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           Superhero films have a focus on values. All heroes have a set of values. They are usually honesty, integrity, reliability, and respect. They stand up for the innocent, battle evil, and teach us these values. However these heroes do not always possess these values from birth. They are usually taught from family members or friends, thus I come to the conclusion that superhero films place an emphasis on family and friendship values. Superman learned his values from his Earth parents. They raised him, taught him what was right and wrong. The Avengers had to learn to trust their partners. This is an example of culture. Our culture is passed down from one generation to another. Parent teaches child. Child also learns from others, our culture shapes our actions.

            These actions/values we have learned have taught us how to participate in life. Parents teach us how to shop, how to find bargains, and how to save money. We use our values to interact with each other and how to treat each other. Superheroes have the same values, and it is clearly depicted in their films, treat everyone the way you want to be treated. This is the golden rule that we have learned since kindergarten.

            After the past analysis I have learned that these films are not only entertaining us, they are teaching us morals and values, and with any research I do into a subject, I gain more respect for that subject.

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Superhero Formulas

                One flaw with superhero movies is that they seem to follow the same pattern or formula. Their conventions are the same, and the only things that differ are the inventions, e.g. powers, criminal acts, locations.  A formula, as described by Ray Browne “is like a cooking recipe, which outlines the ingredients to be used in the cooking” (Schaffer, 2005) Just like a cooking recipe a formula outlines the plots of a movie or book. Conventions are those things that do no change in a story. In superhero movies the conventions are that there is always a hero, who has or gains powers, he or she has to face evil, and save the life of a group of people. The things that change (inventions) are the crimes or acts the evil person (villain) does.

                To illustrate this let us look at several different hero movies from the past couple of years, Thor, Captain America, and Iron Man. In the film Thor, the evil trickster known as Loki takes causes a war between the Frost Giants and the Asguardians. Loki overthrows the king Odin and causes Thor’s banishment to earth. Thor must find his way back to Asgard, defeat Loki, and save the planet from war. The formula goes as follows, Hero has powers, fights evil, and saves world. The film Thor follows this plot/formula precisely.

                Let us apply that same formula to Captain America. In this film Captain America is a small weak man who undergoes a scientific procedure known as Super Soldier project. From this experiment he gains super strength and agility. This film takes place during WWII and a power known as Hydra seeks to take control of the world. Captain America and his allies must battle Hydra to save the world. Captain America follows the same formula as Thor.

                Finally we take a look at Iron man 2. In this film Tony Stark has previously developed a super suit made up of ultra-high-tech material. This suit enables him to fly, take damage, and use advance weaponry. Whiplash the villain in the story tries to use advance robotics to take over the planet. Iron man must use his powers to stop him. As with the other two films, Iron Man 2 follows the same formula.

                This formula can be applied to almost all of the superhero films, including Batman, Superman, Green Lantern, X-men, and so on. Although these films follow the same formula, they manage to be huge successes. This furthers me to believe if there is nothing wrong with the formula, do not try to change it. These stories were created a long time ago, and should not be changed because some director does not want to be accused of following the same old pattern. If it is not broke do not try to fix it.

References

Browne, R. (2005). Profiles of Popular Culture. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press.

Written Analysis 1-4-4

Introduction

            A hero has many qualities, and those qualities are highly debated. Every single person has his or her own views regarding heroes. As editor Ray B. Browne noted in “Profile of Popular culture”, “Heroes are created by and used to fill the needs of individuals and society”. (Browne, 2005) It is no wonder that everyone has a different idea of what a hero is, because everyone has different needs. Matching heroes with popular culture is a different aspect. You have to look at who designed the hero, if fictional, and who recognizes the hero, whether they are fictional or real. For an example, take Eli Manning, quarterback of the 2012 Superbowl Champions, the New York Giants. Millions of fans love him, millions of young aspiring athletes look up to him as their hero, however many Green Bay Packer fans might not think of him as a hero, rather a good athlete who happened to beat them.  Is Eli a hero? To some yes, to some no, but to popular culture, yes. Eli has lifted the spirits of the state of New York’s citizens; he has created aspirations in the minds of young athletes across the world. He is a popular culture hero.

Superman

            However, this article is not about Eli Manning, it is about Superman. He was created by Jerry Siegel and Joe Schuster, and made his first appearance in 1938. (DC Comics, 2012) He was created to depict the greatest superhero of all time. In order to understand how he has risen to be one of the biggest fictional heroes of all time, you must understand our pop culture. Popular culture usually relates to current trends, who is famous now, who is “in”. Because of this our culture throws heroes to the grinder and forever forgets them. Superman is an exception to this. He may not have to years of Hercules, but then again when is the last time Hercules has been depicted on the big screen. Superman was created almost seventy five years ago, and he is still going strong.

