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. |
From inside the book
Results 1-3 of 12
... stranger . Indeed , the opening chapter of the Gospel of John illustrates how even God is now considered a stranger by us : ' He was in the world , and though the world was made through him , the world did not recognise him . He came to ...
... stranger . The stranger is not mine nor is he or she for me , there is no availability involved in the other who is stranger ; nothing of the self of the other is freely and willingly offered by the stranger . The stranger remains a ...
... stranger . We will generally dress in a manner we find pleasing , we will read what we find interesting , we will often be found in places which we find congenial indulging ourselves in favourite pursuits . All these factors , and many ...
Contents
Myth and Imagination | 1 |
Heroes and Otherness | 23 |
With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility | 63 |
Copyright | |
2 other sections not shown