The Fall of A Hero

As we have discussed in class multiple times, a common theme that often shows up in American culture is the one of a rise and fall story of a hero. The American people love this type of story: the rise of a struggling person who has to overcome a challenge, then winning or rising above, and finally the eventual fall. Recently, I have watched this play out in the rise and fall of athlete Oscar Pistorius.

A picture of Pistorius is taken down in Johannesburg after the charges were announced.  

Oscar Pistorius is an Olympic track and field athlete from South Africa and had the lower bottom part of his legs amputated when he was only 11 months old. He was fit with prosthetics and began running in college even though he played multiple sports growing up. After not making the cut for the 2008 Olympics, he focused on training for 2012. He ultimately made the 2012 South African team and ran the final leg of the 4x400 meter relay race. The challenges Pistorius faced were numerous, but he overcame and truly fulfilled the "rise' part of a story and became the hero for the South African team.

However, when you rise, it is inevitable that you will again fall. In February 2013, Pistorius was charged with the murder of his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp. She was shot to death in Pistorius's home. The ongoing charges and court appearances have been all over the United States news which shows how interested the American people are in this type of story. How this whole story will play out will take time. What do you think? Do you think the American people will stay interested or forget about the rise and fall of Oscar Pistorius?