Captain America is the Least “American” Hero
How the ideal All-American Hero is not so “American”
Let’s get this on the table before I begin: I’m not a film critic. I do, however, love watching films and I love analyzing them even more for their subliminal content. I unintentionally find the CFRR (Creation, Fall, Redemption and Restoration) in most films, too, thanks to my amazing high school English teacher. It’s pretty easy for me to gather sub-context even if it wasn’t meant to be there because it helps me see life a little more clearly. Movies are like parables to me, and I want to learn from them just as much as I want to be entertained by them.
Ahem.
Recently I had the pleasure of seeing Captain America 2: The Winter Soldier on the big screen in my small college town with a few close friends. What I saw was pretty impressive (in the typical sense of Marvel movies) in many terms:
- The plot was straightforward and picked up almost seamlessly from the first movie (which came out a while back)
- The characters were well developed and lovable- Black Widow and the new guy “Falcon” were so unique and quirky that they easily won over the hearts of the audience
- Heck YES there were incredible explosions! And for the most part, they were actually relevant
- It was well thought out and let the audience figure out what was going on just in time to be surprised by pure awesomeness
However, after watching the plot thicken and the movie progress, I noticed something even more amazing than the impressive technology and wicked-jedi-like Winter Soldier’s moves. I noticed just how selfless, honorable, compassionate, and trusting Captain America was. How he would have rather sacrificed himself and his position rather than betray a friend, tell a lie, or divulge important data to the wrong person.
He had something most Americans regrettably lack: Integrity.
I know saying that may be stepping on a lot of toes, but I look around at our society and see a culture of selfishness. A nation based on getting ahead of the others by any means necessary. A wasteland of morals gone wrong and the notion that the ideal lifestyle is one where you can gain success by exploiting others. This is how Americans are defined in modern terms.
Some “American Dream”.
Even looking at other “heroes” we hold in esteem- Iron Man is one of the most “American” heroes by the definition I just laid out. He is considered awesome for being brilliant, yet he is selfish and easily uses people to get what he wants. He is rich and has all this technology but it’s to his folly because he gets arrogant and ends up being held captive and rendered useless for a while (Iron Man 3, if you recall).
I’m not trying to bad-mouth some of America’s most beloved superheroes- I do want to make a point that we should reevaluate what it means to be “American”. Do we want to continue to be a people who lets selfishness lay waste to our families and homes? Or do we want to be a people of integrity, the kind of people worthy of the remarks of the French Philosopher Alexis de Tocqueville who said America was a great nation because of the people’s morals?
To close with a story, I once heard of a woman who went to a diner and paid in $10 in cash for a meal that was $6 or so. The cashiere knowingly paid her back four extra dollars to see what she would do. Receiving the money, she said nothing but instead turned and left the diner, having sold her integrity for four dollars. Four dollars!
We are faced with choices every day. How will we use our money and resources? How will we treat that coworker who said something mean about you yesterday? How will we, for goodness’ sake, raise our kids to be responsible and selfless when we ourselves are choosing our jobs and networking brunches over spending time with them? If we value getting ahead in life and living the “American Dream” (AKA “selfish syndrome”) then we will inevitably cut the cords of our own parachutes and continue to see the destruction of our nation.
The choice is yours: what kind of hero will you be?
