It always makes me laugh (usually politely and quietly inside my head) when someone dismisses the superhero genre as “just entertainment,” “low” pop culture meant to make people flock to the movies for cheap thrills, or anything along those lines. People are entitled to their opinions, absolutely. But as someone who has spent over two years now consistently studying superhero media, I’ve found that the genre has so much more to offer than cheap thrills. Even people who do know superhero stories well may not find that much to cheer about from a critical standpoint. I spent most of my senior thesis research this past spring coming to terms with the many scholars who know the genre incredibly well, yet condemn it for being socially backwards, exclusionary, or merely full of cheap thrills.
Everyday Feminism – I love their work, really, I do – posted an article earlier this week about the problematic qualities of the superhero genre. The points covered in this article are absolutely valid; superheroes as a cultural product bring with them the problems of the society/societies that created them. However, the article seems to imply that the superhero and sci-fi genres are worse than others (or maybe the worst?) when it comes to gender/race/class/etc. representations. And, as I scrolled through the comments people had left for this article on EF’s Facebook page, a lot of them sounded very familiar.
Some EF readers pointed out that, despite their flaws, superheroes and sci-fi have made many cultural steps forward during the past several decades – at times ahead of other genres, I might add – and that it’s unfair to single out this one genre for causing ALL the problems we see in popular media concerning representational issues. Everyday Feminism, a blog that does great and important work in advocating online for social equality and equity, is usually more even-handed than in this article. I’m not blaming EF or the writer of their article for anything, but I wish they had recognized the advancements that superheroes and sci-fi have made, not just the genre’s faults.
Again, it’s not that superheroes and sci-fi are better or worse than any other genre: ALL genres and forms of pop culture need to be held responsible for the social inequalities and inequities they normalize and perpetuate.
So, on to today’s topic – which is apparently fortuitously timed: what are the critical issues most commonly investigated in the superhero and sci-fi genres? Where do they come from, and what’s the general consensus on them (if there is one)? Also, what topics aren’t often addressed, though perhaps they should be?
Who can’t wait for Agent Carter to start in January?
1. THE SUPERHEROIC MONOMYTH
First of all, you have to know your super-history. Based on the critical tradition established through the work of Carl Jung and Joseph Campbell, monomyth analysis examines the mythical and folkloric roots of superhero stories. The “monomyth” refers to the heroic tradition of tales found in cultures all over the world. All of these tales feature a superhuman protagonist who endures great trials and emerges victorious as defender of humanity and/or a source of benefits to the hero’s community.
Monomyth criticism often deals in Jungian archetypes, focusing on the archetypal nature of hero stories and the insight they provide into human existence and cultural experience. Some good sources to consult on this topic include:
– Joseph Campbell’s The Hero with a Thousand Faces (1949)
– M. Gregory Kendrick’s The Heroic Ideal (2010)
– Robert Moore and Douglas Gillette’s King Warrior Magician Lover (1991)
Also, if this topic interests you, you’re in luck! Starting in January I’ll be writing an 8-part blog post series on the monomythic conventions of modern superhero stories.
2. GENRE CONVENTIONS
Some superhero narrative and character conventions we’re stuck with, since the genre needs them in order to be identifiable as a genre: heroes versus villains; superpowers; supernatural, catastrophic, and otherworldly threats to humanity (which necessitate the presence of a superhuman hero). Other conventions, however, are up for dispute as to whether and how they appear in any given superhero story. These may include the superhero’s struggles with a parent/mentor figure, a secret identity (or lack thereof), a hero’s temporary or permanent turn to the dark side, a leave of absence from or rejection of superheroic duties, and other repeated elements. These tropes will probably show up at some point in most superhero works, but they aren’t necessary in order for the story to be superheroic.
“Optional” conventions also include the representative aspects shared by all media and cultural products; these are the conventions most commonly critiqued by feminist and other scholarly/critical writing on superheroes. (See issue #4 below.) I say that these are “optional” conventions because there is no singular way of treating representational issues in all superhero works. Superhero stories will have to address these issues in some way, of course, but how they choose to negotiate representation may differ from one superhero work to the next. In other words, some individual superhero stories are more equalitarian than others. Gender, race, class, and (dis)ability are just a few of the common analytical angles that appear in this form of criticism. (And by “criticism” I mean professional, critical analysis, not negative commentary.)
When examining superhero genre conventions, critics generally note which conventions appear, how the story/characters behave and respond to convention, and what the narrative/analytical outcome is of using a certain convention. They critique the use of different conventions concerning the effect on the individual story AND in the superhero genre as a whole. For example:
In The Dark Knight (2008), Rachel Dawes (Maggie Gyllenhaal) fulfills the conventional role of female love interest; Rachel dies when Batman (Christian Bale) cannot save her. The death of a female love interest is a common occurrence in superhero media, one which objectifies the female character as motivation for the male hero’s plotline. This also occurs in Daredevil (2003), James Bond films (over and over), Star Wars, Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters (2013), and countless other films and series. In contrast, Pepper Potts (Gwyneth Paltrow) in Iron Man 3 (2013) fulfills an identical female love interest role, but instead of dying to further Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey, Jr.) plotline, Pepper acquires her own superpowers and defeats the primary supervillain without assistance from other characters. This is perhaps the first event of its kind for a female love interest in 21st-century superhero films and is, therefore, a significant challenge to and critique of dominant female character tropes in the superhero genre.
