I found this an interesting concept that only an unhappy land looks for heroes. I also find it a true concept. I agree it is the environment that creates the hero. When society faces disaster they need someone to look up to and guide them through difficult times. Further on in the paragraph Hughes-Hallett goes on to say “It is desperation that prompts people to crave a champion, a protector, or a redeemer and, having identified one, to offer him their worship.”
People do not go looking for Heroes on a day-to-day basis. Disaster must strike, and that disaster fuels desperation and desperation sparks the need for a leader, and this is where a hero comes in. Desperation is a powerful notion; it dulls your logic, makes people do things they wouldn’t normally do in the right frame of mind. For example, after WWI the German people were in despair, and Hitler seized this opportunity for power. He was in the right place, at the right time, and desperation clouded the people’s judgment. Of course he did not end up being a hero, but he proves that only in the right time will we seek a leader. Heroes need tragedies, like police need crime, and firefighters need fire.
