Several elements combined to make the California fires a mega story. And most prominent among the media attention were stories of firefighters that, for the most part, treated “hero” and “firefighter” as synonymous. In fact, little else was said about those men and women on the fireline. The firefighter apotheosized, hallowed and revered, is the dominant image of firefighters we have nowadays. And with this image comes a set of beliefs about what makes firefighters tick, what makes them deploy themselves on the seam between life and death. Firefighting requires courage and selflessness enough, but in referring to firefighters always and only as heroes, do we not look straight through them?
about the author
Matthew Desmond is a Ph.D. student in the sociology department at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He is the author of On the Fireline: Living and Dying with Wildland Firefighters.
Culture Review
The Lie of Heroism
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Contexts is a quarterly magazine that makes sociology interesting and relevant to anyone interested in how society operates.
It is a publication of the American Sociological Association, edited by Jodi O’Brien (Seattle University) and Arlene Stein (Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey).
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