American Culture Class : Superheroes

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American Culture Class : Superheroes

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           In American culture class we discussed the American idea of superheroes. There are many famous superheroes in American culture such as Batman and Spiderman. We read an excerpt form the book ‘Superheroes and Philosophy’ by Jeph Loeb and Tom Morris. Superheroes embody our deepest hopes and fears. Many people feel that superheroes represent our highest ambitions and help us deal with our worst nightmares. They typically have superpowers. Not every character has superpowers. They just need the power to help people who cannot help themselves, and they fight evil with the force of good. Plato, the Greek philosopher, believed that good is inherently attractive. What is good will pull us in its direction as long as we are not blocked from seeing it and appreciating it. Most superhero stories have been popular for a long time. The reason, is that they speak to our hopes. When we confront adversity in our lives, we are often inclined to just give up and find an easier path. But superheroes show us that nothing worth doing is easy. For example, Batman teaches the lesson that we can keep going even when the going is very hard.