Myths and heroes

Introduction :

I am going to present you the notion of Myths and Heroes. First of all I would like to give a definition of this notion: a myth can be defined as a story about gods or heroes, it can be a popular belief or a tradition. A hero is someone who possesses many qualities like courage, strength. A hero can be a mythological figure or an ordinary person like firefighters, volunteers. In general a hero fights against racism or for a cause such as equality or justice. He can change the situation and makes history.

In a second time, in class, We studied several documents such as… to understand the various aspects of this notion. Indeed, the notion of myth and hero is vast because it is subjective and thus different for each.however, myths and heroes have always existed, so we could pose the problem :

PB ? Why does man need to identify with a myth or a hero?

First we will see the popular heroes, then in a second part we will address the notion of myth through the American dream.

I) The popular heros

A popular hero is a type of real or fictitious hero.The only characteristic that distinguishes a popular hero from other characters is the place of his name, his personality and his actions in the imaginary or the collective spirit.This presence in the popular consciousness is attested by many references to these characters in the media, literature or other media.Often, the popular hero starts his life as a normal person but transforms himself into someone extraordinary either by his exploits or his successful careers like Usain bolt. In fact, Usain Bolt is a Jamaican sprinter born in 1986, he has established world records and he’s an Olympic champion. This sportman is greatly admired and considered as heroes in the fields of the entertainment and sport industries. He has a lot of fan who travel long distances to meet him, who identify with him and want to look like him. Or by acts and important events like firefighters and police who are seen as defenders of the people. They prove it very often but especially during the attack of September 11, 2001 when many firefighters died while trying to save as many people as possible.

II) American dream

But the hope, freedom and strength are not necessarily incarnated by a person but can be the image of an entire ideology can be seen with the American Dream. The American Dream is the idea that any person living in the United States, through his work, courage and determination, can become prosperous. This concept is a major driver of emigration to the United States, one of the largest in the history of humanity. This ideology is equivalent to eliminating discrimination leaving any person having a chance in American society. Although it is an ideology or even utopia, some people have believed in this dream particularly Oprah Winfrey. She from Missisipi and was born during the segregation. She is the famous presenter of a talk show Oprah Winfrey. Indeed she moved slowly to the top.

She started from scratch and overcame the obstacles of being an African American girl during the segregation, and now she has a media empire (TV, channel, radio, magazine...).

And once at the top, she become a philanthropist and give back for public

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