Comic book characters represent the best and worst parts of society as seen through the eyes of the writers. Heroes emanate what the writers perceive as the ideal human, someone attractive with a strong moral code and a high tolerance for pain. Villains represent what the writers perceive as problematic, people who are overly ambitious, immoral and represent the “other”, both in appearance and beliefs. These characterisations reflect the views of society’s majority, white men, essentially the creators and controllers of pop culture. Captain America was a hero, the epitome of American Patriotism. He was strong, smart and morally sound and he fought American enemies, the Nazis and communism. Magneto, from the same comic universe as Captain America, was a villain aiming for the eradication of all non-mutants. The interesting thing about his evil acts is that they’re almost justified by his previous experiences with oppression, he’s the comic book representation of a victim fighting back and he’s represented as villainous for that.
Disabilities are represented atrociously in comic books because they’re represented atrociously in pop culture. Steve Rogers was useless to the army until he was injected with an untested serum and was no longer frail. Superman used glasses to imply vision impairment, because, no superhero could be physically inadequate in any way, so his secret was safe. In Steve’s case, his diagnoses are represented as things that need fixing before he can be
Have you ever seen or met someone with a physical handicap disability? Do you know what it’s like for a person who has a physical form of disability? You may or may not. Randolph Bourne, in “The Handicapped” will be the first to tell you that it is quite the challenge. He has a form of disability that makes him look very different compared to other people. His face is deformed, he is oddly short, he’s forced to walk funny, and is laughed at for being handicapped. Randolph Bourne physical handicaps have been a hindrance on his life because he must work harder to overcome adversity, he is faced with discriminatory behavior from other people, and he had a rough childhood due to his handicaps.
Tvtropes.org’s article over the Anti-Hero discusses the definition of a anti-hero, characteristics, and variations. Unlike the traditional hero such as Superman, an anti-hero lacks the traditional qualities of a hero. While heroes are showcased as all good in morals, values, and have little flaws, the anti-hero signature is weighed by their flaws. Some anti-heroes are normally ‘good guys’ however they are not doing this to be a hero, but often doing things for their own gain, revenge, control, or to clear up a dark past. Other anti-heroes are morally troubled or are willing to do anything to achieve their goals. Anti-heroes have grown since their counterparts of their past and have now taken center stage in our modern entertainment and are
There are prominent themes represented in mass media that characterize people with impairments. One such theme is the metaphorical use of disability in children’s stories and films. Frequently the arc of a story relies on assigning physical deformities to villains, and portraying the hero or heroine as attractive and loved. Rarely will a disabled character have a pivotal role; most commonly they are relegated to secondary status, used as plot device to garner sympathy for a maudlin character to be saved by the hero, or to have the hero triumph over the reviled villain. The use of pity or repulsion with regards to disabled characters mirrors the sense of otherness society imposes in real life.
The comic books included in the “Civil War” series embody many aspects of the political system in the United States. How much control is too much? Should the citizens of the United States be fighting for their civil liberties? Whether it be parallels drawn to The Patriot Act or 9/11, “Civil War” encompasses real life ideologies and events which deal with the politics of the United States. There is an ideology in the comics that is significant; the idea of imperialistic government, and patriotism and freedom.
There is no doubt that the popularity of the anti-hero as we know it has increased in recent times. With unlikely, yet popular moral gray protagonists like Jack Bauer, Dexter, and Gregory House leading some of the most popular TV shows and characters like James Bond, Lisbeth Salander, Tyler Durden (from Fight Club), and Jack Sparrow being some of the most memorable in movies, it is not surprising that there has been an increased interest to understand what causes this characters to be so popular (Peter Jonason in et al., 193). What is it that makes them as likeable, if not more, than a normal hero? How come we relate to characters that perform actions that, if done in real life, would cause us to see them in a whole different light?
Heroes considered to be people who wear a tight cape and go to save the world. And is a villain considered to be a person who plots evil schemes against the hero. Heroes and villains are tended to be seen through the different perspectives of people’s eyes, but not all of the heroes or villains are recognized for their actions. At many times there tend to be many different people throughout the world who could be able to be there at the right time and the right place to make good decisions for others. On the other hand, there are some type of people that just could make wrong decisions and make places become a complete nightmare for others. Joseph Campbell views womens as a figure of happiness of creating families and
The role of the anti-hero is to represent what society despises like cruelty, cowardice, self-interest, and dishonesty. The anti-hero is the opposite
“To create a lovable villain you need to make them characters to whom people relate.” (Skinner, R.)
