Superman discussion, anyone?

[noTch]

Ok, I was at work & I approached my good friend about a scene in a movie.

First off let me inform you that I know nothing of Superman, Batman, Spiderman, Green Lantern, Wolverine, or any comic superheros. Just the basic perception of what Hollywood has presented & a feigning glimpse of a minuscule amount of Sunday comics. That is all "."

He, on the other hand, has read as many as were ever produced and can tell you stories of episodes that make me wish I had read them too. He cannot quote them verbatim, nor does he know what series or number a certain superhero adventure happened in, but he knows!
 
Now, to the scene which has brought one of our greatest discussions of all times.   It is about the Superhero monologue of Bill in "Kill Bill"

Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there’s the superhero and there’s the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he’s Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone.

Superman didn’t become Superman. Superman was born Superman. When Superman wakes up in the morning, he’s Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red “S” – that’s the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears – the glasses, the business suit – that’s the costume. That’s the costume Superman wears to blend in with us.

Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He’s weak… He’s unsure of himself… He’s a coward.

Clark Kent is Superman’s critique on the whole human race.

My friend thinks Bill is completely WHACKO & wrong.  He argues that no super-hero can be separated from their alter-ego.  He believes that the need for a alter-ego is to protect many things in their lives, such as family, loves, sanity or just not getting sued.




My true quest, starting this discussion, was to get an answer to the question,

'Why is Superman Clark Kent?"  

Why not a man that was very strong, great with the ladies, could run fast, hear awesome things, see incredibly well & stand up for himself?

[Blooz]

It's old school Americanism.

Back in the day immigrants came to the USA and became Americans. Not German-Americans, Irish-Americans, Chinese-Americans, African-Americans.....just Americans.

Superman is trying to be a good citizen. A good American. He doesn't want to be different (a Kryptonian-American?) so he dresses as Clark Kent and has a job and lives his life as a normal American citizen.

[wil3ur]

I'd say Superman, more than any other character suffers from lack of identity and borderline Multiple Personality Disorder.  While he was wrapped in his S, he was raised as a normal child.  His powers did not become apparant until after he was raised to believe he was just a normal person.  Clark Kent, rather than being a scathing indictment of the American Male, is actually Superman's security blanket.  It's the happy place he can return to and play pretend that he's just like everyone else.  It's not about protecting his family or friends or avoiding lawsuits, it's a cry for help from a lonely man.

[bozon]

'Why is Superman Clark Kent?"  

Why not a man that was very strong, great with the ladies, could run fast, hear awesome things, see incredibly well & stand up for himself?

Because nobody can wear his undies on top of his pants and go out in public like that without being ridiculed.

He is impervious to bullets but not to ridicule.

[-tronski-]

I'm a big Batman fan...however

Superman plays Clark Kent bumbling and weak so to add to his disguise and to reinforce that Clark Kent could never be superman...harmless, awkward & ineffectual.
It was also to help make his job at the Daily planet more believable...just in case the glasses don't cut it

 Tronsky

[eagl]

I favor the kill bill interpretation.  Superman thinks regular humans are pathetic and weak, needing protection.  He grew up knowing he was different and when he was old enough, he chose to be "himself" (superman), pretending to be like "us" (clark kent), pathetic and weak.

He views what he does as superman as a responsibility to care for the weak and pathetic.  That's why he goes to extremes to avoid killing anyone...  You don't kill a misguided animal just because it nips your fingers when you feed it.

As for superman being American, he associated himself with America when it was convenient, and renounced his citizenship when things got rough.  F*** him and the unstable moral compass he has shoved up his a&%.  Since superman isn't real, of course that means I'm saying to the writers who dictate what the superman character does in the comics "pi$$ off fair weather friends, we don't need your weak minded band of loser quitters around here."  Real dads don't abandon their kids/families, and real heros don't abandon their responsibilities when things get tough.

I bet Superman doesn't pay his child support either... deadbeat loser.

[CAP1]

superheros create more damage than they prevent. but they look cool.   and i'd be a bad guy any day of the week, if it got wonder woman comin for me. 

[Muzzy]

I admire the Kill Bill analogy but I think it's over-analyzing a bit.  For starters, Superman built both personas over time, from the moment his adoptive parents warned him not to use his powers openly when he was a child.  So he didn't create the Clark Kent persona, he *was* Clark Kent, the boy who got picked on because he wasn't allowed to play football and who always followed the rules.  Superboy (and later Superman) developed once he began helping people, first covertly, then out in the open.

It could just as easily be said that Superman is Clark's commentary on the best of the human race.  It's Clark's idea of humanity at its best, or perhaps humanity as it could be.

[ozrocker]

Not to go off-topic, but since you mentioned "Spiderman".
According to radio, The Spiderman/Peter Parker is going to be killed.
He's supposedly replaced by a teen who was a Spiderman worshipper.
The kid will be a mix of Hispanic/Afro-American decent.
He may/may not be Homosexual.
I guess it's to keep up with newer times?


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