Essay about Compulsive Heroes

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Compulsive Heroes “Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may preform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them” (Bonaparte). Many of those who strive to better themselves often turn towards the unthinkable approach to achieve what they desire. For one to be considered a hero, one must go down the more difficult path, following the statutes and ethics that are imposed on all. Many find inspiration in the accomplishments of those renowned for their great acts and idolize the legend of the individual. This is true of the modern-day celebrity, Lance Armstrong; whose fraudulent victories once gave inspiration to many, is now shunned due to his hubris regarding the doping scandal. Likewise, the celebrated Roman leader, Julius Caesar, became so intoxicated with his pursuit of equity that he himself became the source of corruption, which in the end, led to his assassination. Once heroes and adorned by many, both Lance Armstrong’s and Julius Caesar’s hubris led to the public contempt. Julius Caesar’s desire for greatness was what ultimately brought him down. Although his rise to power had a noble purpose, which was to establish fairness for all classes, his means of coercing himself into authority involved numerous acts of self-indulgence. One can observe his vanity, which is one of his fatal flaws during the conversation with The conspirators charge Caesar with ambition, and his behavior substantiates this judgment: he does vie for absolute power over Rome, reveling in the homage he receives from others and in his conception of himself as a figure who will live on forever in men’s minds. However, his faith in his own permanence in the sense of both his loyalty to principles and his fixture as a public institution eventually proves his undoing. Lance Armstrong was truly a legend; he conquered the Tour de France seven consecutive times, won a bout with cancer during his cycling career, and established a campaign for cancer research and awareness. However, these great feats were aided with the use of illegal performance enhancing drugs and his Tour de France
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