abusing the word "hero". It seems everyone is a hero. There are "little heroes" and "sporting heroes" and "environmental heroes" and almost any other sort of "hero" you can think of - or so it would seem.
I always thought a "hero" was someone who had shown courage and bravery while assisting other people. A "hero" might be someone who puts their own life at risk in order to save the life of someone else. If it is not part of their everyday job then it may well be something particularly heroic. I do not think people who do well at sport are "heroes". I do not think sick children are "heroes" although I do think there are many who face up to their problems with great courage.
The word is becoming meaningless. How will we describe true acts of heroism in the future if we cannot use the "hero" to describe them.
What started this little rant? The front page of the national paper (which really should know better) described the firefighters as "ordinary heroes". Would anyone care to explain what that means?
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1 comment:
We are getting to the point of needing a new word ... and a change of definition for the old, worn, overused one.
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