What makes a hero? The pilot who saved 155 lives by landing his plane on the Hudson river yesterday has been hailed a hero, but wasn’t he just just doing his job? He was after all a specialist in airline crisis management.
Today marks the 40th anniversary of the death of Jan Palach, the Czech student who committed suicide by self immolation as a political protest against the Soviet-led invasion of Czechoslovakia. Was his suicide an act of heroism or egoism? Or does it depend on what the act achieves?
Earlier this month, Lasantha Wickrematunga, a Sri Lankan newspaper editor was murdered on his way to work. Mr. Wickrematunga exposed corruption in the Sri Lankan government and even predicted his own murder. He believed that journalism was a career that called on its practitioners to lay down their lives calling it an honour to die for his duty. Does heroism mean dying for your cause? How far should heroes go to honour their duty? What does it take to be a hero?
In Mumbai, the wife of the murdered chief of city’s anti terrorism squad has spoken out in an interview about her loss. Kavita Karkare said she was proud of her husband’s sacrifice, but wishes her husband had opted for another profession. Is it selfish to die for a cause? What about those left behind?
Who do you define as a hero? Can we consider footballers and movies stars to be heroes in the same way as we do firemen and doctors? Do we use the word too lightly or is it simply a question of definition?
RSS feed
Well, if we want to talk about heroes, let’s throw in this story from earlier today: an Australian soldier was AWARDED THE VICTORIA CROSS, the first to an Aussie in 40 years, for his bravery in Afghanistan.
I think that most true heroes will say something like “I was just doing my job” but they do it with a level of skill or bravery that sets them apart from others. The main thing that differentiates a true hero from your football-player example is that the “real thing” is acting to help others, not for personal gain or recognition. By that definition, using the word “hero” for a sports or movie star is, indeed, devaluing the word.
A hero is someone who inspires others by his/her actions…plain and simple. The “hero” himself does not determine whether the title is justified, rather it is the bystanders who confer the honor. Since global communication now lets all the world be a bystander to events, each of us is free to pick from millions/billions of potential heroes…if only their actions reach the news. I would imagine Captain Solenberger (the pilot who landed on the Hudson River) views his actions as “part of the job”, but to the bystanders who depended on him for their survival and those of us who would hope the pilots of our own plane rides have his skills, he is a hero. Perspective is everything in life.
Anyone can be a hero as long as the action taken is for the good of all and embodies intelligence and courage. It can be from the simple act of saving a person in danger to saving a multitude of people.
A hero is someone who has the courage to stand up to situations and to be the voice of the silent majority who don’t have the courage, the means and the strategy to voice their concerns.
History is full of heroes from ordinary persons to state leaders. There is no sphere which doesn’t have its heroes. But as one man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist, there can be one man’s hero is another man’s villain. Hitler and Bin Laden are good examples, to name just these two famous “personalities” in modern history.
love for ones own fellowbeings in time of need makes everyone a hero.pilot did his duty so meticulously in time of utmost peril but the people who rescued them and completed the job by their tireless efforts are equallyheroes of yesterday ..taking a cue from hudson river let every people come together in helping one another so world will be a beautiful place to live..
devadas.v
kannur, kerala
A good time to pay tribute to those who sit up front and actually fly these things.
As a ‘frequent flyer’ for over 40 years I always have a heartfelt thanks to the pilots
who get that 65+ tonnes back on the ground.
It might be also a good time to consider the not so happy lot of airline pilots.
They really should be paid double what they get, look at the responsibility!
Lets hope Obama makes a similar neat job of landing the destroyed USA economy.
Hello Everyone,
A hero is not an film actor or a football player,its anyone(individual)who does something brave enough to protect people.Obviously we use ‘Heroes’ too often which reduces its value.I do remember last week a player was said to be a HERO for scoring a last minute goal.So,I don’t find people understanding the real value of the word hero.
