The hero’s journey suggests that external transformation in the world hinges on a singular hero overcoming whatever ails the kingdom. The hero — often literally referred to as “The One” — through their incredible power, courage, and ingenuity, changes the world forever. Based on the blueprint of these powerful stories, many of us strive to be that hero ourselves.
The problem is: our world doesn’t actually work this way.
In mythical worlds, one person — perhaps with a trusted ally or two — can and must slay the dragon and restore the kingdom. In a single decisive act, the world is saved. This is the heroic view of social change.
But in our tangible world, lasting social change at the scale of the polycrisis occurs systemically over a much longer period. It is not the result of a single event but rather of gradually changing beliefs, norms, values, and behaviors en masse. Real change requires millions of everyday people, each contributing their piece of the puzzle, each offering modest contributions that collectively amount to seismic shifts in culture and social systems.
The polycrisis only further exemplifies this point. The challenges facing humanity today are so vast, complex, and interwoven that no single person or action could possibly solve them all. There is no one dragon. There is no one challenge. There is a dizzyingly vast array of challenges, all interwoven with one another. The heroic view of social change simply cannot survive contact with such a reality.
Intellectually, we know this. In our hearts, we so often simply cannot accept that it is beyond our control and responsibility as individuals.
Doing so would leave us terrifyingly at the mercy of a chaotic world. Doing so would leave us terrifyingly bereft of an opportunity to prove that we are worthy, that we are enough, that our lives have meaning, that we deserve to exist.
