The Chilean Miner Rescue: Protecting a Heroism Narrative



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— Scott Allison and George Goethals

13 thoughts on “The Chilean Miner Rescue: Protecting a Heroism Narrative

  1. I stopped subscribing to the Richmond Times because there was too much emphasis on murders and negative issues. I enjoy going to your blog and reading about positive people. I, for one, am very hungry for herores and the type of material you are presenting. Thanks.

  2. I’m sure it was not exactly an episode of Gilligan’s Island down there. This was a group of people facing almost certain doom, and a protracted one at that. Depression, anger, conflict are inevitable. Nor is it surprising that the media filtered out the bad and focused on the good– the reverse of their usual custom. Stories like this become folk tales over time– and that time can be nearly instantaneous in our high-tech world– and folk tales crystallize the essence of the story.

    And the essence of the story here is incredible heroism and survival against all odds. Take that, Universe. 8)

  3. I can imagine how some people would still try to bring negativity to such a positive story. The truth of the matter is, these men were trapped below the ground and they had to do all they could to survive. While we may never know exactly what happened, we do know that these men were true heroes and defied all odds and came out on top and that is what we should focus on 🙂

  4. The story of the Chilean miners touches on the idea that when faced with a bad situation people crave heroes and even find ways to create them. It seems like the public is desperate to make a success story out of the miners and is willing to ignore shady details in order to do so. Either way, some elements of heroism had to have existed for all the men to have survived such a long and arduous ordeal.

  5. Luis Urzua was able to pull together a group of people who faced almost certain death. The ability to lead these people and make them believe in himself and each other make Urzua’s accomplishments very impressive. The story of the miners rescue will live on as a legend for a long time.

  6. I think that this story is more an unearthing of a villain than a hero tale. Large mining firms are constantly at fault for taking shortcuts and putting their desperate employees at risk. There have been fatal mining collapses in New Zealand, China, The U.S. and many other places this year alone. I think that this story could have just as easily ended in tragedy and for the one feel-good story this year about 33 miners who survive, there are probably a hundred more miners who died.

  7. I find it interesting that our society was so quick to begin calling these miners heroes before we even had the facts about what actually happened in the mines. In fact, people assumed that if people were able to survive down there for so long, than there must have been a hero. They may all be heroes for their endurance, but onlookers still actively searched to make them seem more heroic than they may have been because everybody likes a good hero story.

  8. I’m actually glad that there is a blog profile of the miners. I didn’t really know the background or other information about this other than that the miners were rescued after some odd days. There really wasn’t any time for listening/watching the news. So it was very interesting to know if not the full but some details about the story and what they suffered through before their rescue.

  9. Everything and everyone involved with this heroic story was so completely inspirational. The entire world was behind Chile and its 33 men trapped underground and would not give up hope until they saw the light of day.

  10. In my opinion, Urzua’s actions are a great example of what a true leader and hero does when adversity is at its worst. People do not understand all the facts of what actually went on down there, which could conflict with what Urzua actually did. On the other hand, the miners who were rescued remembered to mention that Urzua basically took leadership when they were stuck under ground. He saved people’s lives because he spoke up and suggested that everyone watch how much they eat and drink. He did what was best for all of them. He didn’t try to just look out for himself.

  11. while the story of the Chilean miners is a heroic tale of human endurance and cooperation, it is also a story of villainy. this villainy does not lie with any of the miners, but with the corporations who create such hazardous conditions that a misfortune such as this is able to happen. hopefully future news will discuss a leader who seeks to change the practices of the mining companies

  12. The story of the Chilean miners is one that is sad, yet inspiring. It is inspiring that a group of people trapped in such a small space managed to get along and work there way through a more than tough situation to becoming free. I also agree with Mac that it is villainous how companies and cooperations create such terrible conditions for these workers to mine in. We have seen mining collapse after mining collapse with no change. Hopefully this one will open the eyes and startle the mining companies into making safer changes.

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