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Heroism definition essay
What are the qualities of a hero
What are the qualities of a hero
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You could be in the perfect place at the perfect time to be a hero, but if you do not possess the personality traits of a hero, you won’t take action. If your personality was truly heroic, you could be a hero at anytime and anyplace. Without a doubt, heroes, the result of the personality traits of a hero, are certainly not the result of the time and place of an event. For instance, in the article “Are You a Hero or a Bystander?” by Sue Shellenbarger, the personalities of everyday heroes, Ms.Eldridge, Stephen St. Bernard, and Lt. Cmdr. Gennari, are shown through their heroic quotes. “All I could think about was the lady’s face. She looked lost. She needed help, and she needed help right then,” Ms. Eldridge said after receiving a medal from the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission for risking her life to save another. Ms. Eldridge’s strong sense of ethics were shown in this quote because she knew the right thing to do; save the poor old woman’s …show more content…
"After losing my son, I wanted to do something to help other people, to help another mother not have to suffer the way I do every day from the loss of a child drowning," Wanda said passionately, showing she possessed the heroic personality trait of empathy. Even though “The Josh Project” would not have been created if the time and place of the traumatizing event was different, the creation of the project still comes down to what kind of person the creator is. If Wanda did not possess empathy and a strong sense of ethics, she wouldn’t think about other minority families that have to go through what she did, she would mourn and feel sorry for herself forever and “The Josh Project” would never come to
Anyone can truly be a hero, even in real life. Heroes can be people who simply have an idea and decide to grow onto that idea and have it done. For example, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma Gandhi were real life heroes who started out as ordinary people but had a dream and made a huge difference in the end. Nelson Mandela, a Civil Rights activists, once said, “We can change the world and make it a better place. It is in your hands to make a difference” (Lazaro). Nelson Mandela was trying to say that anybody can make a difference, but it is up to that person or people to make that change. One simple change could cause any simple person to have a major change in lifestyle just because they decided to step up and do something. Furthermore, anyone can be a hero, it doesn’t matter what one’s background is, one can make even the simplest of changes and become a hero to oneself and the people around them.
All in all, heroism is a vague word that could be defined as many of things. Such as bravery, courage, honesty, morality, trusts...etc. If Beowulf was defined as a hero then the knight should be defined as one also seeing as he gave the old women the choice to be old and good or pretty and bad. Or if the Author of The Art of Courtly love cannot be heroic and then write in a way of being heroic how can one decide what heroism is. All three of these studies show different forms and fashions of heroic people, feelings, and attitudes. Overall heroism is and always will be based on personal opinion, what one person defines as a hero can be completely different from what another person sees it as.
Dictionaries’ definitions of the word hero are exceedingly vague. A standard dictionary limits the definition of a hero to, “a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities” (Dictionary.com). Heroes are people, not just men, who are generous, courageous, and take every event as part of the whole stream of life rather than as a critical moment. Humanity, endurance, and perseverance are other critical characteristics of a deserving candidate for such a title.
Heroes are made by the paths they choose, not the powers they are graced with.” -Brodi Ashton. This shines true but is overlooked in today's society . A hero in today's society clashes with the genuine meaning of hero. A hero is someone who is sacrificial, selfless, and modest. A hero is somebody who is bold and valiant and to a great degree dedicated to something. A hero is a selfless individual who puts and the needs of others before their without seeking any attention for fame. A heroic person is prepared to yield his/her life for society and for what is best for the people. These qualities are constant throughout time. They may change a little bit depending on the society's values. Some heroes throughout history are Odysseus, Stephen Kumalo,
In the fiction world heroes have been one of the most entertaining figures. It has always been fun and interesting to read about heroic stories and about different obstacles that heroes had overcome. When someone mentions the word "hero" it is more likely to think of characters like Batman or James Bond, but it is for sure that if we had the chance to ask the same question centuries before, the answer would have been different. From comics or TV it is seen that heroes change physically and spiritually through time, but the heroic pattern stays always the same when moving from ancient times to today's heroes.
