The Psychology Behind a Hero's Decisions in Mike Alsford's Heroes and Villains

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Throughout his book, Mike Alsford provides examples of the problems many heroes are faced with, and delves into the psychology behind the choices they make in order to solve these problems. A goal for most heroes is to save the innocents while restoring balance between the powers of good and evil, which often involves defeating an enemy. The enemy is often one villain accompanied by a throng of followers - an army, slaves, disciples, and/or brainwashed specimens. Now this is where it gets tricky. The hero knows the villain cannot maintain the present state of power he/she holds without destroying innocent lives, but there is also a link that binds the villain to innocent individuals, and this link is affecting everyone connected to it. As with the conversation in the film Clerks, there is a persistent problem of differentiating the innocents from the guilty. Do we blow up an entire planet because the inhabitants are mind-controlled by an evil dictator, or do we try to break the link that is binding the masses to the one, in doing so freeing the minds of the entire population? How do we decide who is truly evil and deserving of death or who is simply being held under the control of something beyond them? Also, a general problem that arises when battling the issue of who exactly to save is that of humanity versus other lifeforms. Who is more worth saving, based on their species? Are the humans always innocent when standing up against aliens, robots, cyborgs, etc.? Is it justifiable to commit xenocide in order to preserve the human race? What makes humans more worthy of life than others? This is the "greater good" - humans against the universe or one group of humans against another so we can "save the children" - but how have we a...

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... fall by the wayside, only to be mourned by those who knew them personally. This is not the way of the superhero, no, this is a selfish, monetarily-based endeavor to keep peace with those who are bringing the most "to the table". I agree with Alsford, the power of power can only be measured through its application, and if the hero's power is misused, it is futile and worthless. In summary, I think global efforts should be made to not only maintain balance as a whole, but also to begin viewing all humanity as one, and all of humanity worth saving. By changing our view on reality, we can change the world; violence and human monitoring are not the only ways to keep the peace, we can also start employing our wits and really start talking out our problems. The issue is not whether or not the enemy is defeated, but rather whether or not our species has learned to listen.

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