Heroes

Greetings All,

Steven Ware here, just wanted to share a few thoughts that i have been considering.

i saw "Captain America: The Winter Soldier" when it came out and i am very pleased to see that it is still the #1 movie in America some three weeks after its release.  There is more to my pleasure at seeing the movie do so well than just fannboy excitement, though (not sure how much more, but there is a measurable percentage more).  I am excited to see a movie that deals with the complex issues of what s of what it means to be a hero in today's society (especially here in the U.S.A.)doing so well.  i really like the fact that a comic book movie is striving to say something more than "Might makes Right", in fact this movie may come as close to saying the opposite of that sentiment than any other comic book adaption ever has (including "Watchmen", imho).

Which brings me to the question i would like to pose to You All;  In today's world, how essential are heroes?  This world seems to meandering toward chaos more and more each day, is touting the actions and character of heroes (real or imagined) akin to some kind of Sisyphusian mental torture...in a nutshell, what is the appeal of looking to the best in mankind when the worst is running rampant?  

A fair assessment, no?  But maybe the whole symbol represented in the "Starfish story" is the key to the necessity of hope - which is what heroes embody in our minds, in our souls.  The need to reach for what Abraham Lincoln called “the Better Angels of Our Nature”.  Heroism inspires heroism, hope breeds hope.  In a society inundated by anger, angst and apathy don’t Our hearts cry out for heroes?  As the world spins into shadow, aren’t we all desperately craving the light of compassion, civility and self-sacrifice?  

I submit to You that the current spate of Superhero movies is touching more than a childish desire to see Our costumed vigilantes finally robed in flesh, but the fulfillment of the yearning that We feel to see Someone overcome insurmountable odds for the sake of the greater good.  Walt Whitman said; “ I understand the large hearts of heroes, the courage of present times and all times,” .  

I salute You Captain America for doing so well at the box office, and even more so for letting us believe, if even for a little while, that there is better in Us and that We can aspire to that better in Ourselves.

~Steven