Where are all the heroes?
Why is it not enough these days simply to celebrate the achievements of our heroes? Why is our enjoyment derived more from watching a fall from grace than remembering the accomplishment which first caused the impression on our consciousness?
Think George Best and what comes to mind? A diminutive figure skipping lightly over a scything tackle before stroking the ball in to the back of the net, or a drunken wretch swearing on a live television broadcast? How do we recall JFK? As the man who inspired a nation to put a man on the moon, or as a serial philanderer who neglected his duties as a husband?
We require our heroes to be beyond reproach when, very often, it is the same character trait which at once provides the genius and the irredeemable flaw. If it is perfection we seek then look to God; heroes are human with all the faults and weaknesses that brings.
I try to bear this in mind as I make my way to see Carlos Burle at Woodlane Bar on 12 October. I love sport and unsurprisingly, a number of my heroes are sportsmen. For a long time my sport of preference has been surfing. Burle is one of the pre-eminent big wave riders in the world, a man who has towed in to impossible behemoths at Jaws and Teahupoo; surf breaks the mere mention of which induce a shiver of fear down the spine of the average wave-rider. His reputation was sealed when he won an invitational contest at Todos Santos by paddling in to and riding down the face of a 70' monster. At the time it was the biggest wave ever ridden.
Perhaps it is the cynicism of the age but, as I wait to interview him, I wonder if it is even appropriate to describe what he does as heroic. If he drowned would it not simply be a terrible waste of a human life? Is he simply indulging in some ego-fuelled quest for fame and fortune?
One of the first questions he faces is predictable; how did he become a big wave surfer? Burle pauses, gathering the words. I gain the impression he is trying to be honest, not to stoke the flames of some media-fired image. "When I started, my family was against it. Surfing was linked to drugs and it was a big decision for me to keep going. But I knew I was meant to surf. I felt it."
In his seminal text on mythology and heroes, Joseph Campbell (The Hero With A Thousand Faces) suggests every hero departs on his travels having heard a "Call to Adventure." Is this what Burle is relating?
Campbell explains that every hero has to cross a "Threshold of Adventure." This is the deliberate decision to press on with a particular quest in the face of warnings not to do so. Often, the hero meets a helper who facilitates the process. Burle goes on: "I had to overcome a lot of emotions and obstacles. My father, who thought very logically, was against it. My mother gave me the inspiration. She is a lot more impulsive, making decisions based on how she feels." We have strayed in to dangerous territory here for this conjures up Freud's Oedipus complex. I choose to see Burle's mother as the helper identified by Campbell. I do not have it in me to ask Burle whether he has ever fantasised about marrying his mother.
I ask Burle if he fears dying when he paddles out in to the line-up. "I am not afraid to die but I do not want to suffer. When I have a bad wipe-out I know that I am in God's hands."
This seems consistent with what Campbell has to say: "Needless to say, the hero would be no hero if death held for him any terror; the first condition is reconciliation with the grave."
But why does he do it? Burle has an 8 year old daughter. What makes him continue to put himself in harm's way? "My main dream when I started was not to become a surfer. It was quality of life. As I kept pushing my limits I gained respect. I found I was better able to interact with society. Now, I want to return to people what surfing has given to me."
Burle, unwittingly perhaps, has summarized the journey that Campbell describes the hero as having to undergo. Once he heeds the call to adventure and departs, the hero is tested and undergoes a process of self-revelation. If he wins through, often, the hero returns, wiser and keen to impart the knowledge he has won for the benefit of all.
I find myself willing to set my cynicism to one side. For all the obvious concerns I have ( not least as a new father) about the merits of risking one's life when there is an 8 year daughter to raise, I do find Burle's chosen path heroic. He is genuine and humble during the course of our interview, acknowledging the risks and that people will disagree with the life he has chosen to lead. Yet he presses ahead. Deliberately, and having calculated that it is the best way he can improve both his and his family's lot, he paddles in to the dragon's lair. He trusts that his hard-earned experience and God's grace will see him through.
