What makes a hero, or for that matter a villian?
I recently read the book Lucifer Effect which outlines studies around how good people can do terrible things under the right conditions.
It discusses the idea of dehuminization and is worth a read if you have not already read it.
I also found myself wondering just how do good people become great people/heroes.
Some of the greatest influencers of all time have not always been influencing people towards positive behavior. There are those who actually improve the world; individuals like Abraham, Moses, Jesus, Lao Tsu, Budha, Mohamad etc. that have not only influenced those in their own time but left a legacy of influence which exists even today. We also have individuals like Hitler and Stalin who also have left their mark on history. These two leaders as well as other similar supervillians were great influencers, although I hate to include them in the same paragraph. They were both able to engage good people in horrible acts.
I found myself reflecting upon whether it is the individual influencer and their skills, or is it the situation/environment those being influenced are in which allowed the impact they had on their perspective worlds. Could it be a combination of both that cause some great leaders to leave a mark well beyond their lifetime?
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Some good reading
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I think we judge heroes based on a post facto look at their moral behavior. It also helps that the exacts details are sometimes blurred by history. Helen Keller was held up in books as a great person that persevered in a tuff situation, but she would have been vilified in the 1950s and 1960s, because she was a socialist. It is strange how the modern times interrupt heroes. Christopher Columbus also comes to mind. He was a hero and now seen as villain in some nations. I believe it is the ideas and the things they represent that is what makes a hero. Bad people can get people to believe what they are doing is right, but it is history that judges the rightness of the action. Psychology experiment showed a majority of people will do what they are told to do by a person in authority, even if they feel they are possible hurting a person.
Hannah Arendt wrote a great short book On Violence. She discusses what the true power is in government. It talks about difference between authority and force. It is mostly political history, but you might find it interesting.
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