July 4 is a good day to think about heroes. Read (yes, actually read) the Declaration of Independence and you will understand how ordinary men can rise to heroic status. I heard a reading of the DOI on NPR today: it's stirring, especially when done by a range of human voices.
Although written 235 years ago, that complex rhetorical argument makes a simple point about human dignity, freedom, and the right to pursue happiness. All that anger and frustration channeled so cogently, yet elegantly, in classic neoclassical prose, reminiscent of the Age of Sensitivity (Samuel Johnson) and anticipating the soaring spirit of romanticism that was incubating in the hearts and minds of oppressed peoples.
An important theme in my Mythology course is "the heroic imagination" throughout the ages. The chemistry of heroism hasn't changed, but our assumptions about the raw material of heroes have gone from elitist to egalitarian: heroes are everyday people who are inspired to perform great deeds, usually for the good of others (or the greater good). This applies easily to Mandela as it does to Sullenberger, to Mother Teresa as to the brave firefighters of 9/11.
Do you know any heroes?
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