A quote reflection from my classic children's literature course

Because I never throw out any of my old assignments...

“If a nation could not provide one hero, it was time it should perish.”

This quote is highly relevant to modern society, especially in the West, where civic virtue has become unfashionable. MacDonald implies here that no human society is permanent and no country has the right to power forever. A nation’s worth is measured by the virtue of its people, and so MacDonald rightly asserts that a nation of self-centered and silly citizens is not worth very much at all. All he requires is that a single man or woman be willing to sacrifice themselves for the good of others, motivated by selfless love. In the end, both the prince and the princess prove themselves capable of this heroic act, saving the royal family from grief and the kingdom from drought. This provides a neat formula to wrap up the conflict of the story but also forces the reader to consider their own contributions to the common good; for if neither we nor our neighbors are willing to give up everything in the name of pure love, the society in which we live is already in a state of decay.