We all have someone in our lives who we consider a hero. This hero may be an athlete, an actor, a friend, or a historical figure; but just like Targan in True Grit, my hero is who I think of as a hero. Karl Harris, my father, displays heroic qualities such as bravery, strength, and selflessness. I am honored to have such a heroic father who leads by example. First of all, my dad displays bravery in every aspect of his life. My dad has to be brave in his line of work. He has worked as a Deputy Sheriff in Meade County for over fifteen years. Just as Targan’s father in True Grit acts, my dad never acts afraid when it comes to his job. My dad has never been afraid to go work calls such as deaths, car accidents, shootings, or domestic fights. …show more content…
My dad has always been selfless when it comes to his job. Whenever a co-worker needs a vacation day or a sick day, my dad offers to cover them. The boss at the Sheriff’s office once recognized my dad as the deputy who has taken the least amount of sick days. Friends of my dad have also called my dad selfless. If anyone needs advice or a favor, they have never hesitated to ask Karl. One instance where I recall my dad acting selfless was when a friend of my dad’s came out as being gay to my dad. My dad was the first one to find out and he put his personal feelings aside to assist his friend in the next step of his life, which happened to be coming out to his family. I have also spent a lot of time feeding animals with my dad for one of his friends. Despite his busy life, my dad has always acted selfless when it comes to his family. No matter what he really needed or wanted, my dad always put our needs and wants before his own. Just like Targan’s father, my dad has always strove to have “enough”. I can not recall a single Christmas that I did not receive what I wanted, or when my dad got something extravagant. Whenever a chore needs done around the house, my dad is usually the first person to volunteer to help. I can remember several times where he cleaned our house last minute to save us all from disaster. Just like Targan’s father, my dad never expected glory from his selfless acts. My dad shows incredible selflessness when it comes to his work, his friends, and his
Who is your hero? Many of us can clearly picture our idea of our personal hero in our head, but is the person you consider to be a hero really a hero by definition? In Heroism: Why Heroes are Important, Scott LaBarge, a Classics and Philosophy Professor at Santa Clara University, awakens your thoughts on the word heroism and how it has changed since its origins in ancient Greece. Throughout his essay, he goes in depth into the term ‘hero’ and compares it to society’s take on heroes today. Although LaBarge uses examples to back up his stance that “Today, it is much harder to detach the concept of heroism from morality (LaBarge. 1),” his essay contains flaws and he contradicts his own words.
Watching a film, one can easily recognize plot, theme, characterization, etc., but not many realize what basic principle lies behind nearly every story conceived: the hero’s journey. This concept allows for a comprehensive, logical flow throughout a movie. Once the hero’s journey is thoroughly understood, anyone can pick out the elements in nearly every piece. The hero’s journey follows a simple outline. First the hero in question must have a disadvantaged childhood. Next the hero will find a mentor who wisely lays out his/her prophecy. Third the hero will go on a journey, either literal or figurative, to find him/herself. On this journey the hero will be discouraged and nearly quit his/her quest. Finally, the hero will fulfill the prophecy and find his/herself, realizing his/her full potential. This rubric may be easy to spot in epic action films, but if upon close inspection is found in a wide array of genres, some of which are fully surprising.
Who is a hero? In contemporary times, usage of the term has become somewhat of a cliché. Over the years, the term “hero” has become representative of a wide variety of individuals, each possessing differing traits. Some of the answers put forth by my colleagues (during our in-class discussion on heroism) as to whom they consider heroes pointed to celebrities, athletes, teachers and family members. Although the occupations differed, each of their heroes bore qualities that my classmates perceived as extraordinary, whether morally or physically. Nonetheless, Webster’s defines “hero” as “a person who is admired for great or brave acts or fine qualities.” Thus, it is worth considering that individuals become heroes relative to the situation with which they’re faced.
Today in the world there are many types of adventures that are closely related to the Hero’s Journey. In the book The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Nighttime by Mark Haddon, it uncovers the adventure of Christopher Boone searching for the killer of Wellington, his neighbor’s dog. Christopher ran away from Swindon, his hometown, because he discovered that his father lied about his mother’s death and that he killed Wellington. While on his adventure, Christopher encounters challenges such as talking to strangers and being followed by a police officer. Since Christopher was a person who showed symptoms of Asperger’s Syndrome, a developmental disorder that affects a person’s ability to socialize with others, it causes him to have a hard time
“The journey of the hero is about the courage to seek the depths; the image of creative rebirth; the eternal cycle of change within us; the uncanny discovery that the seeker is the mystery which the seeker seeks to know. The hero journey is a symbol that binds, in the original sense of the word, two distant ideas, and the spiritual quest of the ancients with the modern search for identity always the one, shape-shifting yet marvelously constant story that we find.” (Phil Cousineau) The Hero's Journey has been engaged in stories for an immemorial amount of time. These stories target typical connections that help us relate to ourselves as well as the “real world”.
