“Heroes are made by the path they choose, not the powers they are graced with.” - Tony Stark
Since childhood, many of us grew up reading comic books and graphic novels about superheroes, and slowly with the evolution of media and entertainment, we have immersed ourselves in superhero movies and cartoons. Although a major misconception arises that superheroes promote and insinuate violence, some fail to see the bigger picture. It is that superheroes were actually created as icons of inspiration, strength, and hope.
We all have different preferences for superheroes as each of them is unique in its own way. They spread different messages that would appeal to us. We can relate to them deeper based on their influence on our personal lives. Heroes like Superman, Spider-Man, and Captain America teach us how to be virtuous and selfless. They give us assurance that there will always be hope, even in the darkest of times. Heroes like Batman teach us how to deal with grief and loss and how we can battle through all adversity. Heroes like Iron Man teach us that even without superpowers, we can still make a difference and impact the world we create and live in. Also, they teach us that the brain is mightier than the brawn and that we all can learn and change for the better from our mistakes.
We look at multiple characters and take inspiration from each of their traits to help shape our view of the world and how we can make our lives better. Even as children and adults, we try to relate to them and channel them as our source of strength. And there is no shame in doing that as long as we strongly believe in it and realize that it has contributed to improving our life.
Some of us have gone through bullying As adults, we are expected to grow out of superheroes, but deep down, some of us still look up to them and use the lessons learned from them to get through our daily lives. At the same time, we also know to accept harsh realities that we are subject to as we grow older.
Research has shown that superheroes can inspire us to perform altruistic acts. They unlock certain characteristics and abilities within us that even we may have never been aware of. This motivates us to do good and build the strength to protect ourselves and the people we love from harm and negativity. This will also encourage us to volunteer towards good causes that would benefit a group of people or society. Over time, as we mature, we understand that our positive acts are not because we attempt to get a good name, but because we know it is the right thing to do. And we wouldn’t expect to get credit for the good things we do and the contributions we make.
It is common and quite heart-wrenching to realize and acknowledge that superheroes are fictional and do not exist in real life as we jump into reality. And loads of us wished they existed, or better yet, wished that we had superpowers to get through life and make a difference. However, the fact is that you do not need superpowers to be a hero. You could be a hero in the eyes of a kid to whom you lent your coat to save him or her from the freezing cold. You could be a hero to an entire community that you’ve helped and supported in any way possible. You could be a hero to a society that saw you try to eliminate poverty. You could also be called a hero for stopping a robbery or theft when no one else could on time. While some people view superheroes as just a bunch of fighters in colorful costumes who provoke violent behavior within the youth, the rest of us know very well that superheroes were created to instill good values in us and to give us the strength to battle and overcome our personal demons so that we can become better, and ultimately, do good things for the people we love and care about.
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