Heroism Around Us
Media have created quite a specific image of a hero. Thus, a hero is a strong man / woman with certain abilities and specific attitude towards social rules. Of course, Superman and Batman are not the only heroes. There are various illustrations of heroic deeds of fictional athletes, police officers or special agents.
However, these are not realistic illustrations of heroes. There are lots of truly heroic people in the real world. The heroic deeds of these people are overshadowed by fictional stories. However, they are worth more attention. A girl who sacrifices her life to save her friends, a single mother struggling with numerous constraints and a teenager who is eager to obtain education to help his/her relatives are all heroes as they are doing little heroic things each day, instead of waiting for the chance to save the world from aliens.
Negative Impact of Fictional Heroes
In the first place, it is necessary to note that heroes created by the modern media often have a negative impact on people’s lives in the long run. Thus, young people become inspired by daredevils and diehards. Young people often make silly things and take risks even when it is not necessary and harmful for them as well as for those who around them.
A good illustration of the harm of media is Walter Mitty who was always daydreaming (Thurber n.p.). The man always tried to escape from reality and he created a whole world of his heroic deeds. Admittedly, Walter MItty borrowed those images from the media. His daydreaming has made him simply incapable of doing something really meaningful.
True Heroes
At the same time, lots of people have no time for daydreaming as they are busy doing worthy things. For instance, Kira, who was only thirteen, died but she saved her friends from a car accident (Kleinfield A15).
She was not thinking of her heroism or right things to do. She only knew she had to save her friends. This is true heroism. Unfortunately, the price is too high. Thus, heroes often do not think about their own good or even about their lives, they act and sacrifice themselves. Some may say that it is madness. However, madness is often associated with heroic deeds.
Thus, madness was once called “divinest Sense” (Dickinson n.p.). Some do not understand heroic deeds and call them crazy. However, it is obvious that heroic deeds are often called crazy simply because they are different from what people tend to do in their everyday life. These deeds stand out from the rest of people’s activities. This is why people do not understand some of these deeds.
Sometimes the hero does not get killed, but he/she still sacrifices his/her life. For example, single mothers do not have a life of their own. They devote their lives to their children to help them find their feet. These heroic women have to work long hours and they still have time to comfort their children when it is necessary.
These women can be compared to Moses. This Biblical hero also devoted his life to helping his people find the Promised Land. Notably, people were often dissatisfied with Moses and complained (The NKJV Study Bible, Exodus 16.1-3). Nonetheless, Moses was patient and did everything and even more to comfort his people. Likewise, single mothers often have to listen to their children’s complains. Nonetheless, these heroic women find courage to cope with all problems no matter what.
Finally, teenagers who keep studying hard even though it is regarded as something weird and non-cool are also modern heroes. They are like Whitman’s spider that is not afraid of the darkness and keeps going further. Thus, the poet stresses that it is important to keep developing and moving forward irrespective of all difficulties (Whitman n.p.).
Teenagers often think that rebellion consists in breaking rules and cutting class. Admittedly, sometimes it is important to break some rules. However, lots of teenagers understand the importance of education which is their future. It is also a way to help parents and relatives in the future. Again, such teenagers have to skip joys of their peers and focus on their studies. This is also a form of sacrifice.
Conclusion
To sum up, it possible to note that true heroes live in the real world. They do not save the planet from aliens, but they keep struggling and developing. These heroes sacrifice a lot and often are deprived of some joys. Nonetheless, all their efforts pay off eventually. Their sacrifice can never be fruitless.
Thus, the girl who saved other children showed that courage and braveness are still in this world. She has become a model for lots of teenagers. Single mothers manage to bring up their children properly. These children grow up and take good care about their courageous mothers. Resolute teenagers manage to obtain higher education and get a good job. They help their parents. Therefore, all heroic deeds in the real life help the human society develop.
Works Cited
Dickinson, Emily. Much Madness Is Divinest Sense. 2013. Web.
Kleinfield, N.R. “Mystery after Crash That Left Two Dead.” The New York Times. 2011: A15. Print.
The NKJV Study Bible. Ed. Earl D. Radmacher. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Inc., 2008. Print.
Thurber, James. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty. n.d. Web.
Whitman, Walt. A Noiseless Patient Spider. 2013. Web.