Time has a way of reducing history down to its simplest forms. Looking backward, historical characters are cast in the role of hero or villain, sinner or saint. National heroes attain mythic proportions soon after they pass into the ages. Their foibles and warts are overlooked in favor of their heroic deeds. Likewise, ordinary scalawags become the basis for horrific legends and tall tales. There is little middle ground in history. The neutral historical figure is relegated to second-tier status while the evil and the good enjoy center stage.
But such reductions to either the “good” or “bad” side of the balance sheet are inherently unfair and inaccurate. No person, save for perhaps a Stalin or a Mother Theresa, is exclusively a monster or a saint. Everyone has the power to do evil or good, and most practice both to some extent. But ultimately, in the black and white world of history, the notable citizen is assigned immortality in either the pantheon of heroes or the dungeon of the villains.
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