Fourth, we have to resist the urge to rationalize inaction or develop justifications that recast evil deeds as acceptable means to supposedly righteous ends.
Finally, we must try to transcend anticipating negative consequences associated with some forms of heroism, such as being socially ostracized. If our course is just, we must trust that others will eventually recognize the value of our heroic actions.
But beyond these basic steps, our society needs to consider ways of fostering heroic imagination in all of its citizens, most particularly in our young. The ancient Greeks and Anglo-Saxon tribes venerated their heroes in epic poems such as The Iliad and Beowulf. It is easy to see these stories as antiquated, but their instructions for the hero still hold up.
In these stories, the protagonist often encounters a mystical figure who attempts to seduce the hero away from his path. In our own lives, we must also avoid the seduction of evil, and we must recognize that the seduction will probably be quite ordinary—an unethical friend or coworker, for instance. By passing a series of smaller tests of our mettle, we can cultivate a personal habit of heroism.
Epic poems also often tell of the hero visiting the underworld. This metaphorical encounter with death represents an acceptance and transcendence of one’s own mortality. To this day, some forms of heroism require paying the ultimate price. But we can also understand this as a hero’s willingness to accept any of the consequences of heroic action—whether the sacrifices are physical or social.
Finally, from the primeval war stories of Achilles to Sugihara’s compelling kindness toward the Jewish refugees in World War II, a code of conduct serves as the framework from which heroic action emerges. In this code, the hero follows a set of rules that serves as a reminder, sometimes even when he would prefer to forget, that something is wrong and that he must attempt to set it right. Today, it seems as if we are drifting further and further away from maintaining a set of teachings that serve as a litmus test for right and wrong.
But in a digital world, how do we connect ourselves and our children to what were once oral traditions? Hollywood has accomplished some of these tasks. The recent screen version of J. R. R. Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings brought us a classic story that is based on the epic tradition. Yet how many of us have stopped and talked with our children about the deeper meanings of this tale? As the sophistication of video gaming grows, can the power of this entertainment form be used to educate children about the pitfalls of following a herd mentality? Could these games help children develop their own internal compass in morally ambiguous situations? Or perhaps even help them think about their own ability to act heroically? And as we plow ahead in the digital era, how can the fundamental teachings of a code of honor remain relevant to human interactions?
If we lose the ability to imagine ourselves as heroes and to understand the meaning of true heroism, our society will be poorer for it. But if we can reconnect with these ancient ideals and make them fresh again, we can create a connection with the hero in ourselves. It is this vital, internal conduit between the modern work-a-day world and the mythical world that can prepare an ordinary person to be an everyday hero.