There aren’t many shows or movies that revolve around or even include characters and actors that suffer from disabilities. In most situations when someone is casted to play a character that suffers from an illness, medical condition, or disability, a person who actually doesn’t struggle with any of those conditions is casted, which doesn’t really show any true representation for people with certain conditions. Even when a show or movie includes a character with a disability, the disability isn’t life-threatening. When a show or movie includes a character with a disability, a person who doesn’t actually live with the disability is casted. The television show Glee has gotten a lot of negative attention for casting a non-disabled actor to play a character who suffers from paraplegia, which is also known as leg paralysis. Hollywood has barely made any progress towards hiring actors with disabilities. When a show does include a disabled person, it often is full of negative stereotypes, which just shows that the writers did little to none research on living with a
When introduced to any story, there is always a hero and a villain. The hero would be labeled with noble and heroical characteristics, while the villain would have crooked and blackguardly. These small characteristic distinctions are what makes the personality and identifier for a character. With this kind of determinant, people have been using this as a way to judge a person into the labels and categories society has put into place. With advanced technology and the transformation of culture that comes forth with every experience society faces, heroes and villains are getting more complex in the way they are being defined. There have been changes in the way people view heroes and villains in their appreciation and enjoyment. Heroes still have that guileless in humanity. This archetype believes in the idea that suffering can end by just saving the day. On the other side, villains have no guileless. They are already disillusioned by the mask society puts on. Their perception sees that reality is a world of suffering and the mask that society is really hiding behind is actually judgment. Villains have been outcast by society and its heroes that they have readily accepted their new-founded label that society had assigned. Their deeds may be immoral but their goals as villains are heroic in a sense. Villains want to rid the world of the blindness people have in dealing with society, even though society has labeled them as psychopaths by using their talents in manipulation and
Superman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman—what do all these characters have in common? They are all products of the human aspiration to be saved. The word hero is passed around too much these days. A hero is not a football player that scores the game-winning touchdown or the goaltender who saves his team from a loss. A hero is usually an ordinary person that did extraordinary things. A true hero is really never a hero at all; at least not in their own mind. However, there are various cases today in which we see the exact opposites of these characters, the anti-heroes. The anti-hero is one who cannot be classified as a hero, for that said character lacks natural heroic qualities. However, the anti-hero cannot be described as a villain either.
People with physical limitations and diseases are judged based on the way they look. Just because someone looks different does not mean they are different. Everyone is equal. Just because someone is crippled does not mean they cannot do anything: “ People – crippled or not – wince at the word ‘cripple,’ as they do not at ‘handicapped’ or ‘disabled’” (Mairs 525). People flinch when they hear the word cripple. People with physical limitations can do normal things just like normal people can
Having a family. Owning a home and car. Working an average job to support the family. This reflect the ideas of the stereotypical American dream. This perfect dream everyone craves to achieve. The power many people have to acquire a gift as precious as perfection has shown the flaws in which man possesses. The determination of theses people glorifies the selfishness in which man resorts to. The pedestal that holds perfection as the golden trophy, while although unobtainable, is uttered in a way that causes society to turn on itself for its own triumph. Selfish acts taken to achieve this pristine image have shown the effort in which mankind uses to reach their objective. Society is determined attain perfection, but is to blindsided and
For every quality the hero possesses, the villain embodies a counterpart. Heroes are thought of as the good guys and villains are thought of as the bad guys. Heroes are selfless and brave. Villains are egotistical and violent. Heroes are always the main character in, for example, a film. The villain is usually the second most central
It doesn’t matter what you look like on the outside, it’s what’s on the inside that counts, but our society today lacks to understand that. In today’s time different is not accepted, people that are different are discriminated, looked down upon and usually picked on. People with disabilities are seen as different creatures by most people, the disabled don’t choose to be the way they are, but still our society alienates them. There are different types of disabilities, some type of disabilities are; mental disability, physical disability, learning disability and socializing disability. These disabilities are seen as weakness in our society that hence contribute to the stereotype that leads to the discrimination against the disabled.