Thank you,
Abhinav
“Just doing your job” depends on what job you are performing. A store employee going the “extra distance” to find the right item is appriciated, but not the same as saving lives in the face of disaster.
To all the police officers, firefighters, soldiers, and everyone else who puts their life on-the-line every day – regardless of your country – I give you my heartfelt and sincere thank you! You are indeed heros.
To those of us who shuffle papers and answer telephones all day, keep up the good work, but to call us “heros…” Sorry, it just does not apply to us.
Opportunity coincident with recognition of humanity.
g
I got a little choked up when I saw the news reports of this pilot’s actions. He saved all those people so yes, he is a hero.
A hero is someone in the right place at the right time to do the right thing . I have also noticed that genuine heroes are very modest about what they have done. They aren’t doing this to get their names in the papers.
Keep in mind as well that the pilot had been told to return to the airport. He told the controllers no, he might crash into the neighborhoods that surround it. He instead opted to ditch in the Hudson. Not only did he save the lives of his passengers, but also saved the lives of the people on the ground. That, in my mind, makes his actions even more heroic,
I really hope they don’t decide to cull canada geese after this. I would hate for them to be made into some kind of scapegoat. Remember, birds are supposed to fly, that’s why they can fly without airplanes.
This is a subject that has irritated me for years. The word has been used to describe people who devote their lives to an unpopular cause and to children who survive cancer and everything in between to the point that it has become meaningless.
A hero is someone who acts spontaneously and selflessly risks their own safety for the safety of others.
The pilot is a hero. If I had been there, I would be so grateful to him for saving my life!
Not only did he know his job and do it well but he did what he had to do under pressure!
The pilot who save the flight on Thursday afternoon, In New York City is a HERO….
~Dennis Junior~
A hero is someone who inspires others by his/her actions…plain and simple. The “hero” himself does not determine whether the title is justified, rather it is the bystanders who confer the honor. Since global communication now lets all the world be a bystander to events, each of us is free to pick from millions/billions of potential heroes…if only their actions reach the news. I would imagine Captain Solenberger (the pilot who landed on the Hudson River) views his actions as “part of the job”, but to the bystanders who depended on him for their survival and those of us who would hope the pilots of our own plane rides have his skills, he is a hero. Perspective is everything in life.
The media. It decided to report the event.
A hero is one who would not flee from danger but grow unusual courage to acheive uncommon success where every other would give up.
A hero thinks and act composedly with expertise even in view of DISASTER and focuses on acheiving the desired goal seeing success “as a do or die”
Anakorez
I agree with John in Salem about what/who is a Hero.
In this case the pilot was not a Hero, he was saving his life at the same time as he was saving all the others.
He is a very good , magnificent,proficient and skilled pilot, as also is the Co-Pilot about whom we have heard nothing.
It takes two pilots to fly a commercial jet, and there is a lot to be done very quickly in an emergency.
I expect that the appropriate authorities will acknowledge the work of the Co-Pilot, even if the Mass Media are unable to understand it.
The one who does for himself is a warrior but the one who does for others will be a Hero….
Hello again
What makes a hero?
The media.
Jim
“What makes a hero?”
“Does heroism mean dying for your cause?… What does it take to be a hero?”
Joseph Campbell studied about heroes and if I understand him correctly heroism is the normal human condition, people want to be heroes from when they’re born.
So I suggest a good question is;
“What prevents people from being heroes?”
How do people come to be afraid of their natural inclination to be heroes? And the accompanying question is, cui bono, who benefits from people being afraid to be heroic?
Heroism means living for your cause. It’s the anti-heroes who want you to die for your cause.
A hero is the one who keeps courage and confidence just for a fraction of seconds to avert a crisis in life. The way the captain did was an excellent heroic performance and he might’ve done it with the active minds of his crew like the BBC also reported that he was in constant touch with the aviation ground personnels. An excellent news to know that he’s saved the lives, and in saving them has saved himself, too. Words fail to appreciate him.
rameshwar baral