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I agree with Mr Cat. There are people who I recognize have contributed to some field or another, but none that I hold up and say, "Wow, I want to aspire to that!"
I've discovered I don't get impressed or flummoxed around celebrities, authority figures, or other "important" people. They are just people, some worse than others. And I find I don't have the ability to mystify them into something "more".
I think I should have not used the word "heroes". Because implied in that is perfection, when no one can be that. This is why in the opening post I was sure to start with what I did NOT admire about the people that inspire me in another way. To expect people to be perfect is in fact self-defeating, and I believe leads to inevitable disappointment and cynicism, because no one will be able to live up to that. The only reason why I stipulated that they should be celebrities was so that we would all know whom the other posters were talking about. This could very be one of those questions that as it turns out is natural to me but to few others.
What famous person has inspired you in some profound way, and how? Was all that I was asking. And if you can point out their flaws, what you don't find admirable about them then all the better.
Can you talk about their faults as well as their traits you most admire?
Yes.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Streamer1212
My hero has always been Francis Marion.
Streamer1212
I thought mine would be obscure, but wow, Francis Marion is random.
I thought Marion was supposed to be a weak, spoiled rotten, crude, cruel racist, and at the same time an effeminate whiner? I seem to recall just about everything about the man being vilified, except for his military service leading irregulars for colonial SC.
Made himself a fortune, and then gave it all away. He did SO much for my home town here in Dunfermline, started a college, schools, gave us libraries, theatres, (we have our own Carnegie hall here too !) a swimming pool, and much more.
Pittencrieff park, a local beauty spot (known locally as "the glen") was a private estate at one time, they used to open the grounds once a year to the public.
carnegie, having been denied entry to the park, bought it all, and promptly GAVE it to the people of the town.
My hero's can't be found in gossip columns or Wiki....
My family members that have served in the Military..doesn't matter for how long...the fact they served is what matters.
ANYONE else that has served our country in one way or another.
Firefighters and law enforcement.
My mom...started over at age 47, pulled herself up by her bootstraps,created a successful career and even now leads a satisfying life at age 75...the naysayers said she couldn't do it....guess they didn't know my mom.
As far as celebrities or famous people, can we really know them? Isn't what we know of them just how the media, historians, and authors choose to depict them?
I don't have "heroes" as such because to me the word means little nowadays . it has been sullied, soiled and misused, diminished and has trivialised what true heroism is about.
I have people I look up to but heroes in the modern sense tend to mean people we put on a pedestal and admire almost sycophantically , not able to see their faults and with little sense of perspective. I always see the word heroes mentioned when people talk about shallow celebrities, actors etc... and sportsmen and it makes me want to scream. It devalues the word and trivialises it.
I have always subscribed to the saying that a Hero is someone who does what he can . Ie someone who pushes himself as we all can a lot more than we do...
People I admire immensely and would be my heroes in this sense would be the people I met whilst doing a short stint with Medecins sans Frontieres, people who have sacrificed brilliant careers, honour and wealth to work among the poorest of the poor risking their lives for no reward. Carers, Foster Parents, etc... people who put others first and foremost. I have met people who have definitely tried to be all they could be and it was a great privilege.
Intellectually I look up to people like Simon Schama, Michael Wood ( both great historians with an intellect to make you blush with embarassment at your own inadequacies) , Richard Dawkins ( he irritates the hell out of me sometimes, but heck the man is a genius), explorers like Bruce Parry and Benedict Allen, Shackelton, Franklin , Hearne etc... I admire writers like Oscar Wilde, Steinbeck, Zola, Maupassant.
My Great-Uncle and Great-Grand Father and their comrades in arms who spent years in death camps are "heroes" in my sense of the word, to me. People who did all they could to try and stop one of the great evils of our modern world and risked their lives for it. People who made very hard life choices because it was the right thing to do.
"Heroes" walk among us , silent and unrecognised, and none of us will ever know it because most will never seek any form of public recognition.
Made himself a fortune, and then gave it all away. He did SO much for my home town here in Dunfermline, started a college, schools, gave us libraries, theatres, (we have our own Carnegie hall here too !) a swimming pool, and much more.
Pittencrieff park, a local beauty spot (known locally as "the glen") was a private estate at one time, they used to open the grounds once a year to the public.
carnegie, having been denied entry to the park, bought it all, and promptly GAVE it to the people of the town.
He's a celebrity in that he's a famous person. A great choice, I'd say, someone who's deserving of admiration. Also, did a lot for his adopted hometown of Pittsburgh, PA. The way I remember it, with all his riches, never paid himself more than 50K per year and gave the rest away.
I thought mine would be obscure, but wow, Francis Marion is random.
I thought Marion was supposed to be a weak, spoiled rotten, crude, cruel racist, and at the same time an effeminate whiner? I seem to recall just about everything about the man being vilified, except for his military service leading irregulars for colonial SC.
"I thought........"..........."I seem to recall......"
Do your homework, please. Even a little research will dispute your opinion.
No thanks, I will pass. I was a child of the Pee Dee basin, and I am very familiar with Francis Marion.
Even if we ignore the spots on his reputation, as you do, he is still a peculiar choice. I wrongly assumed that since he is "your hero" you might have something interesting to say about the man.
Last edited by le roi; 01-11-2010 at 12:36 PM..
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