So what defines one as a hero? Well, a definition of what a hero is “A person noted for special achievement in a particular field” (hero, n.d). Our concept of a hero alters drastically from person to
For many years the American Hero has filled the silver screen and wide screened television sets, along with shelves of countless bookstores. Audiences love to see the protagonist overcome great odds, defeat the forces of evil, and save the beautiful girl at the last second. The character of the American Hero however, is not a new idea. James Cooper, in the 1800’s, created the archetype of the American Hero. Natty Bumpo, also called Deerslayer, embodied many qualities of the great American Hero. Modern day heroes are simply following the example set by Cooper’s creation.
Joseph Campbell once said “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself.” This quotes talks about how in order to be a hero, you have to care about other people. It really emphasizes that you cannot be a true hero if you only care about yourself. All traits and functions that people would consider heroic involve others, not just themselves. There are so many heroic traits out there, but 3 are very important. A true hero is courageous, will rescue others in need, and does not look down on people who are not privileged.
An English proverb states, “ A hero is a man who is afraid to run away”. I agree with this proverb, because when you see a hero in a comic book, they have super cool back stories, are not afraid to fight, and stare danger in the face and not blink. They are not afraid of anything. That’s nice to look up to, but they are not real. Our definition of a hero is too much for one man to become, you can do something honorable, heroic, but you will never actually be a hero because it's too much, in real life. Heroes don’t just do it so they can get paid, or respect. What really determines whether someone is a hero is if they choose to do something about it in a bad situation. We have people that do heroic acts, for example, people putting their lives before others. Those people cannot be heroes because they get paid to do it, they are, firefighters, cops, and military, they get paid to help people, so they aren't considered a hero.
"I am the wretch created by your beloved Elizabeth," cried the vaguely female wretch. "Elizabeth has passed the limits of the human realm and in her feverish pursuit of the essential knowledge of the world she has spawned the being that you now see before you!"
The definition and guidelines for using the term “hero” to describe a person can be as diverse as the land we live in, however, regardless of your cultural identity the shield of “hero” must be earned. It is defined as “a man of distinguished courage or ability, admired for his brave deeds and noble qualities, is regarded as a model or ideal (Dictionary.com, 2014). In Classical Mythology, a hero is “a being of godlike prowess, a warrior of special strength, courage or ability” (Dictionary.com, 2014). This describes how we have portrayed our present day heroes, the pedestal that we put them on, after actions reflecting heroism, have been awarded the title. Difficult to earn, harder to retain, but forever remembered.
The theme of an unlikely hero is a well used theme because, the outcome is unexpected and keeps you on your toes. A Biblical example of these would be David and Goliath. A myth example would be the story of Hercules. an example of a film that has an unlikely hero would be Wall-e, and a personal life example would be random acts of kindness from a stranger. This is a universal theme, because it is an interesting story, unexpected, and if the hero is unlikely, maybe just maybe they could be a hero as well.
When I think of a hero I immediately think of someone who is strong, intelligent, handsome, and daring. Upon closer examination, many different qualities than these become apparent. Courage, honesty, bravery, selflessness, and the will to try are just a few of the overlooked qualities of a hero. The definition of heroism changes with the context and time. Heroes of the past are not necessarily heroes of present time and vise versa.
The American Hero Every child has fantasy's of being a super hero and leaping tall buildings in a single bound or staring death in the face everyday and somehow finding a way to escape. All of these imaginative thoughts have been derived from the past literary works by the great writers of the early American literary period. These early writers entered society into a world of action and adventure, where one can see spectacular events unfolding through the eyes of a notorious man of courage and feel as though they are defending there country or saving the woman they love. Though the modern heroes are much more popular than classic American heroes, the modern hero has rooted from these same literary works which once amazed people in the days of old. Because of its popularity, the public pores into movie theaters to see movie-remakes of renown literary works.
The Lone Ranger, Zorro, Batman, Superman are some of the characters that we stereotypically constitute as heroes. They are known to fight with courage without fear of death. They destroy the enemy within a blink of an eye. They fight using their own body strength, superpower, or some kind of weapon. They come to the rescue miraculously and leave without a trace. They are mysterious. We are unable to identify who they are underneath the masks and disguises. Yet, we praise them and ignore the real heroes that surround us regularly, ordinarily. “All of us …like to believe that in a moral emergency we will behave like the heroes of our youth, bravely and forthrightly, without thought of personal loss or discredit” (O’Brien 39). In other words, we are quite oblivious to the ordinary people of the world that are, in fact, the true heroes.