Everyday Canvas

Heroes

Prompt: “A hero is someone who has given his or her life to something bigger than oneself” --Joseph Campbell
What is the difference between everyday heroes and heroes who gain fame? What are your thoughts on being a hero?

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Heroism, to some, can be the understanding of the fight against evil according to mythic and narrative psychology. The quote in the prompt addresses such an understanding.

The way I see it, however, heroism is adhering to principles that are moral, ethical, and psychologically doable when a crisis occurs, regardless of the fear of personal loss.

We all applaud people who go fight with things bigger than themselves, similar to the David and Goliath story, but then, I tend to believe there is also some good hiding in each human being. That good in people creates everyday heroes who act in sudden crisis situations. One recent example was the homeless man in Manchester who ran to help the concert goers, disregarding his own safety, when an ISIS follower set off a bomb.

Standing against evil is heroism, too. Such heroes, sometimes called dissidents, stand and speak up because it is right to do so, which is even more honorable when they don’t even know whether they can defeat a certain evil or not.

Heroism is also spending time and effort for making oneself ready to act in the face of disaster without caring for fame or personal safety. From that point of view, everyone in all the armed forces, border patrol people, police, Coast Guard, EMTs, Emergency Room personnel, firemen, and all first responders are heroes because they know they can save lives and help others even if their own lives may be in danger.

Aren’t those people scared for themselves? Surely, they must be, but in spite of being terrified, they go ahead and do what must be done. Now, that’s courage; that’s true heroism.