Heroism: 4. Poster Heroes

Rory Stewart: The Long History of...

BBC

Society & Culture, Philosophy, History

4.6 • 593 Ratings

🗓️ 25 August 2025

⏱️ 29 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Rory Stewart explores ideas of what it means to be a hero from the ancient world to the present day. How have these ideas changed? Why do heroes matter? Who are the heroes we need today?

With the help of leading historians, psychologists, philosophers and theologians, he examines how heroism is continually questioned and re-invented in every age, and how these contrasting visions of the hero might speak to us in our own time. What does it mean for our moral life? How should we perceive and pursue human excellence?

In this episode, Rory explores ideas of the hero from the middle of the 20th century.

Presenter: Rory Stewart Producer and sound design: Dan Tierney Editor: Tim Pemberton Commissioning Editor: Dan Clarke

Transcript

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0:00.0	right, are you feeling ready? I'm feeling ready. I'm Amol Rajin. Join me on my new podcast for
0:07.5	in-depth conversations with pioneers and innovators, talking about the trends and ideas that could
0:13.0	help shape and change our future. We are going to be digital citizens of this AI world,
0:18.8	whether we like it or not. From declining birth rates to disinformation online, can they solve the world's biggest challenges?
0:26.0	What I would love to do is go to the transfer and say radically cut the taxes of those with children.
0:31.3	Radical with me and Ol Rajan. Listen on BBC Sounds.
0:36.1	BBC Sounds, music, radio, podcasts.
0:44.2	It's June 1938, Germany.
0:47.0	Police officials arrest around 9,000 so-called asocials in Operation Wurkshire Reich, and send them to concentration
0:58.9	camps. Amongst those arrested are approximately 1,000 Jews. This is the first mass arrest of Jews
1:08.1	in Nazi Germany. That same month, June 1938, two children of Jewish immigrants to the United States,
1:17.2	who'd fled earlier persecution in Europe, get published for the first time.
1:22.1	They come up with a fictional character that features in a new comic book called Action Comics Number One.
1:29.3	It is the first appearance in literature of one of the most popular and influential fictional
1:34.6	creations of the modern age.
1:37.3	Faster than a speeding bullet.
1:39.4	More powerful than Anoka-Morid.
1:42.4	I'm able to leak tall buildings at a single bound,
1:45.0	the infant of Triptan is now the man of steel.
1:48.0	Superman!
1:51.3	Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster are bringing together
1:54.3	existing ideas from science fiction and pulp fiction,
	...

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