Heroes and Villains

3 Credits · Level: Undergraduate

Heroes and villains. These are not just characters that are found in comic books, movies, and video games. Heroes are real people who, through their actions, inspire us and become positive role models for us. Villains are real people who, through their actions, are viewed harshly, and become negative role models for us. We also need to learn how to work with villains in the workplace. This course will examine the constructs, heroes, and villains as central to understanding character and leadership across different organizational and global contexts. The roots of the individual, social, and institutional ideals and values of different global cultures have been exemplified in the images of their heroes and villains—and those images shape our judgments of “good” and “bad” leaders. We will examine why some business leaders are viewed in heroic terms (e.g., Steve Jobs, Martha Stewart) while others are vilified (e.g., Elon Musk) even though they may be very successful and have the same leadership style. Additionally, we will also focus on the Hero’s Journey, a powerful storytelling concept introduced by the mythologist, Joseph Campbell. The Hero’s Journey will be a central organizing framework for this course, the primary “lens” to understand and analyze the circumstances and choices that lead people down the path of the hero or the villain, while recognizing there is often a narrow, sometimes blurred, line separating the two paths.