No wonder Americans are tempted by the monomyth! Not only have we been unconsciously indoctrinated by it for centuries, the narrative also conveniently relieves us of individual responsibility for community success. But unlike most myths, which support the foundational philosophies of their host communities, the American Monomyth undermines our nation’s founding ideology, democracy. It subconsciously encourages the public to forgo the messy, laborious, and painstaking process of cooperation and compromise by instead waiting for a superhero—and then granting that figure unlimited and unchecked
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