            As mentioned he is different from mythical heroes, however he does share some of their characteristics. He is super strong, he has no equal on earth, and he has one weakness. As stated though he is different, he is not yet a mythical hero but a popular culture hero. Mythical heroes stand above civilization, Superman does not, and he always considers himself no different than anyone else, and he subjects himself to the same laws that apply to everyone else.

            Movies, video games, magazines, toys, clothing, television shows, have all be sold featuring Superman. He is a pop culture icon and hero. Superman is also an individual’s hero, in the heart of Jerry Siegel, co-creator of Superman. Jerry’s father died from a heart attack after his store was robbed. Many conspirators believe that his father was actually shot, and this was covered up. In Superman’s first appearance he is depicted deflecting bullets of his chest. (DC Comics, 2012) Thus Superman was created out of an individual’s need for a hero.

Insights

            I continue to learn more about heroes, popular culture, icons, and celebrities. I learn how all of these interact with each other, and why they here. As each week goes by I grow a deeper respect for superheroes. They have transcended past being solely for my entertainment, and have become my reason for knowledge.

Spiderman In Love

Journal Analysis

            As the title of the journal notes, “Spider-Man in Love: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation” is exactly what the title describes; a psychoanalytical interpretation of the 2002 film “Spiderman” directed by Sam Raimi.  The author Richard L. Kaplan divulges into deep psychoanalytic theories regarding the film. He explores the role of hypermasculinity, the “father” complex, and the Oedipal Complex. He brilliantly dissects the movie and correlates them to hypermasculinity, the “father” complex, and the Oedipal Complex. He exposes genre patterns, and gender roles in the film. This brief analysis of Richard L. Kaplan’s “Spider-Man in Love: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation” will summarize his findings; show my viewpoints on his findings, and the relevance I find in them.

Being the naïve reader that I am, I searched for an article that would have some meaning and interest to my taste. I have always had a love for anything superhero related. So when scrolling through the “Journal for Popular Culture”, I came across the word Spiderman. I immediately downloaded the article; emailed it to my instructor, without ever glancing at the entire title or reading the article itself, an action I should have taken. After reading the article, much to my surprise, I was completely baffled; this article was not what I expected. 

As I noted before I was baffled, not upset. Upon reading the introduction I find myself intrigued, as he notes that “Spiderman” is a love story in disguise. He goes on to tell how the classic formula: boy meets girl, then loses her, saves the world, wins the public’s acclaim, and captures his love, is broken, and instead ends in tears with love stimulated but unrequited. (Kaplan, 2011). I am now seduced into his article. I question myself, is “Spiderman” not an action film? Was I tricked into watching a love story? And after contemplating on it, I was. It was after the introduction that I found out what I had gotten into: psychology!

Oh, the horrendous memories of taking Introduction to Psychology from sophomore year. (Just a note, I am an accountant) I had to remember what Freud’s five stages of psychosexual development were. I had to “wiki” several complexes, and use the dictionary for some of the vocabulary used. Before I go into any summarizations, I need to describe some terms. The Oedipal complex is a complex of males; desire to possess the mother sexually and to exclude the father; said to be a source of personality disorders if unresolved. (Farlex, Inc, 2012) Hypermasculinity is a psychological term for the exaggeration of male stereotypical behavior, such as an emphasis on strength, aggression, body hair, odor, and virility. (Farlex, Inc, 2012) The “father complex” is a term I; myself use to describe any psychological problems caused from having an inadequate, or absent father. Now that you have an understanding of these terms, I can start my summary.

The Summary

            Kaplan’s article describes the hypermasculinty of the villains, Mary Jane’s boyfriends, and her father.  He goes on to talk about how these villains and other men have been neglected of the softening, socializing effect of women and or family. This serves as the threatening image of the male within the pervasive American beliefs about masculinity. This has become known in popular culture throughout history, and is prevalent in melodrama. Kaplan quotes that “this fear of men echoes one part of the traditional oedipal fantasy: the bad menacing father, the arbitrary vindictive older man who stands outside the requirements of morality and social compassion”. (Kaplan, 2011) His article describes the attributes of Peter Parker, AKA Spiderman, and how he does not fit this hypermasculine stereotype, and later because of this wins the heart of the beautiful Mary Jane Watson.

