Heroes in our Time

I went to see Thor 2: The Dark World over the weekend and it prompted me to write about the significance of comic book heroes.Not everyone buys into the craze, but it's hard to find someone who isn't at least aware of the existence of Superman, Batman, Wolverine, and Spider-Man. For a character like Thor, the mythological roots are transparent, but most if not all the heroes relate back to the monomyth outlined by Joseph Campbell.

Superman is a particularly interesting study. Like many heroes of myth, superman is born under special circumstances. He is born into the midst of his home world's destruction and must be sent away to be raised by foster parents. An interesting note is that Superman's family name is El, which is a Semitic word meaning god or deity. We don't see much of his life after his being discovered by Jonathan and Martha Kent, but when he becomes relevant again as a character he is the ultimate paragon. This gives him more in common with Jesus than other mythological characters, where Greek heroes are typically morally ambiguous like Batman or Wolverine. In some story arcs, this parallel is taken to the an even further. All-Star Superman is an alternate ending to his character in which he sacrifices himself to save humanity and leaves his knowledge with those closest to him so they can carry on his good will.

 The comic book heroes serve an interesting role in our society. They are a way of taking the hero archetypes and adapting them to our current culture. Heracles still amazes us and influences us, but he is far removed from a person that could exist in our time. The heroes of comic books live in our time and deal with the same monsters we do, albeit exaggerated. The villains represent our fears of science, robots, radiation, space, and the supernatural.

The diversity of accounts is also shared between modern and classic heroes. As there is no one accepted ending to many of the myths, there's not only one incarnation of our favorite comic book heroes. There are numerous artists and writers who have their own spin on the lives of Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, Spider-Man, ect. There are always similar element, so that the hero can be recognized, but their actions and the outcomes of their lives can be wildly different. Another similarity is one of cultural consumption. Despite the large effect that comic heroes have on our society, few people have actually read the books from which they come, but the people who do are often fanatical.