When Sellinger tells Halloran he sees him as a hero, he provides an example: Halloran, the hero, would be the one ice-skating on a frozen lake when a child falls in, and thus the one to pull him out, saving him from drowning. Sellinger would be the one to give the child his coat to warm him up. Halloran would receive admiration and appreciation for saving a child’s life, and Sellinger would have nothing but a wet coat. So it seems that Sellinger doesn’t necessarily see Halloran as a hero because he is brave, or strong, or in some way better than Sellinger himself – so what he means by hero may just be that Halloran is always there at the right time and always ready, or at least that is what his example suggests, since pulling a child out of freezing water doesn’t present a whole lot of danger for him.
In that case, Halloran does fit Sellinger’s idea of a here; he is quick to react, and by joining the airforce has put himself in the position to be in the right place at the right tie to be hero, which Sellinger hasn’t since he is in intelligence, and not a field agent. Sellinger’s idea of a hero is obviously not one who saves lives through strategy and intelligence; it is the one in the center of the action. Halloran is there. Of course throughout the movie, he becomes more reluctant to be there, made especially obvious when he tells Sellinger that he has the right to risk his life and Halloran has the right not to.
They both help each other become more of a hero: Sellinger convinces Halloran to stay in France to help him on his mission. Halloran provides Sellinger with the confidence necessary to become the man of action he wanted to be.
Raven Richard
ReplyDeleteLike you, I also used the example of Sellinger comparing the two men to being the one that pulls the child out of the ice and the one that can only provide a coat. I thought it was interesting how you portrayed this as meaning that a hero could possibly be someone that is in the right place at the right time and who is always ready to help. I took it as Sellinger feeling as though Halloran was a better person than him because he portrayed more masculine characteristics that are most associated with male heroes during this time. This may have also been why Sellinger wanted to be a hero like Halloran so his wife could see him as a hero. It is also interesting that you point out how Sellinger’s idea of a hero is one that is in the center of the action. I can actually agree with this because throughout the movie Halloran was always present in the action. This is first seen at the first bombing that took place on the street. He somehow ends up finding the nurse. This is a turning event because the wife now sees a quality in Halloran that she wishes her husband had. Halloran’s heroic features gave her a sense of security.
Samantha Murray
ReplyDeleteI wonder if in the example you gave publicity is part of what Sellinger considers to be a hero. If you look further into the scene Sellinger point out that all he is left with is a wet coat meanwhile Halloran would get to be in the papers. Beyond Halloran acting faster, in this example giving the boy a coat could easily save his life just as much as pulling him out because of the very real threat of hypothermia. It is beyond simply saving a life to Sellinger and I believe it is even more than acting quickly. Being a hero has to in some way gain recognition and be regarded as a hero. In Sellinger’s mind there appears to be no silent heroes only widely regarded ones. That would lead into why he desired to have Halloran tell Margret that he dies a hero. He still had the desire to gain any publicity for his actions otherwise his death would have been for noting. It appears that he would have regarded his entire trip unsuccessful if he had not been able to at least have gotten some recognition from Margret about his heroic deeds. You were definitely correct about the idea that he has changed his view to regard himself as a hero.