Loewen defines heroification as “a degenerative process (much like calcification) that makes people over into heroes” (Loewen 11). During this process, negative or controversial facts are often ignored or altered in regards to these heroes, which create “perfect creatures without conflicts, pain, credibility, or human interest (Loewen 11). When one changes or omits facts concerning figures in history for this type of glorification, we are left with an invented story of the event or person; in other words, history has become a myth. History textbooks are filled with these types of glorifications, especially older texts. The purpose of heroification is to present events or people in a favorable light and to give ideal role models in which to follow. In my own words, I call Loewen’s heroification an effective form of brainwashing. For example, I was always taught that the Civil War was fought to free slaves, but later learned this war was about states succeeding from the Union. Many people still believe the Emancipation Proclamation’s purpose was to free the slaves; however, it was actually the last resort Lincoln used to win the Civil War. Of course, this is not how these events were portrayed to most of us in History class. Heroification alters the purpose of these events so that we, as citizens, can feel proud that America did away with slavery because our forefathers felt it was morally wrong. Loewen also points out how heroification can lead to role models in the case of Helen Keller, “the blind and deaf girl who overcame her physical handicaps, as an inspiration to generations of schoolchildren” (Loewen 12). The problem with Keller being used as an exemplary model for American schoolchildren is that only her early life is portr...
A hero’s journey is an important aspect of any movie. Sports films give a good indication of how the hero’s journey is trying to be portrayed. In the movie “The Rookie” is a 2002 film starring Dennis Quaid as Jim Morris who is a small town teacher finds himself playing baseball for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays farm system after an open tryout. Directors go through the journey closely isolate each particular aspect giving clear indication from one transition to the next.
The word hero as defined as an “individual who has the courage of conviction to perform feats that benefit the general populace, acts as a soldier of virtue, and has an altruistic spirit that urges him or her to act against evil and defend the greater good at all costs, even sacrificing his own well-being or life.” (Harrison 2). Although heroes can come in any shape and size they are commonly found in stories we read, movies we watch, or people we look up to. We do not think about it much but even our own life is made up of many hero’s journeys. We never realize that our hardships and how we overcome them is exactly what a Hero’s Journey is about and why we relate to and enjoy these stories so much. I will be going into the depths of a Hero’s
Joseph Campbell defines a hero as “someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself ” (Moyers 1). The Hero’s Journey consists of three major parts: the separation, the initiation and the return. Throughout a character’s journey, they must complete a physical or spiritual deed. A physical deed involves performing a daunting and courageous act that preserves the well-being of another person. A spiritual deed calls for action that improves another individual’s state of mind. While fulfilling their journey, a hero must undergo a psychological change that involves experiencing a transformation from immaturity into independence and sophistication.Campbell states that these events are what ultimately guides a hero into completing
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.
The Hero’s Journey is a pattern of narrative that appears in novels, storytelling, myth, and religious ritual. It was first identified by the American scholar Joseph Campbell in his book A Hero with Thousand Faces. Campbell also discussed this pattern in his interview to Bill Moyers which was later published as a book The Power of Myths. This pattern describes the typical adventure of the archetype known as The Hero, the person who goes out and achieves great deeds. Campbell detailed many stages in the Hero’s Journey, but he also summarized the pattern in three fundamental phases: Separation, Ordeal, and Return that all heroes, in spite of their sex, age, culture, or religion, have to overcome in order to reach the goal. Alice in Wonderland, written by Lewis Carroll, provides a good example of the Hero's Journey. This story describes the adventures of Alice, a young English girl, in Wonderland. Although she lacks some of the stages identified by Campbell, she still possesses many of them that are necessary for a Hero to be considered a Hero.
He is the type of person that makes me very proud to say that he is my father, and the type of father that I am most fortunate to have. My father and I have always been very close. He is both loving and caring and the type of person that always puts his family first.
Jacob Dickson is a hero because he is understanding. He accepts me for who I am, he is my friend even if I am selfish and uncaring he is my friend and always tries to understand me. He has always noticed when I have been down and tries to help me and understand my situation to help me get
My father was always there for me, whether I wanted him to be or not. Most of the time, as an adolescent trying to claim my independence, I saw this as a problem. Looking back I now realize it was a problem every child needs, having a loving father. As hard as I tried to fight it, my dad instilled in me the good values and work ethic to be an honest and responsible member of society. He taught me how to be a good husband. He taught me how to be a good father. He taught me how to be a man. It has been 18 years since my father’s death, and I am still learning from the memories I have of him.
I always think to myself, “What would I do if I didn’t have a father like him?” I think about it and then I say, “I would be in the cracks, not doing anything because there is no one here to keep me going and to keep me motivated.” My dad is an amazing cool person to me because he shows me that no matter what struggles he faces in his life or what happens to him, he always gets out of them and he has me and my mom to help him.