%0 Journal Article
%T Reimagining Heroism: A Conceptual Analysis Through Antigone and Medea
%A Keegan Martens
%J Journal of Humanistic Psychology
%@ 1552-650X
%D 2018
%R 10.1177/0022167816686690
%X The definition of heroism is contested within the psychological literature, with some suggesting that a formal definition is unfeasible. Following these suggestions, to help clarify what is understood by ¡°heroism,¡± I critique three potential understandings of heroism drawn from recent psychological work on heroism. In the first critique, I discuss the notion of heroes as displaying certain characters traits, or strengths. In the second, I argue that heroic action cannot be defined by its consequences. In the final critique, I explore whether heroism can be evaluated by the authority an actor supports or opposes. These critiques use Sophocles¡¯ Antigone and Euripides¡¯ Medea as their examples to show that these three understandings cannot express what is heroic about Antigone and not heroic about Medea. I suggest that, instead, the designation ¡°hero¡± should be understood as an ethical evaluation of the person so designated
%K heroism
%K Antigone
%K Medea
%U https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0022167816686690