--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: One must have heroes, which is to say…" description: "\"“One must have heroes, which is to say, one must create them. And they become real through our envy, our devotion. It is we who give them their majesty..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/966/james-salter-2584_hero_one-must-have-heroes-which-is-to-say-one_3081641.jpg" --- # One must have heroes, which is to say, one must create… ![“One must have heroes, which is to say, one must create them. And they become real through our envy, our devotion. It is we who give them their majesty, their power, which we ourselves could never possess. And in turn, they give some back.” quote by James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/966/james-salter-2584_hero_one-must-have-heroes-which-is-to-say-one_3081641.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/966/james-salter-2584_hero_one-must-have-heroes-which-is-to-say-one_3081641.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/966/james-salter-2584_hero_one-must-have-heroes-which-is-to-say-one_3081641.jpg) > ““One must have heroes, which is to say, one must create them. And they become real through our envy, our devotion. It is we who give them their majesty, their power, which we ourselves could never possess. And in turn, they give some back.”” [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Heroes are constructed through collective admiration, granting them power we lack. **In simple terms:** We create heroes, they empower us. Key Takeaway Recognize the role of admiration. Themes heroism identity collective belief Mood contemplative thoughtful Type literary philosophical When to use this quote - media consumption - team leadership - political movements Key Concepts psychology of fame social projection Questions to Reflect On - Who do you admire and why? - How does admiration shape your actions? A Different Perspective Heroes can also become oppressive symbols. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Hero](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hero/) [Heroes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/heroes/) [Muses](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/muses/) [Reflections](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reflections/) [Religion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/religion/) ## Related quotes > [When you feel the world is against you or you give up hope, you look at your heroes and say, "They were able to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-leguizamo/when-you-feel-the-world-is-against-you-or-you-give-up-hope-you-look/) [John Leguizamo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-leguizamo/) > [“I'm going out,” I said. I loved the way that sounded. 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Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [“Such power as I possess for working in the political field has derived from my experiments in the spiritual field.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/huston-smith/such-power-as-i-possess-for-working-in-the-political-field-has/) [Huston Smith](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/huston-smith/) > [“Don't let me get into your head. I will twist it and alter it until even you won't recognize yourself. You cannot begin to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/troy-bisson/don-t-let-me-get-into-your-head-i-will-twist-it-and-alter-it-until/) [Troy Bisson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/troy-bisson/) > [“Dreamers have a territorial seed in them that give them the power to possess, to dominate and to influence the world.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/euginia-herlihy/dreamers-have-a-territorial-seed-in-them-that-give-them-the-power-to/) [Euginia Herlihy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/euginia-herlihy/) > [“Power as I possess is not, as many believe, given in exchange for a soul. To hear the ignorant speak, one would think it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-r-lawhead/power-as-i-possess-is-not-as-many-believe-given-in-exchange-for-a/) [Stephen R. Lawhead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-r-lawhead/) ## More by James Salter > [It seems to me that literature is giving way a little bit to the immediacy of other diversions, other forms of entertainment. What will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/it-seems-to-me-that-literature-is-giving-way-a-little-bit-to-the/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [Women fall in love when they get to know you. Men are just the opposite. When they finally know you they're ready to leave](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/women-fall-in-love-when-they-get-to-know-you-men-are-just-the/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [Not necessarily narrow so much as impatient, intense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/not-necessarily-narrow-so-much-as-impatient-intense/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [I write in longhand. I am accustomed to that proximity, that feel of writing. Then I sit down and type.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-write-in-longhand-i-am-accustomed-to-that-proximity-that-feel-of/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [A writer writes a book. People read it. You don't know what they're reading, really. You read a review and think, "That is so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/a-writer-writes-a-book-people-read-it-you-don-t-know-what-they-re/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [“Strauss’s, for instance, which begins in the heavens. 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You have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/sometimes-i-write-with-a-particular-person-in-mind-i-think-it-s-fair/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [Lots of scripts are written and not made, even scripts that people want to make.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/lots-of-scripts-are-written-and-not-made-even-scripts-that-people/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [I'd given up everything to be a writer, and if I didn't then go on to do that - to write - then I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/i-d-given-up-everything-to-be-a-writer-and-if-i-didn-t-then-go-on-to/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [“One should not believe too easily in a life which can easily vanish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/one-should-not-believe-too-easily-in-a-life-which-can-easily-vanish/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [“Life is separated by scars, like the rings in the inside of a tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/life-is-separated-by-scars-like-the-rings-in-the-inside-of-a-tree/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [“Dean is still asleep. His clothes are strewn about. The shutters are closed. He never dreams. He’s like a dead musician, like a spent…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/dean-is-still-asleep-his-clothes-are-strewn-about-the-shutters-are/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [The dreams are the skeleton of all reality.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/the-dreams-are-the-skeleton-of-all-reality/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) > [There came a time when I felt I was not going to be satisfied with life unless I could write.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/there-came-a-time-when-i-felt-i-was-not-going-to-be-satisfied-with/) [James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) [Explore all 156 James Salter quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/) ## More Hero quotes > [I've always been fascinated by the idea that there's no such thing as evil; it's all in your point of view. To one group…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eli-roth/i-ve-always-been-fascinated-by-the-idea-that-there-s-no-such-thing-as/) [Eli Roth](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eli-roth/) > [I am convinced that we will never build a democratic state based on rule of law if we do not at the same time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vaclav-havel/i-am-convinced-that-we-will-never-build-a-democratic-state-based-on/) [Vaclav Havel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vaclav-havel/) > [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/) [Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/) > [When the first Superman movie came out I was frequently asked "What is a hero?" ...My answer was that a hero is someone who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/christopher-reeve/when-the-first-superman-movie-came-out-i-was-frequently-asked-what-is/) [Christopher Reeve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/christopher-reeve/) > ['Melanin Man' was inspired by the words of an Uber driver in L.A. Before I got out of the car he said, 'They're scared…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/masego/melanin-man-was-inspired-by-the-words-of-an-uber-driver-in-l-a-before/) [Masego](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/masego/) > [Once the state has been founded, there can no longer be any heroes. They come on the scene only in uncivilized conditions.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/once-the-state-has-been-founded-there-can-no-longer-be-any-heroes/) [Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/georg-wilhelm-friedrich-hegel/) > [You know, I often thought that the gangster and the artist are the same in the eyes of the masses. They're admired and hero-worshipped…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stanley-kubrick/you-know-i-often-thought-that-the-gangster-and-the-artist-are-the/) [Stanley Kubrick](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stanley-kubrick/) > [“A hero is not know by the number of battles he has won, but rather by the kind of battles he chooses to fight.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tonny-k-brown/a-hero-is-not-know-by-the-number-of-battles-he-has-won-but-rather-by/) [Tonny K. Brown](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tonny-k-brown/) > [The last act in the biography of the hero is that of the death or departure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-campbell/the-last-act-in-the-biography-of-the-hero-is-that-of-the-death-or/) [Joseph Campbell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-campbell/) > [Teachers are heroes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-best/teachers-are-heroes/) [Charles Best](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-best/) > [“Forgotten hero was never the real hero, real hero can not be forgotten.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amit-kalantri/forgotten-hero-was-never-the-real-hero-real-hero-can-not-be-forgotten/) [Amit Kalantri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amit-kalantri/) > ['Sex and The City' was made to correct the myth that if you were single at a certain age, you were a leper. Its…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-patrick-king/sex-and-the-city-was-made-to-correct-the-myth-that-if-you-were-single/) [Michael Patrick King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-patrick-king/) > [I believe in a world where there are no heroes, and I've read and know humanity a lot. 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