Western Heritage - Essay Example

The hero is seen as a proud and angry person who sees his personal honor as the most valuable thing. The ideal person is selfless and upholds other people’s wellbeing. In Cliffs Notes on Virgil’s The Aeneid Aeneas, the hero must possess characteristics such as tolerance, obedience to the will of the gods, and reverence for ancestors as seen through Aeneas. The true representation of an ideal character is, therefore, one who acts, not for his own good, but for the good of society as a whole.

He is humble, righteous according to the morals laid down by the community, and takes responsibility for his actions regardless of the consequences. The ideal person looks, for friendly ways to resolve conflict without resulting in war. Joseph Campbell’s book entitled “The Hero with a Thousand Faces”, examines the monomyth theory as “A hero ventures forth from the world of common day, into a region of supernatural wonder. Forces are there encountered, and a decisive victory is won: the hero comes back from this mysterious adventure with the power to bestow boons on his fellow man”.

Campbell describes the stages in monomyth: the hero starts the journey in the ordinary world he is then called into the extraordinary land where he undergoes tests and trials where he discovers his hidden abilities, he then chooses whether to return to the ordinary world to use his powers to improve the world (Mathews and Platt 68). Star Wars is a film series by George Lucas, exemplifies the use of supernatural abilities bestowed upon persons in the galaxy, some beings exercise powers such as mind control and speed to the good of the community while others choose to use them to take over the galaxy.

Both works of art emphasize the use of one’s powers to protect the community’s social and cultural rights. I am undergoing tests and trials which will lead to the realization of my inner strength. My next challenge will be deciding whether to use my discovered strengths to solve my problems and finally use them to improve the lives of those around me.