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Anime and Manga
"The people, the heroes, even the villains, I stand to set fire in their hearts."
— All Might, My Hero Academia
"If the heroes run and hide, who will stay and fight?"
— Saitama, One-Punch Man
Kamina: Listen up, Simon. Don't believe in yourself.
Simon: Huh?
Kamina: Believe in me! Believe in the Kamina that believes in you!
Simon: Huh?
Kamina: Believe in me! Believe in the Kamina that believes in you!
— Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann, when Simon is too scared to move
"Simon...just believe in yourself. Not in the Kamina that you believe in, not in the Simon that I believe in...believe in the you that believes in you."
— Kamina, Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
Comic Books
"Doesn't matter
what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — No, you move."
what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world — No, you move."— Captain America (quoting Mark Twain)
Do good to others and every man can be a superman.
— Superman (Clark Kent)
"You're much stronger than you think you are. Trust me."
— All-Star Superman #10
"See, that's the problem here. It's that you can't see things from my perspective. Because it's predicated on the premise that super heroes make mistakes. And you're Captain America. You don't make mistakes."
"There's a heartbeat. A strong one. I can almost hear his muscles tighten, coiled with incredible strength and control. He's pure power and doesn't even know it. The best of us."
"It's hard to explain what it's like being around the guy. He just…makes you want to do better. Even when you think you're doing your best. It's like he has a super-power, but it's just…him."
— Miles Morales on Captain America, Miles Morales: Spider-Man (2018) #3
Films — Live Action
"I know I'm asking a lot. The price of freedom is high, it always has been - and it's a price I'm willing to pay. And if I'm the only one, then so be it. But I'm willing to bet I'm not."
— Captain America, Captain America: The Winter Soldier
"You will give the people an ideal to strive towards. They'll race behind you. They will stumble. They will fall. But in time, they will join you in the sun. In time, you will help them accomplish wonders."
— Jor-El, Man of Steel
"The people of Earth are different from us, it's true. But ultimately, I believe that's a good thing. They won't necessarily make the same mistakes we did. Not if you guide them, Kal. Not if you give them hope. That's what this symbol means. The symbol of the House of El mean 'hope'. Embodied within that hope is the fundamental belief in the potential of every person to be a force for good. That's what you can bring them."
— Jor-El, Man of Steel
"He knows a hero when he sees one. Too few characters out there, flying around like that, saving old girls like me. And Lord knows, kids like Henry need a hero. Courageous, self-sacrificing people. Setting examples for all of us. Everybody loves a hero. People line up for them, cheer them, scream their names. And years later, they'll tell how they stood in the rain for hours just to get a glimpse of the one who taught them to hold on a second longer. I believe there's a hero in all of us, that keeps us honest, gives us strength, makes us noble, and finally allows us to die with pride, even though sometimes we have to be steady, and give up the thing we want the most. Even our dreams."
— Aunt May, Spider-Man 2
Lloyd: So, how does it feel to be married to a living saint?
Joanne Rogers: I’m not fond of that term. If you think of him as a saint, his way of life is unattainable. You know, he works at it all the time. It’s a practice. He’s not a perfect person. He has a temper. He chooses how to respond to that anger.
Lloyd: That must take a lot of effort...
Joanne Rogers: No. He does things every day that help to ground him. He reads scripture. He swims laps. Prays for people by name. Writes letters —Hundreds of them. He’s been doing that since before I met him.
Joanne Rogers: I’m not fond of that term. If you think of him as a saint, his way of life is unattainable. You know, he works at it all the time. It’s a practice. He’s not a perfect person. He has a temper. He chooses how to respond to that anger.
Lloyd: That must take a lot of effort...
Joanne Rogers: No. He does things every day that help to ground him. He reads scripture. He swims laps. Prays for people by name. Writes letters —Hundreds of them. He’s been doing that since before I met him.
Literature
Doc was still wearing the shirt. It peeked out from the open lab coat - a light blue t-shirt with a yellow lighting bolt pointing down and to the left. The symbol of the Resistance against McCarthy, in '54. It still meant something, even now. A lot of people flew it from office buildings instead of the old flag, although the stars and stripes still got wheeled out on state occasions.
John had been right. Doc's job wasn't exploring lost continents or fighting insane scientists. It was just standing up and doing the right thing, and being seen doing it. Because there were a lot of folks who didn't, and the more of those there were, the more the average Joe might start thinking that he didn't have a chance, that the only way to play the game and win was to play it with no rules at all, golden or otherwise. Screw the little guy, stamp him down. Hate the different ones. Why not? They're Them and you're Us and spitting on them might make you more Us, might win you some power. Tell any lie that'll serve your purpose, print them and distribute them to the people while swearing you only speak truth. Believe what you're told without question, or shrug, because what can you do? What can anybody do? The bastards run the world, we just have to live in it. What can you do? [...] Doc knew where that road ended. He had seen it with his own eyes.
