She-Ra As A Childhood Hero. Essay, Research Paper

Hero

When I think of a hero I immediately think of someone who is strong, intelligent, handsome, and daring. Upon closer examination, many different qualities than these become apparent. Courage, honesty, bravery, selflessness, and the will to try are just a few of the overlooked qualities of a hero. The definition of heroism changes with the context and time. Heroes of the past are not necessarily heroes of present time and vise versa. A person can be a hero for saving the life of one or of millions.

Heroes are not only real people, but they are also fantasy figures. Children are extremely interested with legendary and fantasy figures because they take on such tasks as: difficult journeys, challenges with dragons, discovering lost treasure, and changing the nature of the world through their singular acts of courage and selflessness. They also endure much resistance, hardship, and danger. Often the hero learns valuable lessons about survival and self-reliance. Not only do heroes teach valuable lessons they give a child a sense of belonging. To a child, a hero is an invincible person who will change the world.

When I was younger I had many figures I admired, but the one that stands out in my mind is She-Ra. She was amazing, beautiful, strong, and smart. I would have

done anything to be like her. Every day when I would come home from school I would

sit in front of the television and wait for her show to come on. I knew every word to the theme song and also when she would turn herself from the regular princess into She-Ra, she would hold her sword high and say, For the Honor of Greyskuull! I am She-Ra! Of course I would scream it at the top of my lungs too. Not only did I have to watch her television show I would also have to act it out with my friends. Every day at recess all of the girls and sometimes the boys would run around and pretend like we would save people that were in trouble. Mostly, we would take turns at being She-Ra, but I really liked it when it was my turn. Whenever someone was in trouble and no one else could save him or her I would grab a stick and pretend like it was a sword and save the person that was in trouble. All the kids loved to play She-Ra. We would play it the entire recess. It was everyone else s and my favorite show. I had every possible toy they made and I saw every cartoon they made. I think I would have done anything to be on her show, although I could not, it still did not discourage me from liking her. Even though I never met She-Ra I felt like I had a connection with her. It seemed as if she was my friend. Whenever I was unhappy I would either turn on her show or I would play with my look- alike toys. She was helpful with solving problems. I would take my toys and play with them as if they had the problem and act out, what would they do if they were in my situation? After I played with them I always felt better. Mainly I am emphasizing on She-Ra, but it was not only her, it was the whole crew that I looked up to. They all had their parts in different episodes that made them very heroic as well. Especially She- Ra s unicorn. That was my next favorite character. The unicorn would always save She-Ra if she was unable to save herself. Plus, the unicorn was so pretty and I wanted one so badly, but with the toy I felt like I had the next best thing to the actual unicorn.

I think She-Ra was an amazing cartoon. It was adventurous, yet non-violent. I would always act out different types of fantasies with the She-Ra toys; moreover than Barbie. She-Ra helped me build character, make the right decisions, and it also gave me a sense of belonging. My family was always there for me, but sometimes I wanted someone else to look up to. For a child I think it is imperative for them to have someone other than their families to admire. For instance, what if their family does not demonstrate good values? Then one of the only other resources a child will listen to is the television.

Cartoons are very realistic to children. As the children of the future are about to embark on a new phase in their lives what will they have to look back on if the cartoon does not show good morals and values? I do not think enough people understand that cartoons tend to shape a child s mind. To a child, cartoons are real life and without showing them proper behavior on television our children are only going to become worse. Now days the cartoon makers and especially television show makers are not concerned with how the child will respond to their show. What if a child sees someone they admire holding a gun? That child is going to think it is cool. Television show makers are only concerned with what will make them money. A lot of the television shows and cartoons have subliminal messages and a lot of violence. The television show producers need to realize children need to have people to look up to. If all the people speak badly or carry guns, then what is that going to project to our children? The cartoons and television shows need to go back to the way they use to be, when they actually cared about what they put on television. Maybe then if we gave them proper heroes we would not have such corrupt children at such young ages.