Heroes and VillainsHercules, Jesus, James Bond, Luke Skywalker, Gandalf, Frodo, Harry Potter, Buffy Summers, Spiderman, Batman, Captain Kirk, Dr. Who, Darth Vader, Sauron, Voldemort, Lex Luthor, Dr. Doom, the Daleks, the Borg. Almost anybody living in the developed West would be able to group these individuals into two camps: the heroes and the villains. However, what criteria they may use to do this is less clear. Mike Alsford introduces us to a range of heroic and villainous archetypes on a journey through film, television, comic books, and literature. On the way, he addresses questions such as: What is a true hero? What is a true villain? Have we misunderstood these terms? What kind of societal values do our mythical heroes and villains represent? In trying to understand the extremes of hero and villain we are made more aware of our own ethical standards and given a space in which to explore contemporary concerns over notions of right and wrong, good and bad. |
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... speak from experi- ence here are confounded by senselessness . We like things to make sense , to have purpose . In spite of our alleged move towards the postmodern where relativity and subjectivity are prioritised over the modernist ...
... It is these absolutes that give us the confidence to speak of truth and beauty and justice , to work towards an ideal society and the good life . Then it is an ideal pattern we were looking for 12 Heroes and Villains.
... speak of justice and rehabilitation and even redemption as the primary mode of dealing with criminal and anti - social individu- als , the heroes of our imagination speak with a different voice . Whether it be Robin Hood finally ...
Contents
Myth and Imagination | 1 |
Heroes and Otherness | 23 |
With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility | 63 |
Copyright | |
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