So he wore his beliefs on his chest, and he always tried to do the right thing, and when he needed to stand up, he stood up. And because he was who he was, everybody saw it. And maybe somebody took a look at him and realized they could question what they heard, or they could step in when they saw something bad happening, or they could just try and treat people just a little better. Maybe just one person looked at him that day and thought: I should start trying.
That was Doc Thunder's job.
— Gods of Manhattan on America's Greatest Hero, Doc Thunder
"So many looked up to you, Kaladin. Your squad of soldiers. The enemies you fought. The other slaves. Even some lighteyes."
— Sylphrena, The Way of Kings (2010) (first book of The Stormlight Archive)
"Believe in truth. Believe in justice. Believe in the hope for their greatness. And if, through your actions they yearn to be great, too, then you will have done far more for them by making all their burdens your own. Do not fear to help them where they need help, but do not impose yourself on them. Gods can become devils far too quickly. Reliance on your own powers will destroy them. Belief in your values will give them strength."
Lara A.I., Superman Returns novelization
Live Action TV
"We live as though the world were as it should be, to show it what it can be."
— Angel
Emma: Screw 'em.
Ashley: What?
Emma: Screw. Them. How old are you?
Ashley: Nineteen
Emma: I was eighteen.
Ashley: When you had a kid?
Emma: Yeah. I know what its like. Everybody loves to tell what you can and can't do. Especially with a kid. But ultimately, whatever you are considering on doing, or giving up, the choice is yours.
Ashley: It's not exactly what you might think it is.
Emma: Never is. People are gonna tell you who you are your whole life. You just gotta punch back and say "no, this is who I am." Want people look at you differently, make them. You wanna change things? You have to go out there and change them yourself. Because there are no fairy godmothers in this world.
Ashley: What?
Emma: Screw. Them. How old are you?
Ashley: Nineteen
Emma: I was eighteen.
Ashley: When you had a kid?
Emma: Yeah. I know what its like. Everybody loves to tell what you can and can't do. Especially with a kid. But ultimately, whatever you are considering on doing, or giving up, the choice is yours.
Ashley: It's not exactly what you might think it is.
Emma: Never is. People are gonna tell you who you are your whole life. You just gotta punch back and say "no, this is who I am." Want people look at you differently, make them. You wanna change things? You have to go out there and change them yourself. Because there are no fairy godmothers in this world.
— Emma Swan to Ashley "Cinderella" Boyd, Once Upon a Time
Tabletop Games
Do not show anger. They will see it as impotence and despair. Give them something to follow, because to them you are like gods.
— The Codex Astartes, Warhammer 40,000
Video Games
Any warrior may perform a mighty deed.
A true hero inspires them everywhere they go.
A true hero inspires them everywhere they go.
— Flavour Text of the Inspire magic, Dawn of the Dragons
"As for me... I came back to ensure that there would be a future. To teach the world that it no longer needed Guardians. The hope for future generations has always resided in mortal hands. And now that my task is done, I will take my place... amongst the legends of the past."
— Medivh, the Last Guardian, Warcraft III ending cinematic
Web Original
Literally everyone in [Captain America: Civil War] is of the opinion that "Of course he is doing this, he is Captain Goddamned America!" The only discrepancy is whether or not they are siding with him. The one on his side is following him because "He is Captain Goddamned America!", while those who are opposing him are like "There is no use debating this with him because he is Captain Goddamned America! and he is certain he is doing the right thing." Now it is a matter of furious debate if he is in the right, but the matter of fact is that everyone involved in that whole fiasco is involved because of Cap; either because they are on his side or they know the only way to stop him is by brute force. (Gee, it is almost as if there is a reason for why this film is billed as a Captain America film rather than a Avengers film.) [...] Tony has to appeal to peoples Bigger Picture Point of Logic, but Cap just have to flash his stoic handsomness in their direction and they are all gravitating to his side as if it is just a thing to do.
Western Animation
Though we gather here today bound together in sorrow and loss, we share a precious gift. We are all of us privileged to live a life that has been touched by Superman. The Man of Steel possessed many extraordinary gifts, and he shared them with us freely. [...] Let us all strive to accept his gift and pass it along—as an ongoing tribute to Kal-El of Krypton, the immigrant from the stars who taught us all how to be heroes.
"My husband Peter Parker was an ordinary person. He always said that it could be anyone behind the mask. He was just a kid who happened to get bit...He didn't ask for his powers. But he chose to be Spider-Man...My favorite thing about Peter is that he made us each feel powerful. We all have powers of one kind or the other and in our own way we are all Spider-Man, and we are all counting on you."
— Mary Jane Watson-Parker, Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
