Monday, May 24, 2010
Saturday, May 22, 2010
Hero
I realized the other day that our blog needed some inspiration, or at we least do. Something that came to mind while I was reading some articles on the internet.
The archetype of a hero based on mythology is one who is normally born of a royal or godly descent, most of the time half-blooded. The hero always starts off going through a normal life and when he/she has come of age, the hero will be struck by some mishap or adversity. The hero will then go on to rectify this misfortune. Most of the time the hero would go on a journey or path that will enlighten or strengthen them to help get them to the end. In the midst of their journey, they will fail their tasks and they will complete them after multiple tries. The life of the hero is tough, but when the hero emerges victorious, something greater than life is always gained. However, there's always something smaller that burns in the hero, granting the hero victory, every single time. Props to my world mythology class, haha.
When we think heroes, we think Greek myth, Norse and pop culture. Heroes like Perseus, Odin, Hercules, and an example from pop culture off the top of my head would be say, Neo from Matrix are all heroes we know about. However, they do not exist, hence the word myth and with that we know they do not particularly affect us in anyway, but I feel sometimes we miss the whole point of a hero.
Heroes do not exist in reality unless they're firemen, big political figures or part of the national security. Even then, they rarely get the recognition they deserve, sometimes for reasons I shall not mention. Let's leave that thought for a moment because I'm not talking about our typical hero. In general, a hero in reality is always someone who goes above and beyond the call of duty, whatever the duty is. The term hero is always put on a grander scale and no one ever claims it(it's also an overused pop culture reference). The hero is our common hero, our big strong perfect human being, but what we're forgetting sometimes is that real heroes do exist, they're all around us. They've been part of our lives for the better, sometimes making a big impact, sometimes only a fleeting moment and sometimes only within us, but nonetheless, heroes. They give us strength, hope, something to look forward to in life, someone to look up to, they help us remember who we are and what we fight for. You've met them, you've conversed with them, you know them and at times they may not be the greatest, but they've played a part in our lives and that means something because they've made our lives part of their journey. Regardless of who they are, you know their our heroes, but we never think of it that way.
Point is, we should try and keep track of who our heroes are and maybe, just maybe follow in their footsteps. I'm not asking you to go get knighted or to go worship your heroes, they're not idols, or to go express how you feel or to go do justice because this is not kick-ass. I'm just bringing up the fact that our glorification can sometimes be justified by the people around us and vice versa.
So, I say, let's at least recognize our heroes, strive for them and be heroes, in our own right. As Carl Jung puts it, the hero is an expression of our personal and collective unconscious.
One thing I know is, we've already had the pleasure of meeting and knowing one of our heroes, no?
Get cape. Wear cape. Fly.
This blog still lives!
The archetype of a hero based on mythology is one who is normally born of a royal or godly descent, most of the time half-blooded. The hero always starts off going through a normal life and when he/she has come of age, the hero will be struck by some mishap or adversity. The hero will then go on to rectify this misfortune. Most of the time the hero would go on a journey or path that will enlighten or strengthen them to help get them to the end. In the midst of their journey, they will fail their tasks and they will complete them after multiple tries. The life of the hero is tough, but when the hero emerges victorious, something greater than life is always gained. However, there's always something smaller that burns in the hero, granting the hero victory, every single time. Props to my world mythology class, haha.
When we think heroes, we think Greek myth, Norse and pop culture. Heroes like Perseus, Odin, Hercules, and an example from pop culture off the top of my head would be say, Neo from Matrix are all heroes we know about. However, they do not exist, hence the word myth and with that we know they do not particularly affect us in anyway, but I feel sometimes we miss the whole point of a hero.
Heroes do not exist in reality unless they're firemen, big political figures or part of the national security. Even then, they rarely get the recognition they deserve, sometimes for reasons I shall not mention. Let's leave that thought for a moment because I'm not talking about our typical hero. In general, a hero in reality is always someone who goes above and beyond the call of duty, whatever the duty is. The term hero is always put on a grander scale and no one ever claims it(it's also an overused pop culture reference). The hero is our common hero, our big strong perfect human being, but what we're forgetting sometimes is that real heroes do exist, they're all around us. They've been part of our lives for the better, sometimes making a big impact, sometimes only a fleeting moment and sometimes only within us, but nonetheless, heroes. They give us strength, hope, something to look forward to in life, someone to look up to, they help us remember who we are and what we fight for. You've met them, you've conversed with them, you know them and at times they may not be the greatest, but they've played a part in our lives and that means something because they've made our lives part of their journey. Regardless of who they are, you know their our heroes, but we never think of it that way.
Point is, we should try and keep track of who our heroes are and maybe, just maybe follow in their footsteps. I'm not asking you to go get knighted or to go worship your heroes, they're not idols, or to go express how you feel or to go do justice because this is not kick-ass. I'm just bringing up the fact that our glorification can sometimes be justified by the people around us and vice versa.
So, I say, let's at least recognize our heroes, strive for them and be heroes, in our own right. As Carl Jung puts it, the hero is an expression of our personal and collective unconscious.
One thing I know is, we've already had the pleasure of meeting and knowing one of our heroes, no?
Get cape. Wear cape. Fly.
This blog still lives!
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