The word heroification is best described in James Loewen’s book ‘Lies My Teacher Told Me’ using various prominent examples. Loewen (1995) defines heroification as a process that is popularly agreed on by the majority to ‘tag’ a personality with heroic characteristics without the conscious knowledge of the personality’s weakness. Thus heroification is a degenerative account that segregates important attributes of the person and imparts a flawless outlook of the person in the public eye. Therefore, heroification process literary transforms individuals and makes “flesh-and-blood individuals into pious, perfect creatures without conflicts, pain, credibility, or human interest” (Loewen, 1995).
Examples of renowned personalities Loewen uses in supporting his arguments are Helen Keller and Woodrow Wilson. Helen Keller loved the socialist movement in her late years, but what strikes our minds most is her demanding life while she was young. She was inconvenienced with blindness and physical disability. Despite this disability, she could manage to acquire the expertise of reading, writing, and speaking fluently! Therefore, she is seen as person who has exclusively managed to triumph over her physical disorders. The outward image of the struggles she faced and the active participation in Socialist conflict one another and renders her controversial (Loewen, 1995).
On the other hand Woodrow Wilson is perfectly depicted in various scholarly sources as ‘good’ and ‘upright’. He is suggested to be a hero that served the best interest of the country and the people during his time. However, just like Helen, Woodrow is seen to have grievous flaws that are evident in his administration as President. For example, he has a history of engaging in questionable wars including the First World War. Woodrow advocated for racism during his presidency! He could assign whites in offices meant for the black natives during his second term serving.
Leowen (1995) observes how prominent people like Christopher Columbus are depicted as flawless and are ‘bland source of encouragement and inspiration to our young’ that see them as extraordinary heroes.
‘Salt of the Earth’ is a political film that focuses on the conflict encountered in the social lives of the actors. There is heroification of the women when they organize a successful strike. The actors are represented to be heroes. Men who work in the mines are being mistreated and this is pitiful. However, they look down on their women back at home who tenderly love them. Women who later lead a victorious strike are seen to be heroes. The film extrapolates more in the heroification of the women like ‘Esperanza’ and this brings the debate of feminism. However, when the movie starts we see the poor sanitation, dangerous situation that compromises the safety in the mine, clearly showing the actors’ mistakes. Both the women and men are in a conflict and yet they want their boss to sort out their own mess when their own backyard is not sorted. The main role played by heroification is empowering the women and slightly the men in leading a successful strike (Jarrico, 1954). The setting of this film is different from ‘October Sky’ but it highlights the same challenges faced by miners.
‘October Sky’ focuses on the lives of a young bloke named Homer, who has a dream of venturing yonder into the field of airspace rockets. Thus, the film creates a hero who makes it big in the science field. Earlier, he shunned his father’s idea of him leading a life of being a miner. There is heroification of Homer as he ‘defies’ the odds that pose as stumbling blocks in accomplishing his dream. Just like Helen and Columbus, he is depicted as an extraordinary hero that seems strange to emulate without any flaws. However, we see his indulgence in profanity and alcohol abuse. He has low respect for the old and prefers his dream more than the people who matter the most in his life. The role which heroification plays in this film is that it creates an image of a successful dreamer who achieves what he targets and earns favor from both sides (Larry, 1999).
References
Jarrico, P., Biberman, D. S., Barela, A. (Producers), & Biberman, J. H. (Director). (1954) Salt of the Earth [Videotape]. Independent Productions. Web.
Larry J. Franco, L. J., Gordon. C., Sternberg, M. (Producers), & Johnston, J. (Director). (1999). October Sky [CD]. Universal Studios.
Loewen, J. W. (1995). Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong. New York, NY: Simon and Schuster.