Goethe has said “Blessed is the nation that does not need heroes”. Dictatorships are the most fertile fields for the creation of heroes and have devised the most compelling reasons for hero worship. Who do we put on a pedestal? Who reflects the very best of human nature? What do we do with a hero who has done something less heroic? Is a hero a hero twenty four hours a day? Is he a hero when he orders food at restaurants? Bible says “There are just men for life and there are also just men for an hour”! What about Greek Heroism which happens at battle grounds? Can heroes simply be those people who inspire us to become better than we are? Perhaps someone who dares to speak the truth to power ought to be modern day hero. A story is told of a righteous man who went to city of Sodom to preach against lies, thievery, and indifference. No one listened. When asked why he continues to preach, he said “I must keep speaking out. I thought I had to shout to change them. Now I know I must shout so that they can not change me.”
Text adapted from Hero’s Hero: The Concept of Heroes by Elie Wiesel, Nobel peace laureate