inflict pain, through both physical and verbal attacks, and even take away African Americans ' God given rights. In an effort to expose upcoming generations to these mass amounts of prejudice and wrongdoing, Harper Lee 's classic novel, To Kill A Mockingbird, tells the story of
Imagine there are two eggs; one is white, and one is brown. They have the same inside, but their shells are different colors. Discrimination is the equivalent of choosing the white egg over the brown egg, just because it’s appearance. During the time of the Great Depression, African-Americans were treated inadequately based on their skin color, even though the treatment was unethical. In To Kill A Mockingbird by Harper Lee, marginalized characters demonstrate heroic traits effectively despite discrimination of race and social class. Even without major voices, marginalized characters are unlikely heroes that change society’s views by being caring and helpful towards others.
In the genre of western films, the hero plays a key role. Humanity portrays civilization overcoming the hostile country (Miller 66). In many films the American civil war is over, and people have turned their attention to more constructive pursuits. Battling nature to progress America's future, rather than each other. In between this wild country, fraught with danger and corruption lies the role of the hero. A hero is an individual with exceptional skills and through his abilities is able to rid a stricken town of the corrupt elements within. In many cases however, the hero's skills are not enough. His relationship with the community can define how successful his help can be.
Although they are critiqued, some people do whatever they can do to improve our society. In Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird, Atticus Finch proves himself to be a hero. This small-town lawyer exhibits bravery, strength, and modesty when faced with objection during Maycomb’s quarrel for justice. Without a doubt, Atticus proves that anybody can stand for what he or she believes is right.
The African American man by the name of Tom Robinson finds himself in a case against, Mayella Ewell, who identifies as a Caucasian woman, from the perspective of a skilled lawyer appointed to the case, Atticus, finds the case biased from the start. During the Great Depression, any court session that contained a person of color against a Caucasian would always contain the “white” individual winning the case. The cause of the biased outcome comes from when the lawyer of the African American does not give the effort to defend or the jury goes against the person of color simply because they are colored, this shows the effect of racism on anyone’s identity in the courtroom during the great depression. Biased racism limits the arguments a lawyer can appeal to the jury about defending the defendant to win the case, but can simultaneously limit the amount of voice the jury hears from both sides.
Are heroes important? This is the question that Scott LaBarge, a philosophy professor at Santa Clara University, tackles in his article “Heroism: Why Heroes are Important.” He encourages teachers, parents, and students to realize that heroes are tremendously significant in society by using references to factual and historical details, personal association, and various examples of different types of heroes. LaBarge effectively uses the rhetorical appeals of ethos, logos, and kairos to convince his audience that heroes are important.
In the 1930’s, many African American men were wrongly accused of rape and murder. The issue of racism is brought up in the book “To Kill a Mockingbird” when Scout overhears her teacher saying that it’s a great thing that this is happening to Tom Robinson because the black men are getting too comfortable thinking that they’re mighty. Racism didn’t only affect Tom Robinson, but it also affected those who supported him. The lives of Scout and her family are changed when Scout's father, who is a lawyer, steps in and defends Tom Robinson. Atticus’ lawsuit affects Scout and his children in several ways.
The story chronicles situations that illustrate the common stereotypes about Natives. Through Jackson’s humble personality, the reader can grasp his true feelings towards White people, which is based off of the oppression of Native Americans. I need to win it back myself” (14). Jackson also mentions to the cop, “I’m on a mission here. I want to be a hero” (24).
There is another type of hero that almost no one is aware of. In the poorest areas of the country, live mostly minorities and other ethic background. All their lives they’ve been expected to work harder and expected not succeed in life. Some individuals living in poverty with a determination to succeed work hard all of their lives to become what everybody doubted they could. Escaping the crime, drugs, and prostitution is enough to escape hell, even if they don’t go to college. Despite of their financial problems, drug and crime surroundings, or difficulties in the language skills, their desire to triumph fuels their persistence. Those who make it to success are the few living examples of the purest form of hero anyone can be. They are not only their own heroes but also the heroes of the poor children who dream of becoming like them someday.