Heroes

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Note: this article is based on the work of Cyrulnik (2016) referenced below.

Heroes are a chimera that unites a group at the expense of outsiders.

Heroes serve the social function of hope. We choose them out of necessity. Their stories embody our desires. Heroes are not immortals. They are vulnerable because they can be killed. They are often sacrificed on the altar of our gratitude. Here ends the hero who stands for the people and trades glory for death. Which heroes we choose says a lot about us and our society.

All totalitarian regimes seek to control artists, who are a weapon for governing minds. (Cyrulnik, 2016)

Fictions overhaul reality by assembling fragments of truth in a coherent way. Just like a chimera – a fictional creature that ignites imagination. Every part is true, but the whole is not. Yet, the image is so powerful in our minds that we fool ourselves into believing the story we created. We submit to our own chimera.

As a group, the effect is multiplied. Agreeing with others is so comfortable. Group thinking provides a unifying rationale. We feel protected and safe. Any challenge to group thinking triggers a violent sense of danger. The stranger, the unknown, the other, becomes a threat. We do not want to understand, because we prefer to stay in the lazy comfort of group thinking.

A weakened, threatened, or hurt group gathers behind a chimera – a story, a myth, a hero. Whichever it is, it creates a collective illusion charged with powerful emotions. We create a fiction for us to believe in and justify our actions. It unites us as a group, but it alienates strangers. Ignorance breeds fear, and fear sparks violence. It is the gateway to war.

The ecstatic feeling of love or hate causes an incredibly contagious emotion. (Cyrulnik, 2016)

Who are your heroes?

Source: Boris Cyrulnik. (2016). Ivres paradis, bonheurs héroïques. Éditions Odile Jacob.