Comic book superheroes get psychoanalyzed
Posted on Thursday, October 9, 2008
Superhero psychology is a topic near and dear to the hearts of fans. Debates about why Batman doesn’t kill the Joker, why Captain America doesn’t run for president, why Superman doesn’t get rid of all nuclear weapons or why the X-Men don’t unmask and go on Oprah run long into the night at comic shops and online.
But these debates are ultimately superficial; your average comicbook fan doesn’t have the framework, vocabulary or professional experience to dissect a fictional character’s psychology.
Until now. The Psychology of Superheroes: An Unauthorized Exploration (BenBella $ 17. 95 ), edited by Robin S. Rosenberg, contains essays by nearly twodozen psychologists who apply modern psychological theory to superheroes. For example, Rosenberg demonstrates how behavioral activation and inhibition systems apply to the formation of Clark Kent’s personality. Mikhail Lyubansky shows how prejudice against the X-Men fits into realworld behavioral paradigms, involving theories on authoritarian personality, group conflict and social identity. Bradley Daniels uses forensic psychology to look into Arkham Asylum, and Chuck Tate describes how Batman’s actions fall into “hostile aggression” mode, as opposed to what he pretends, which is “instrumental aggression.”
This book won’t answer the specific fan arguments listed above. But by using the tools of the professional psychologist, the larger picture is established. From that, readers can begin to draw more accurate conclusions. Psychology takes our concerns to a new level, and what true fan can resist that ? Fans of Rick Geary’s A Treasury of Victorian Murder series from NBM Publishing will be pleased to hear he has a new series, A Treasury of XXth Century Murder.
After nine outstanding volumes set in the Victorian era, Geary kicks off the bloody 20 th with The Lindbergh Baby. Just as before, Geary impresses with his meticulous research, his ability to convey the sensationalism of the press and public, his objective refusal to draw conclusions (that’s the reader’s job ) and his gorgeous woodblock art style, so suggestive of times gone by.
Gemstone, which has a gorgeous hardback reprint series of the famous EC Comics of the early 1950 s, has added a title. EC Archives: Weird Science Vol. 3 ($ 49. 95 ), which reprints WS Nos. 13-18 (May 1952-April 1953 ), shows EC’s legendary bullpen at its peak. Most stories are written by Al Feldstein, with at least one story per issue by Wally Wood. Rounding out the art team on most issues are Joe Orlando, Jack Kamen and Al Williamson.
By 1952, EC had a working relationship with legendary science fiction writer Ray Bradbury. Several of the stories in this collection are Bradbury adaptations, such as “The Long Years” and “Mars Is Heaven.” Meanwhile, comics historian Jerry Weist gives us the background on (and some unpublished correspondence from ) the Bradbury-EC collaboration.
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