3. GENRE MASH-UPS / MULTI-GENRE FILMS
One of the best things about the superhero genre (at least in my opinion) is that it’s a hybrid genre: it draws influence from several older genres including the Western, science fiction, film noir and detective fiction, and action/adventure stories. (Even though heroes and superheroes have been around for centuries, the “official” beginning of the superhero genre is usually located in the mid-twentieth century with the rise of the comic book industry.)
The character of the Hulk, for instance, was inspired by both Frankenstein and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, two well-known works of nineteenth-century Gothic fiction. Thor comes from Norse mythic tradition: Asgard, Yggdrasil, Loki, and all. Guardians of the Galaxy (2014) is a sci-fi Western; its plot reflects the conventions of the Western but, obviously, the film’s setting is a bit more galactic. On the flipside, Cowboys & Aliens (2010) is a superhero-Western that draws on the sci-fi elements of aliens and extraterrestrial technology (specifically the trope, “aliens are going to invade Earth and kidnap us!”). Doctor Who, Star Trek, and Supernatural are all known for their delightful way of playing with the multiple genres relevant to their place in superheroic adventure. (Star Trek: The Next Generation has several awesome Western episodes, if you’re looking for a place to start.)
A side effect of the superhero genre’s hybridity is that it tends to be very “meta” (metatextual). Metatextual stories “talk back” to themselves and to other stories, appearing to be self-aware of themselves as participating in a given set of conventions or a certain genre. Supernatural episodes “The French Mistake” (#615) and the recent “Fan Fiction” (#1005-their 200th episode, by the way) are awesome examples of meta work. Guardians of the Galaxy is also meta in its deliberate messing around with superhero, and specifically Marvel, conventions – you know, Star Lord (Chris Pratt) challenging Ronan (Lee Pace) to a dance-off right in the middle of the final battle scene. (Right where a dance-off is NOT supposed to be; the film is very self-aware of this break with convention in Ronan’s response: “What are you doing?!?!” Yeah, that’s what everyone in the audience was asking on opening weekend!) References to other well-known works in the genre make a work meta, too – making Marvel perhaps the most meta superhero creation ever. (Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. fans, you know this is true! All AOS does is talk about the rest of the MCU.)
4. FEMINISM, GENDER STUDIES, QUEER THEORY, AND MEDIA STUDIES
As mentioned above, feminist, gender, and queer analysis of superhero stories focus on representational issues in film itself and in the media industry at large. (This includes behind-the-scenes, production issues as well as what we actually see on-screen at the movies or on TV.) Feminist criticism is responsible for recognizing and spreading awareness of gender, racial, and other forms of social prejudice in superhero stories. Gail Simone and others’ critique of “women in refrigerators,” a pattern of female characters being brutally treated and killed as plot devices in superhero media, brought attention to the genre’s gender inequalities. While female characters have made notable advancements in recent years, the problems represented by “women in refrigerators” are still far from resolved.
Another aspect of feminist criticism is its emphasis on intersectionality: the study and analysis of multiple identity and representation categories simultaneously. Intersectional feminism argues that gender, race, class, ability, etc. do not function as independent categories but rather work together to determine how a person experiences the world, as well as how a person is treated by others in society. To use a classic example, someone who identifies as black and female will experience and be treated differently by society compared to someone who identifies as white and male, especially in a society (like ours) that perpetuates racial, gender, and other inequalities. Unfortunately, in our society certain identity categories are privileged above others, and this privilege is reflected in popular media and entertainment, including but not limited to superhero stories.
January 12, 2015: Click here to read a great post from Everyday Feminism about the importance of making feminism intersectional.
The critical stance on these issues in superhero media is mixed nowadays, although the overwhelmingly negative attitude toward the genre persists. Ideally, good criticism of this sort will recognize both the faults and the advancements of the superhero genre, which requires knowing the history of superheroes, comic books, and films. Some of the best critical works I’ve found in this category are:
– Jennifer Stuller’s Ink-Stained Amazons and Cinematic Warriors (2010)
– Jeffrey A. Brown’s Dangerous Curves: Action Heroines, Gender, Fetishism, and Popular Culture (2011)
– Adilifu Nama’s Super Black: American Pop Culture and Black Superheroes (2011)
– Danny Fingeroth’s Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us about Ourselves and Our Society (2004)
—
These four categories are just the most common approaches to superhero stories; there are obviously many, many other angles one could take when examining a genre that has become so popular and so big in recent years. As an art history student, I would like to see more analysis of the iconography and symbolic storytelling aspects of superhero works. (I’ve done a little work on this topic myself, in posts such as “The Mirror Effect” and “The Iconography of Westeros.”)
Additionally, especially nowadays with the enormous numbers of superhero films being made – not to mention the already lengthy, detailed history of superheroes in comic books – there is a definite need for more superhero historians. People interested in studying the history of the superhero genre will find no shortage of material, though they might find themselves drastically short on the time needed to process all of it!
What issues would you like to see addressed concerning the superhero genre?
Next blog post will be on Friday 12/26. “Girl Power: Sucker Punch (2011) and Pop Feminism.” Just how far does Zack Snyder’s awesome (I find it awesome) female action hero film go towards pushing back against stereotypical representations of women in the media? How does Sucker Punch tie in to female superhero traditions? Should the film be considered “feminist” or not? This is a tricky one…
December 7, 2014: Speaking of critical perspectives on the quality of superhero movies, here’s an interesting CinemaBlend piece on the difference between Christopher Nolan’s movies and Marvel. Not sure I can agree…I think if Marvel movies are only “action-based entertainment” to you, you might want to revisit them and pay closer attention.
Time Lords, Superheroes, and Brave New Worlds 