James McBride Quotes

Heroism in a bad cause.

I feel like life is much greater than a hero or a villain: there's good people that sometimes make mistakes.

For a lot of people, Superman is and has always been America's hero. He stands for what we believe is the best within us: limitless strength tempered by compassion, that can bear adversity and emerge stronger on the other side. He stands for what we all feel we would like to be able to stand for, when standing is hardest.

Mandela's heroism is the heroism of a man who suffered so badly for what he thought of as freedom. And yet when he had the upper hand he has this incredible self-control and these incredible leadership qualities.

Virtues, like viruses, have their seasons of contagion. When catastrophe strikes, generosity spikes like a fever. Courage spreads in the face of tyranny.

Heroes always make the right decision; I find that seldom happens in my life.

Individual courage is the only interesting thing in life.

Heroes represent the best of ourselves, respecting that we are human beings. A hero can be anyone from Gandhi to your classroom teacher, anyone who can show courage when faced with a problem. A hero is someone who is willing to help others in his or her best capacity.

I am proud to have lied. Lying under torture is not easy. In the face of torture, a person with dignity lies. Enduring torture is very difficult ... The pain is unbearable; you can not imagine how. I am proud to have lied, because I saved my comrades from the same torture and from death.

I'd like to think Fleabag's honesty makes her heroic in spite of her actions.

A lot of action heroes, we're told they are heroic primarily because they commit violence upon the bad guy. It can be cathartic; it can be thrilling. But at some point, I think you want more from your heroes than just the ability and willingness to pummel someone.

To do an evil action is base; to do a good action without incurring danger is common enough; but it is the part of a good man to do great and noble deeds, though he risks every thing.

I feel that Sarkar is a realistic superman in his life.

Dad had a huge influence on me. I really look up to him for his brave acts. He was an outspoken man. For him, if it was the right thing, he would stand up for the smallest guy around him.

I got taught a lot of great lessons by superhero comics as a kid about virtue and self-sacrifice and responsibility. And those were an important part of imprinting my DNA with ethical and moral values.

Valor' is a word we don't commonly hear. People can show courage and bravery confronting many different challenges in life. But 'valor' connotes willingly putting oneself in mortal danger to protect others.

She was absolutely my hero. She would do without if she could help somebody else. My mom showed the courage of the lion to keep her kids alive, and the sacrifices she made were incredible. I don't know if I would have been man enough to do what she did.

There are some things worthy of risking your life for.

I can find some part of me that relates to even the most evil characters. At least in my imagination.

Beat up 10 guys, win the girl, and yet you are supposed to be a normal human being. I don't mind doing that as a superhero but not as a real person!

It's like there's something very maternal about Wonder Woman: when push comes to shove, if nobody else wants to do it, Wonder Woman would step up and take care of business. But she doesn't want to do it, and she would never take any delight in it. That's Wonder Woman to me.

I believe that you have to live a life that involves both courage and compassion.

Heroism is no extempore work of transient impulse--a rocket rushing fretfully up to disturb the darkness by which, after a moment's insulting radiance, it is ruthlessly swallowed up,--but a steady fire, which darts forth tongues of flame. It is no sparkling epigram of action, but a luminous epic of character.

What we need now are heroes and heroines, about a million of them, one brave deed is worth a thousand books. Sentiment without action is the ruin of the soul.

From an over-arching point-of-view, in war there is heroism on both sides. Obviously, the victor gets the spoils, the victor gets to write history, but there's heroism and compassion on both sides, and to me that's very important.