Essay/Term paper: Why i don't have a hero

Essay, term paper, research paper:  English

American Literature
Matt Robbins
October 7, 1996
Why I have no Hero

What is a hero? Does one have to have superpowers, special abilities or incredible
talent to be considered one? Well, some of us seem to think so. Then there is the
everyday teacher or local figure that is considered a hero to selected individuals in their
community. To me a hero has to have a few selected qualities, and I haven't met anyone
who can fulfill all three.

First, a hero must be good at heart. A hero has to know how to give and take
accordingly. When he/she is needed to make a great sacrifice to help the community,
their closest friends, or even their greatest enemies, they need to know that it is okay to
make that sacrifice and know they did the right thing. That person also needs to go out
and make a difference in their community and not need any more motivation than the good
feeling they feel when they've made a positive impact on the few people they met with and
helped. A person that is to be considered a hero must be naturally good and work for
good and be there when they are needed most. They should not have to feel guilty about
the negative effects of something they have done if the good it causes out weighs the bad.

Honesty is a good trait to have if you want to be a hero. A hero needs to be
honest with the public so that he/she will get the public's support to retain that hero status
among them, and possibly gain that status with more individuals. Being honest is a quality
that is never usually overlooked in naming someone a hero. This includes being honest
with one's self. Honesty with yourself is a very important virtue. It is hard to get through
life, especially as a hero, lying or fooling yourself into believing something about yourself
or others that you really know is not true. For example; you are seen as a hero to many
people, but you know that you did something to wrong many of your followers to better
yourself. Even though you knew it was wrong, you did it and you are constantly
reminding yourself that it will turn out good and then no one will ever find out. You were
trying to fool yourself into believing that you did nothing wrong, but in reality you
betrayed "your public."

Trustworthiness is possibly the best and most valuable virtue of a hero in my eyes.
In order to retain the hero image you have to be able to be trusted and relied on to be
there when you said you would. Also, it is necessary for people to trust you and what you
say to them, and for them to know that you will stick to your word and not let them down.
To be trustworthy you have to value what you say and say what you mean. If you would
happen to give a false promise, you will most likely be caught in that lie and lose the status
you deserve or think you still deserve. You would also be hard pressed to find someone
that would still believe anything you say after one fairly sizable mistake. That would really
hurt your image to the people that once loved and admired you so much.

A hero must meet these three standards, and as of yet I know of no one who can
presently do this. There are hundreds of people who can meet any one of these
characteristics; of these there are probably a few dozen who can fulfill two of them. But
of all the people I have known and met, is there a person who I look up to, and can meet
all three of these traits I ask of a hero? No, but maybe somewhere down the road I'll meet
someone who I will consider a hero, as I have several people in the past. I'm sure there is
someone out there who strives to meet these and I hope there is.