Heroism

Heroism

 

The way our society is developing and changing makes it hard for there to be a clear definition of the word “hero.” This begs the question, is there really such thing as a hero? In examining The Dark Knight, Fahrenheit 451, V for Vendetta and several other short articles in class, we were able to pick apart potential heroes in their specific settings and sometimes the hero was not the most obvious character. A common theme was that the heroes were the ones who made some kind of difference to those around them, it didn’t necessarily have to be for the good but a change was made. 

At the beginning of the unit we were asked to write about our thoughts on heroes and what kinds of meaning they hold in our own lives. Naturally, I thought about the people that I considered heroes in my own life. People who are natural leaders, seem like they know what they’re doing, those who’s footsteps I want to follow in. My preconceived notion was that a hero was an individual who stood out for their actions, someone who “fixed” all the problems They were the person taking on the challenge of fixing a problem bigger than themselves, something so extreme that the rest of the community couldn’t take care of it. This idea of heroism paralleled with the mindset that V held in V for Vendetta. He saw that no one else in the community was going to fix the problems that had arisen around them. So, he took it upon himself to “fix” the society. 

V saw that the people were stuck in a land of “do as you please” (Moore 68). He didn’t want people to live too freely and wanted to make sure that there was some kind of order in the midst of the chaos that comes with an anarchy. He wanted to be the one that people looked up to, not for their every action, but for some kind of advice in their lives. With V making bold actions toward the act of control it was clear what kind of hero he wanted to be.

While V was a more obvious hero, there are others who stay hidden behind the shadows. Sometimes in an overbearing society the heroes are the most unlikely people. In Fahrenheit 451 the authorities wouldn’t let the civilians read any kinds of books because they didn’t want them making any of their own ideas. The were convinced that even if civilians read a few words they would “go over the cliff. [They’d be] ready to blow up the world, chop off heads, knock down women and children, destroy authority” (Bradbury 102). This society was in dire need of a hero. The main character Montag has the same realization as the readers, “[he] saw the way things were going, a long time back. [He] said nothing. [He’s] one of the innocents who could have spoken up and out when no one would listen to the ‘guilty,’ but [he] did not speak and thus became guilt [himself]” (Bradbury 78). This is where the idea of heroes needing to do something to benefit society is formed. So many times the society around us seems likes its falling to pieces, that if one thing were to be fixed it would solve all the rest of the problems. 

Even though Montag failed to show leadership in his own character, he learned some key points from a character that arguably was the true hero of the society. Clarisse “was the first person [he could] remember who looked straight at [him] as if [he] counted” (Bradbury 68). She stuck to her own ideas and didn’t let society brain wash her into thinking that books were bad for her learning. Clarisse was the one who pushed Montag to start thinking more for himself, even though he ultimately failed at becoming a true hero in the end. He didn’t make a change for the rest of society. 

As Montag failed to deal with his problems within the novel, he realizes that is isn’t helping those around him but he knows that he actually is doing something wrong. He is content with staying in his own personal bubble, not completely letting society affect him, but not helping make a change either. He is fully reliant on himself, which is something that I initially thought of as a trait of a hero but after watching The Dark Knight, that opinion changed. The Joker and Batman both need each other in order to make the society work how its supposed to. One may be considered a hero more than the other, simply based on intentions, but a case could be made that they both are heroes. 

The Joker took on a similar mindset as V, wanting control over society to rest in his fingertips. He was obsessed with the idea that if you “Introduce a little anarchy. Upset the established order and everything becomes chaos” (Nolan). Both V and the Joker liked the idea of having a little chaos, as long as they were the ones controlling it. Having that control gave them the illusion of heroism. Where they differed, was the fact that the Joker knew he needed other people in his society to make him a hero. He knew that if he killed Batman, an “unstoppable force [would meet] an immovable object” (Nolan). Neither of them could keep up their “hero” status, no matter how twisted the Joker’s idea of heroism was. 

As we concluded this unit on heroism, looking back on what I thought a hero was, my idea has greatly changed. In the beginning I thought that a hero was someone who made a clear change in their society. This element is still something I consider true, however my understanding of a true hero has expanded because heroes are not always the obvious ones. Batman reminds us they are sometimes the ones in the shadows when he says, “You don’t have to thank me” (Nolan). Heroes are the ones who do something for the benefit of their society, something they think needs to be changed. Their basis for their actions may be wrong but they believe a change is in order, so they move to make that change.

 

 

Works Cited 

Bradbury, Ray. Fahrenheit 451. HarperCollins, 2018.

Moore, Steve. V For Vendetta. Panini-Verl.-GmbH, 2005.

Nolan, Christopher. The Dark Knight.

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