Integration

“I already know what to call him. I call him ‘son’.” (Hellboy 2004)

I chose to watch the movie Hellboy for one of the movies by a Latin American author. I’m not sure what I think about the movie. I enjoyed the effects, as well as the idea. But I wasn’t too fond of the actors. One thing I did really like though is the theme of accepting who you are. Both Hellboy and “Sparky” had to become comfortable with themselves, and accept that they would never be able to blend into regular society.

During Hellboy’s journey, he must ask himself whether he is part of our world, or whether he will become the creature he initially was. I loved his father’s attitude toward Hellboy. Not as an adopted creature, but as his son, no different from his own self. This is important in every similar occasion, not just with crazy fantastical creatures, but with normal people who may be a little different than us. Perhaps because of race, or because of mental capacity, or simply because they are from a different place. Hellboy is a great lesson for both learning who you are and accepting other people as they are.

What causes us to be so unaccepting of people who are different from us? Is it just part of our nature? And if so, WHY? There have been so many instances where someone or a group of people are cast out of the majority’s group just because they don’t look the same or believe the same: Mormons, African-Americans, and in a fictional example—mutants (X-men).

How can we get rid of this tendency to stay in our own little groups? Take in every outsider, welcome them, and treat them as your own. Just like Hellboy’s father did, make them part of your family, and they will become so in their own mind.