By Jalon Johnson and Jordan Horton
Dragon Echo Staff
The creativity of seniors at NHS is on display in the 100 hall for all to see, and students in English IV studying Hero Archetypes have the opportunity to express their creativity, which has been their favorite part of this unit.
As part of the Hero Unit, students described who they consider heroes and what they consider heroic traits.
Some students said Batman was a hero. Other examples were Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice, Beowulf, King Arthur, Jack Sparrow, Frodo Baggins and Shrek. Everyone had their own opinions about who was a hero and why, based on their own perspectives.
Ms. York said she wants students to understand what it means to be a hero, and who the heroes are in our society.
She enjoys teaching this unit because she wants students to better understand the heroes we know and love. She also wants students to know that there are every-day heroes among us.
Ms. York said that projects created by Sam Jacobs and Kate Esparza stood out to her, because they showed both classical and tragic heroes in today’s society.
Classic heroes are known by everyone. Tragic heroes are those who faced difficult and dangerous situations, who had to make tough decisions.
Kate said she chose Harry Potter for her hero project.
“I watched the movies and saw how he approached challenges directly and head-on,” Kate said. “When Dumbledore died, and Harry was all alone, he got back up and faced Voldemort.”
Sam Jacobs chose Hillary Clinton for his hero.
“I chose Hillary Clinton because I felt that she was an exceptional demonstration of a tragic hero,” he said. “The tragic hero is usually a strong or mentally sharp character who makes an error in judgment, ultimately leading to their downfall. I felt Hillary Clinton followed the same lines, as she was very mentally competent, but let her ego ultimately lead to her loss in the 2016 election.”
Sam said he gained a visual representation of what a tragic hero is, from doing this project.
“Many times you read about something, and it’s not always easy to make a connection,” he said. “Being able to connect something in English 4 to a real-life scenario really helped bridge that gap.”
The projects made by English IV students are on display outside Ms. York’s classroom.
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