I only hope that remains the case.
Think George Best and what comes to mind? A diminutive figure skipping lightly over a scything tackle before stroking the ball in to the back of the net, or a drunken wretch swearing on a live television broadcast? How do we recall JFK? As the man who inspired a nation to put a man on the moon, or as a serial philanderer who neglected his duties as a husband?
We require our heroes to be beyond reproach when, very often, it is the same character trait which at once provides the genius and the irredeemable flaw. If it is perfection we seek then look to God; heroes are human with all the faults and weaknesses that brings.
I try to bear this in mind as I make my way to see Carlos Burle at Woodlane Bar on 12 October. I love sport and unsurprisingly, a number of my heroes are sportsmen. For a long time my sport of preference has been surfing. Burle is one of the pre-eminent big wave riders in the world, a man who has towed in to impossible behemoths at Jaws and Teahupoo; surf breaks the mere mention of which induce a shiver of fear down the spine of the average wave-rider. His reputation was sealed when he won an invitational contest at Todos Santos by paddling in to and riding down the face of a 70' monster. At the time it was the biggest wave ever ridden.
Perhaps it is the cynicism of the age but, as I wait to interview him, I wonder if it is even appropriate to describe what he does as heroic. If he drowned would it not simply be a terrible waste of a human life? Is he simply indulging in some ego-fuelled quest for fame and fortune?
One of the first questions he faces is predictable; how did he become a big wave surfer? Burle pauses, gathering the words. I gain the impression he is trying to be honest, not to stoke the flames of some media-fired image. "When I started, my family was against it. Surfing was linked to drugs and it was a big decision for me to keep going. But I knew I was meant to surf. I felt it."
In his seminal text on mythology and heroes, Joseph Campbell (The Hero With A Thousand Faces) suggests every hero departs on his travels having heard a "Call to Adventure." Is this what Burle is relating?
Campbell explains that every hero has to cross a "Threshold of Adventure." This is the deliberate decision to press on with a particular quest in the face of warnings not to do so. Often, the hero meets a helper who facilitates the process. Burle goes on: "I had to overcome a lot of emotions and obstacles. My father, who thought very logically, was against it. My mother gave me the inspiration. She is a lot more impulsive, making decisions based on how she feels." We have strayed in to dangerous territory here for this conjures up Freud's Oedipus complex. I choose to see Burle's mother as the helper identified by Campbell. I do not have it in me to ask Burle whether he has ever fantasised about marrying his mother.
I ask Burle if he fears dying when he paddles out in to the line-up. "I am not afraid to die but I do not want to suffer. When I have a bad wipe-out I know that I am in God's hands."
This seems consistent with what Campbell has to say: "Needless to say, the hero would be no hero if death held for him any terror; the first condition is reconciliation with the grave."
But why does he do it? Burle has an 8 year old daughter. What makes him continue to put himself in harm's way? "My main dream when I started was not to become a surfer. It was quality of life. As I kept pushing my limits I gained respect. I found I was better able to interact with society. Now, I want to return to people what surfing has given to me."
Burle, unwittingly perhaps, has summarized the journey that Campbell describes the hero as having to undergo. Once he heeds the call to adventure and departs, the hero is tested and undergoes a process of self-revelation. If he wins through, often, the hero returns, wiser and keen to impart the knowledge he has won for the benefit of all.
I find myself willing to set my cynicism to one side. For all the obvious concerns I have ( not least as a new father) about the merits of risking one's life when there is an 8 year daughter to raise, I do find Burle's chosen path heroic. He is genuine and humble during the course of our interview, acknowledging the risks and that people will disagree with the life he has chosen to lead. Yet he presses ahead. Deliberately, and having calculated that it is the best way he can improve both his and his family's lot, he paddles in to the dragon's lair. He trusts that his hard-earned experience and God's grace will see him through.
I only hope that remains the case.
posted by Andy at 11:35 AM
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