1. Colleen Snyder says:

    Hooray for heroes! Heroes are the ones who overcome the base nature, the “sin in us” that we all face, and know to exist. Humanists taught us that if we were all educated properly, if we all reached our “full potential” we would put away the silliness of the need for heroes and heroism. We would all simply “get along” as rational people would. Except we’re not and we can’t, and therein lies the need for a hero. It’s not necessarily the giants and trolls and dragons that need defeating that create heroes. Heroes are made when we look inside ourselves and say, “I’m not fit to do this… but I’m the one that’s here, so I’ll do it.” There will always be heroes; there will always be a need for heroes, as there will always be a need for the Lord Jesus and His sacrifice to save us. Or there will be until we all join together with Him in glory. Then let the victory party roll!

  2. notleia says:

    Do people want heroism, or do they want the theatrics associated with heroism?

    • Travis Perry says:

      Lol. I honestly think more people want theatrics based on superhero movie popularity. But some people care about actual heroism.

    • Great question.
      I bet more people would rather play a hero on TV than be one in life. Especially one with a mild mannered alter ego who never got applauded for their heroism.

    • Jill says:

      They want the theatrics until they’re actually in a situation where they need heroes. Nobody wants to be in that situation…but I’m pretty sure they’re still grateful for them after the fact. It’s a hard desire in the human soul.

  3. Abigail Falanga says:

    Excellent article! I’ve not heard of this book, but it sounds very interesting – I may have to check it out.
    The missing concept of heroism is one reason why I write. It seems important that we relearn the reality of Heroes as a culture!

  4. Autumn Grayson says:

    Hm, kind of interesting to think about how different stories compare and contrast heroism. Fate Zero actually discusses a lot of that through its characters, which are pretty varied in terms of personality, occupation and life experiences. Some chars adhere closely to their own ideals of heroism and chivalry, while some scorn it. Kiritsugu, for example, wants to save the world, but scorns the old ideals of heroism because it was propaganda that would motivate people to go out and fight. His goal is to end all conflict in the world, and gets angry at the idea of someone seeing war and fighting as anything except hell.

    A lot of Fate Zero would seem very dark and maybe very critical of hopes, dreams and heroism. But then looking deeper into its themes, maybe it’s less about criticizing dreams and heroes, and more about criticizing people’s outlooks and methods. It also subtly explores what it means to be a hero in the first place.

    To me there’s several definitions to the word hero, and I don’t think very much in terms of calling people heroes. A lot of my chars are simply just trying their best to survive and move toward their goals. And many of them are simply trying to do the right thing. Heroics don’t matter to them because all they’re trying to do is protect what they care about.

    • Autumn Grayson says:

      • notleia says:

        Kiritsugu sounds like a good dude to destroy the bourgeoisie with 😀

        • Autumn Grayson says:

          He’s the coolest assassin ever, though it’s more like he wants to end all war and violence, period. So I don’t know how concerned he is with social class. He’s been all over the world and seen insane amounts of corruption in every circle. But he is a good lesson in why it’s a bad idea to try and force the world to be perfect. Not sure if Fate Zero is so dismal that it would depress you, or if it would be something that would help you vent and feel rebellious.

          I will tell you that Kiritsugu is complicated and far from perfect. You might not like everything he does.

  5. You know why there are so few heroes now?
    We have a real lack of virtue in our stories.
    Super powers don’t automatically make someone a hero since villains can also have them. And outside of comic books many heroes don’t have them.
    A hero can be short (Frodo Baggins), stupid (Prince Myshkin), speech impaired (Sir Gibbie), or a rabbit (Hazel.)
    But he or she must be virtuous–or heroic. Character qualities such as temperance, courage, justice, prudence, faith, hope and love are a must. All you need now is a dragon for the hero to fight.

What do you think?