Is Terry Fox a good hero? Filibuster Cartoons Archive
When I was in grade 3, I can remember my elementary school teacher giving us a lecture on heroism, and the sorts of people we should and should not revere as heroes. Superheroes, she said firmly, were entirely out of the question. Worshipping a fictional character, who by design has no imperfections or failings whatsoever, is to set grotesquely unreal expectations. The reason we revere real-world humans, by contrast, is precisely because of their imperfections. They were able to overcome their flaws in the pursuit of something greater, and so can we.
I am not sure at what point of the year I was taught this valuable lesson, but I am fairly sure it did not coincide with our school’s annual Terry Fox Run, in which we all donned our Terry Fox t-shirts and read bright picture books about the great martyr’s perfect life. Worthy though his cause may be, there can be little doubt that the contemporary Canadian nationalist-cultural establishment has transformed the late Mr. Fox into the very sort of demigod my teacher originally warned against — noble, flawless, and utterly unassailable in his ambitions and deeds...... full op/ed article at link.
Is Terry Fox a good hero? Filibuster Cartoons Archive
When I was in grade 3, I can remember my elementary school teacher giving us a lecture on heroism, and the sorts of people we should and should not revere as heroes. Superheroes, she said firmly, were entirely out of the question. Worshipping a fictional character, who by design has no imperfections or failings whatsoever, is to set grotesquely unreal expectations. The reason we revere real-world humans, by contrast, is precisely because of their imperfections. They were able to overcome their flaws in the pursuit of something greater, and so can we.
I am not sure at what point of the year I was taught this valuable lesson, but I am fairly sure it did not coincide with our school’s annual Terry Fox Run, in which we all donned our Terry Fox t-shirts and read bright picture books about the great martyr’s perfect life. Worthy though his cause may be, there can be little doubt that the contemporary Canadian nationalist-cultural establishment has transformed the late Mr. Fox into the very sort of demigod my teacher originally warned against — noble, flawless, and utterly unassailable in his ambitions and deeds...... full op/ed article at link.
Is Terry Fox a good hero? Filibuster Cartoons Archive