Tuesday, March 12, 2013

Heroes and The Cult of the Celebrity


A hero is defined as “A person that personifies good values and tries to assist others, not for a personal gain but for the betterment of the world”.  When I think about a hero I think of someone who in general goes beyond themselves to help others just because.  Someone that doesn’t need to be praised or celebrated for their hard work and charitable contributions but rather find enjoyment and value in celebrating others.  Hero’s in my opinion are optimistic individuals, they see the bigger picture and take action to fulfill what is right in the world one step at a time.  They thrive off of moral values and abide by their rule of life which is “treat others the way you would want to be treated”.  Of course they are not perfect, just like any other individual they make mistakes but because of their good hearts and desire to do right they learn from their mistakes and strive to be better people.   

When it comes to the topic of reality TV I believe the most applicable theory is “The cult of the celebrity”.  Many people now in days look to celebrities and mistake them for heroes because of their fame and fortune.  They feel these people are divine creatures walking the earth and that their lives are perfect because of the insight they get from television.  A lot of this is established with the help and edits done through Reality TV program networks.  Reality TV shows now in days can include a combination of both pre-existing celebrities and normal day to day individuals who have no celebrity status what so ever.  The main purpose of having a reality TV show is to reach a great level of popularity and to be noticed and recognized by people all over the world.  For some it can be for promotion reasons for others it’s just an opportunity to achieve celebrity status.  Being a celebrity is seen as fascinating because it is depicted as fun and exciting and most people who are celebrities are rich and can afford pretty much anything they want.  The cult of the celebrity has become such a huge trend within popular culture mainly because people want what they can’t have and are finding satisfaction in the glimpses they receive through other’s lives.  Achieving celebrity status creates what is called a fan based which includes numerous individuals who follow, tweet, befriend, talk about, adore, and sometimes even worship these individuals.  They give them so much attention and praise for their works and admire them in many ways.  Having this type of attention is seen as an accomplishment by many people in society and often times becomes a personal desire and goal to strive for. 

The insights that I gain from applying these theories are that as individuals it is important for us to feel some sense of purpose in life.  For each of us it is different and there are many avenues available for fulfilling this achievement. Many people find purpose through the use of social networking, reality TV, in careers, through cultural status or just simply the people in their lives.  But what is important is that we find what makes us happy, something worth living for, something that we couldn’t live without and would die for.  When we accomplish this goal we become not only self-fulfilled but also a potential heroic figure to those that look up to us.  Achieving a celebrity status because society tells us that is how it should be will no longer be a necessary achievement because we realize we have a bigger purpose in life. 

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