 Let us not forget what intrigued me about this article; that this film is a deviance from other love stories. Parker is depicted as the softened male, who has feelings and compassions. He is not the stereotypical, hypermasculine action hero that we have all come to know. He is soft and empathetic. He is human, with flaws, but has compassion; this eventually trumps the other males in the film. However Parker is also Spiderman and is continuously battling the hypermasculine villain, internally and externally. This hardens Parker, his empathy and compassions start to slip away, and become replaced with feelings of fatherly instincts; protection. (Kaplan, 2011) Parker ends his relationship with Mary Jane, in fear of her being hurt. He has transitioned himself from lover to protector, i.e. “father”. The Oedipal Complex has as much to do with maturing and replacing your father’s role in life as sexually desiring your mother. Mary Jane’s interactions with menacing men reinforce the desires for Parker to protect her. Her father was abusive, her first boyfriend was a “jerk”, and her rebound was non supportive. His article goes on in greater detail how these conditions all interact with each other.

My Viewpoints and the Relevance of the Article

            In my opinion the article is very well written with the exception of one flaw, the author misspells Mary Jane’s last name, Watson. With her being a very important topic in the story, I find this to be a horrible mistake. I believe this article was written for students, professors, and scholars of the psychology field. This article used a lot of technical jargon and psychoanalytical theory. This article required side research for me to fully comprehend its points.  I find the only relevance of this article is to stimulate those groups of people I mentioned earlier. As a general film viewer this article went into too much detail and for some who have brash feelings against any type of incest, may reject the oedipal complex, and be turned away from this film.

References

Farlex, Inc. (2012). The Free Dictionary . Retrieved August 29, 2012, from http://www.thefreedictionary.com/Oedipal+complex

Kaplan, R. (2011). Spider-Man in Love: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation. Journal of Popular Culture , 291-292.

Superhero Rituals & Stereotypes

Rituals and Stereotypes

Stereotypes concern peoples behaviors. They are typically used negatively, but nevertheless they are still used. They generalize characteristics of a single person or group, and usually are incomplete. (Browne, 2005) We are all guilty of laughing at or using stereotypes. Have you ever pressed the corner of your eyes down to resemble and Asian? Or spouted out complete sentences in slang? Chances are that you have, or at least have laughed at someone who has.  Stereotypes have been, and are still currently being used in popular culture.

Rituals are events or passages a person takes in life. They compose of secular and religious. They may be as simple as moving from elementary school to high school, or complex, such as becoming a monk.  Editor of “Profiles of Popular Culture” Ray E. Browne notes rituals as “stereotypes and icons in action”. (Browne, 2005)

Superheroes are stories regarding humans or human-like beings who share the same culture with non-superheroes (note: there may be some exceptions).  Their stories, especially their origin stories, encompass many rituals and passage of rites. Their writers have used stereotyping on many occasions.  Pick up comics from the 1940 and 1950, where are country was a war, I guarantee you will find examples.  

Theories Applied

As mentioned earlier, every superhero has an origin, and with superhero movies being at the height of their popularity, we have witnessed the origin of many heroes. Heroes like Captain America, Green Lantern, Iron Man, Batman, Thor, and The Avengers have graced us recently with their presence on the big screen. To describe superhero rituals, let’s take a closer look at Captain America. Steve Rogers aka Captain America completed a ritual that many Americans have took part in, which is he joined the United States Army and completed boot camp. (Marvel, 2012)  Boot camp is full of rituals that bring together and strengthen a group of men and women.  If you relate to Captain America outside of the big screen, there is a vast amount of stories written about him. There have been comics written about Steve Rogers getting married, graduating school and even dying. Many superheroes did not gain their powers of identities until later in life; therefore they have taken every ritual that an average person has taken.

Superheroes are not innocent; writers who sought to gain popularity by gimmicks used stereotyping in their stories.  Film makers are notorious of this as well. In the first Iron Man film depicts Arab terrorists in the Middle East, a stereotype which has increasingly grown since the attacks on 9/11. Comics and movies seem to have more usage of stereotyping during war times. The Vietnamese are depicted stereotypically and talk stereotypically in “Tales of Suspense # 39”.

Insights Gained

I do believe that some people look to deep into superhero stories to find stereotypes to ridicule them. These stories were created a long time ago, many before the civil rights movement.  Adaption does need to be made, however the story line cannot be manipulated past a certain degree. This manipulation, in my opinion ruins the story that I have been accustomed to. For those that gripe about Tony Stark’s assistant being an African American, I give you Sergeant Fury (Samuel L. Jackson).  I myself will watch these films and enjoy watching the heroes’ progress through their rituals, and save the world. 

References:

Browne, R. B. (2005). Profiles of Popular Culture. Madison: The University of Wisconsin Press.
Marvel. (2012). Marvel Universe Wiki. Retrieved August 28, 2012, from http://marvel.com/universe/Captain_America_(Steve_Rogers)