We take a look at the classic monomyth structure of the hero's journey, reflect on why humans create heroes, ask where we should set the bar on heroism, and wonder whether heroism is a feminist issue.

1. Jackson Institute for Global Affairs
Courage in
Theory & Practice
Roz Savage

2. Why Courage Matters
❖ Future leadership
❖ Skills in critical thinking
❖ Resilience to fear-based campaigning
❖ Life purpose -> wellbeing and fulfilment
❖ Commitment to long-term common good
❖ Smart decision-making

3. Courageous Life vs Average
Life
Lifetime
–Anaïs Nin
“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage.”

4. Week 2: The Hero’s Tale

5. Structure
❖ Phase 1: Separation or departure
❖ Phase 2: Trials and victories of initiation
❖ Phase 3: Return to society with the boon

6. Merriam-Webster
❖ Definition of hero:
❖ a : a mythological or legendary figure often of divine
descent endowed with great strength or ability
❖ b : an illustrious warrior
❖ c : a person admired for achievements and noble
qualities
❖ d : one who shows great courage

7. Wikipedia
❖ A hero (masculine) or heroine (feminine) is a person or
main character of a literary work who, in the face of
danger, combats adversity through impressive feats of
ingenuity, bravery or strength, often sacrificing his or her
own personal concerns for some greater good.

8. Examples of Heroes?
❖ Why are they considered heroes?
❖ What values of our society do they represent?
❖ Can you imagine a culture in which they would not be
considered heroic?

10. What values does the hero
embody?

11. Heroes as a Product of their Era
Time
Divine/Mythical
Historical “Great Man”
Working class hero
Celebrities?
Oral traditions Books Movies Internet

12. Recent Heroes in the News
❖ Everyday Hero: Wheelchair of Hope Founder (lost arm and leg in rail
yard accident while saving colleagues, has climbed Kilimanjaro and set
up foundation)
❖ Hero teacher jumps down 75ft mine to save boy, 3, by keeping his head
above water for TWO HOURS (and nearly dies herself)
❖ Off-Duty Firefighter Saves Restaurant Full Of People From Carbon
Monoxide
❖ Terrified Man Who Fled New York Blast Immediately Returned To Help
Victims

13. Action “Heroes”

15. Celebrity “Heroes”?

16. Actor refrains from running over pedestrian in her SUV

17. Actor manages to call 911, waits

18. Even if we don’t call them
“heroes”, who do we pay most
attention to?
“You’re the average of the 5 people you spend the most time with.”
—- Jim Rohn
“The people we admire can have an ongoing and often unrecognized
impact on our thinking, our decisions, and the way we live our lives.”
— Barbara Bernard
What was the impact on you of reading about the
winners of the Nobel Peace Prize?

19. (Gallup,
28th Dec 2016)

20. (Gallup,
28th Dec 2016)

21. Flawed “Heroes”

23. Exercise
❖ Who are the five people you spend the most time with
(in real life, online, in the media etc)?
❖ What would the average of those five people look like?
❖ Is that the person you want to be?

24. Feminine Heroism
❖ Kimmel (1996): Gender must be made visible to men
since “we continue to treat our male military, political,
scientific or literary figures as if their gender, their
masculinity, had nothing to do with their military exploits,
policy decisions, scientific experiments, or writing styles
and subject”.

25. Women in Wartime
❖ Halonen (1999): Images of women in situations of
catastrophe are usually portrayed as:
❖ crying woman (usually mourning for a man)
❖ earth mother
❖ women crying together (sisterhood)
❖ mother and child as victims of war
❖ damsel in distress waiting to be rescued by a man

26. Disney Princesses –
Suitable Role Models?

29. The Heroic Inner Narrative

30. Homework (optional)
❖ Think of a story from your past when you were at your most
“heroic”.
❖ In 100-200 words, write the story as you normally would.
❖ In 100-200 words, write it as a heroic tale, focusing on the
emotions, qualities, and strengths that elevate it from the
everyday to the heroic.
❖ Now write about something audacious you want to do in the
future, using the heroic style.
❖ What are your monsters/Kryptonite?