What Happened to Heroes? | Inspirational Video Essay
Sometime part way into the third millennium something extraordinary happened long had our culture worshiped the noble hero a protagonist who never lost their courage and hope in the face of Despair we needed these characters to show us that the fight is never lost that there's good in this world.
The stories were secondary the flashy fights weren't the point we were there because our heroes inspired us we were there to see Batman Superman the Jedi we were there to imagine something better something more than we were but then something in our culture growth the protagonists of our stories became almost unrecognizable Echoes of.
What they once were Johan solo it used to be gone was their optimism their hope for a better tomorrow destroyed was their faith in humanity and the potential for Pure goodness we have within us our heroes be became broken just as we are broken this is not Obi-Wan Kenobi this is a.
Broken shell of the hero we once knew this is not Bruce Wayne Bruce let himself fade away until only Vengeance remained this is not Superman the absolute Pinnacle of respect and honor who would never seek revenge I'm here to fight for truth and Justice in the American way Wanda maximoff has been broken Beyond.
Redemption we loved seeing Logan Professor X broken Jean Gray broken we raved about the Joker and yet he was beyond broken Thor withdrew into a bottle Hulk got too scared to fight Hawkeye becomes a violent killer the new Captain America goes insane Han abandoned his wife and.
Son and Luke what is happening to our heroes are these characters a reflection of us or are we becoming a reflection of them please say hello to me please say hello to me yes there are some valuable rare examples some protagonists still are a Heroes we can idolize.
A lot they don't give up don't give in don't stop giving they make us Believe In Hope believe in love believe in a better tomorrow still something terrible has happened to our stories we idolize the Brokenhearted the lonely the selfish the rule Breakers and dirtiest talkers.
We have replaced Justice with vengeance the idols we worshiped have fallen loyalty is dead nobility is dead peace joy and hope are dead our heroes are I am not well adjusted I am barely keeping it together I'm just a grown man who can't even look his own friends in the eye for too long because I'm afraid that they'll see that.
I am broken I don't make mistakes I'm not just like the rest of you I'm stronger I'm smarter I'm better I am better I'm the real I'm not really here but it doesn't have to be this way.
Characters can feel realistic without leaving the audience wallowing and depression they can feel hopeless without losing hope lose the fight and still be proud characters can get knocked down time and time again and still get back up to fight they can trust that their friends have.
Their back even when they can't trust themselves they can be leaders worth following a we all fail we all make mistakes it's what makes us human Heroes can feel feel sadness without.
Letting that sadness Define them falling so slow like fragile tiny shells drifting in the pool if you only eat fatty foods you will get fat if you only spend instead of invest you will be poor and if you only see portrayals of broken protagonists you will feel broken as well and this is not a new problem.
I hear so many young people today talk about a world that's emptied of heroism where there are no more noble things to do what do you say to them everybody becomes everybody has the choice of being a hero not being hero every day of their lives and you can either help somebody you can.
Be compassionate toward people you can treat some people with dignity or not and and one way you become a hero and the other way you know you're part of the problem and it's it's not a grand thing you know you don't have to get into a giant laser sword fight and.
Blow up three spaceships to become a hero I mean it's a very small thing that happens every day of your life great I'm in no position to tell anyone how to live but sneaking out like this quitting you'll regret it for the rest of your life why do we folks.
So don't we had love to pick ourselves up it just got too hard supposed to be hard if it wasn't hard everyone would do it hard.
Foreign so what happened to our heroes maybe it's all a conspiracy and Hollywood is intentionally trying to keep us depressed to show us there are no true heroes maybe you lower our expectations of our politicians and our world leaders.
Or maybe the problem is US embracing the broken cheering the wicked we're bad guys it's what we do yes these characters feel realistic because life is difficult and people are struggling but there is still good in this world and each one of us can make a difference America is in trouble I think we can all agree on that right teetering on the.
Edge but we've been given these amazing gifts how do we use them to help our country get back on its feet let me tell you something you already know the world ain't all sunshine and rainbows it's a very mean and nasty place and I don't care how tough you are.
It will beat you to your knees and keep you there permanently if you let it you me or nobody is going to hit as hard as life but it ain't about how hard you hit it's about how hard you can get hit and keep moving forward how much you can take and keep moving forward that's how when it is done.
Now if you know what you're worth then go out and get what you're worth but you got to be willing to take the hits and not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you want to be because of him or her or anybody cowards do that and that ain't you you're better than that stop lowering yourself every time.
Somebody pisses you off be better the only Power I have is that I believe we can do better my Faith's in people I guess individuals and I'm happy to say that for the most part they haven't let me down it's not your fault which is why I can't let them down either.
in their book king warrior magician lover more and Gillette Wright ours is not an age that wants Heroes ours is an age of Envy in which laziness and self-involvement are the rule anyone who wants to shine who dares to stand above the crowd is dragged back down by his lackluster and self-appointed peers they.
Hate me they hate you they hate us we identify as broken as lonely as worthless and will do everything we can to keep others down with us don't ever let somebody tell you you can't do something not even me all right.
you got a dream you gotta protect it people can't do something themselves they want to tell you you can't do it you want something go get it period my deepest fear is not that we are inadequate.
Our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure it is our light not our darkness that most frightens us you're playing small does not serve the world there is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you we were all meant to shine as children do.
It's not just in some of us it's in everyone and as we let our own light shine we unconsciously give other people permission to do the same as we are liberated from our own fear our presence automatically liberates others we see someone who is actually Noble and.
We all try to find flaws try to break them down try to prove that we don't have to strive to be better because better doesn't exist not pointing fingers saying you ain't where you want to be because of him or her or anybody powers do that and that ain't you paraphrase Thomas Jefferson and we hear stories of noble people we.
