> 2021-02-10

Anecdotally to the observer, it seems that national adversity produces heroes while personal adversity produces victims.

Why is there a perceived difference and why can’t personal adversity produce public heroes?

In national-level issues, everyone is impacted and all shoulder the burden while a few rise as leaders. For example, in World War II individuals such as Churchill [1], Murphy [2], Winters [2], and Sendler [4] are rightfully treated as heroes for their noble defense of freedom even as the conflict touched all lives.

On the other side, personal-level issues that impact a population subset but are treated as if everyone should bear the load and that no one individual may be a hero. Poverty, hunger, addiction - things people and fight against and even overcome. Resilience in the face of personal struggle somehow feels as though it’s not recognized as a heroic act.

> Home