Myths and heroes - publié le 21/08/2020

Résumé du document

In the following paper I am going to reason on the way myths and heroes are perceived today. We live in a time where, more than ever before, heroes are celebrated through movies and cartoons and books. These are, however, fictitious heroes, who often take attention away from the true, everyday heroes: policemen and doctors and so on. I am going to thoroughly analyze the rise of commodified heroes, and the contemporaneous decline of real myths and heroes such as the American dream of fortune through hard work.

Extraits

[...] In the meanwhile, real-life heroes do not get recognized for their daily struggles. This category includes both people working in dangerous or altruistic positions, such as firemen who risk their very lives every day, or nurses who bring comfort to those who suffer, or single fathers who work all day long to put bread on the table for their family. "real life heroes are not defined by their superpowers": rather, it's the lack of extraordinary superpowers that makes many of these men and women extraordinary. [...]

[...] Both of the articles clearly show this duality between the expectations people have of fantasy stories compared to the expectations the same people have of everyday life. Many have become disenchanted, and for this reason turn to cinematic superheroes that are always perfect and always save the day, rather than dealing with their own humanity, and working hard to improve their conditions. Modern myths and heroes have not disappeared, but the people have forgotten them, preferring the easier, idealized, fictitious counterpart that is offered them. [...]

[...] Myths and heroes In the following paper I am going to reason on the way myths and heroes are perceived today. We live in a time where, more than ever before, heroes are celebrated through movies and cartoons and books. These are, however, fictitious heroes, who often take attention away from the true, everyday heroes: policemen and doctors and so on. I am going to thoroughly analyze the rise of commodified heroes, and the contemporaneous decline of real myths and heroes such as the American dream of fortune through hard work. [...]