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Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society
Danny Fingeroth
By
Published: May 20, 2009
Category:
Non Fiction
Superman on the Couch:
What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society
by Danny Fingeroth
Have you seen “Spider-Man 2?” Butler and the Mrs. finally experienced it last night, and we’re still reeling. You’ve read the reviews or seen the movie, you know why: the literate script, the complex characters, the tricky emotions and the universal conflict (responsibilities vs. dreams).
There was one moment that stands out for Butler, inasmuch as it looks like it was inspired by one of his favorite paintings. Remember when Spidey saves the subway train from rushing off the tracks into the river? It’s an exhausting effort; afterward, he’s completely drained. The people he’s rescued gently lift him and carry him — like a mosh-diver — to the middle of the subway car, where they lovingly set him down.
The way Spider-Man is filmed has religious symbolism — it’s exactly the way Andrea Mantegna (1431-1506) portrayed Christ in his revolutionary 1490 painting, “The Lamentation over the Dead Christ.” This was, Butler believes, the first representation of the crucified Christ from this perspective. You don’t see a transcendent savior; you see a dead man. Take a look at “The Lamentation over the Dead Christ.” Bet it reminds you of the shot in “Spider-Man.”
Can the film sustain so heavy a reference? You bet — and if you have any doubt, read this just-for-Butler adaptation of a passage from ” Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society,” by Danny Fingeroth.
Fingeroth’s qualifications? He’s the former Group Editor of Marvel’s Spider-Man line and wrote comics series featuring Spider-Man and other iconic characters. His Write Now! Magazine is considered the premier publication about writing for comics, animation and science fiction. He also teaches comics and graphic novel writing and comics appreciation at New York University’s School of Continuing and Professional Studies. (To contact him: Danfinger@aol.com )
Delighted to have you aboard, Danny. And now, to your eye-opening analysis….
While Batman and Superman are both orphans, Spider-Man (in both the comics and the movies) mixes elements of those heroes’ orphan mythos with his own circumstances to create a unique blend that ushered the superhero into the modern age.
Spider-Man is originally presented as an orphan who is being raised by his father’s brother, Ben, and Ben’s wife May. Ben and May have no children; they treat Peter as their own son. Shortly after Peter acquires his spider-powers, he goes off to do what any teenager with such abilities would do — how off and make money with his powers. He neglects to stop a thief, who then murders his uncle Ben. Peter finds and captures the killer, but it’s a hollow victory — Spider-Man has been orphaned a second time.
The crime, like the murder of Batman’s parents, seems random. But it’s a random act that only took place because Peter selfishly let the thief escape. Here, Peter learns that