Want to be Noble ourselves likewise when we hear stories of people being selfish and evil we can Aspire towards those qualities just as easily humans need stories of Heroes we need pure nobility that we want to imitate I'm not a man I used to be the issues of friendship and loyalty are very very important.
Uh to the way we live our lives but it's not common knowledge among young people you know they're still learning they're still picking up ideas they're still using these ideas to shape uh the way they're going to conduct their life and you need to tell the same story over and over again every generation so that generation gets it.
And I think we've gone for a few Generations where a lot of the sort of more basic stories uh have fallen by the wayside and what do stories do for us in that sense what are myths they try to show us our place myths help you to have your own hero's journey find your individuality find your place in the.
World but hopefully remind you that you're part of a whole and that you must also be part of the community and and think of the welfare of the community above the welfare of yourself if you're a sports fanatic you practice every day so you could be as great as Joe Montana or Muhammad Ali if you're a gamer you might aspire to be.
The next mango if you are a filmmaker you might Revere Spielberg if you're a trombone player you admire Joseph alessi if you're a young boy your father is your Undisputed hero you'd follow anywhere in this article from Psychology today Dr Scott Allison writes people need Heroes because Heroes save or improve lives and.
Because heroes are inspiring but we also need Heroes for surprising reasons that go beyond the direct benefits of heroic action Heroes Elevate us emotionally they heal our psychological ills they build connections between people they encourage us to transform ourselves for the better and they call us to become Heroes and help others.
Lord knows kids like Henry need a hero courageous self-sacrificing people setting examples for all of us everybody loves a hero people line up for him cheer them scream their names and years later they'll tell how they stood in the rain for hours just to get a glimpse of the one who taught him to hold on a second longer.
I believe there's a hero in all of us that keeps us honest gives us strength makes us Noble and finally allows us to die with pride you'll have to make difficult you'll have to decide if you'll take the easy way or go the extra mile and sometimes you'll have to be okay.
With incredibly hard work going unnoticed and not getting the recognition you deserve it's not about deserve it's about what you believe the heroic protagonist has been fading away but we as consumers can do better we need to stop identifying ourselves as.
Broken and start imagining ourselves as Heroes again foreign what happened to our heroes we choose to ignore them we choose to pretend that it's better to be selfish we choose shoplifting over honesty we choose fear over bravery we choose hate over compassion choose to shift blame.
Off ourselves and onto another from war to robbery to murder every evil that we face is because someone made a choice to be a villain instead of a hero without tired of people being ugly to each other I'm tired of all the pain the field again the world is too much of it.
It's like piece of glass in my head all the time I pick up garbage for a living boxes things start to fall apart when you stop carrying and I stopped carrying a long time ago and choosing to be a hero is such a simple thing it doesn't mandate self-sacrifice or.
Personal suffering Dr Von Braun's great scientist but he isn't my hero do the words give up mean anything to you I see pride can I hear you I see Power I see a badass mother who won't take no crap off of nothing once again I see pride Junior I see Power I see a.
Badass mother who won't take no crap out from nobody that's right heroism simply means having strong morals and deciding every day that you are a person who will stick by those morals your story may not have such a happy beginning but that doesn't make you who you are Tis the rest of your story.
Who you you don't have you are what you choose to be choose choose you said it was enough to be a man but there's better than that there's gods and the rest of us.
What are we they're Giants were what they step on I know I've seen Giants up close the good ones the real deal they're not Heroes because of what they have but we don't it's what they do with it.
You're right Mike if it matters Who You Are a single mom who was working two jobs and still finds time to take a kid to soccer practice that's a miracle a teenager says no to drugs and yes to an education people want me to do everything for them.
What they don't realize is they have the power you want to see a miracle sign be the miracle as I was finding the Superman clips for this video I happened to find these beautiful comments real people exactly echoing what I've said so far.
The first person says the world's needs a paragon hero meaning someone who is perfect not Flawless in their skills but flawless in their strength of heart and of character Patrick replies that we need someone or something to be a Beacon of Hope whether real or fiction there's no guidance in the world anymore no one for young.
People to Aspire to be I hear so many young people today talk about a world that's emptied of heroism where there are no more noble things to do the next person points out that when Heroes do pop up in real life they're snuffed out or compromised very quickly anyone who wants to shine who dares to.
Stand above the crowd is dragged back down by his lackluster and self-appointed peers women can't be Knights why not tradition you're playing small does not serve the world there is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won't feel insecure around you and the last comment wisely points out.
That Heroes can't save us they can only Inspire us to save ourselves it's time for you to look Inward and begin asking yourself the big questions who are you and what do you want coming now God knows I want you but you don't get to destroy who I am I never would you go back I never would.
When you start this new world remember that make the foundation of this Society a man who never would Vengeance has consumed you is consuming them I'm done letting it consume me even if everyone is telling you that something wrong.
Is something right even if the whole world is telling you to move is your duty to plant yourself like a tree look them in the eye and say no you move everybody has the choice of being a hero and not being a heroine it's a very.
Small thing that happens every day of your life you don't have to be the bad guy you are the most talented most interesting.
And most extraordinary person in the universe and you are capable of amazing things because you are the special and so am I it's about all of us right now it's about you you still.
Can change everything The Chosen not only to believe in ourselves but in each today there's not a man no woman in here that shall stand alone stop giving up on me never.
let's decide together to do better we can each be heroes every day just by showing kindness empathy to others pain in our bravery to keep on fighting when you want to give up Heroes aren't gone no matter your size or gender or race heroes are everywhere.
Around you you just need to believe in them again I believe in you I believe in you I believe in you I believe in you goodbye doth
