When you’re involved with a group of like-minded people, it can be really easy to fall into the rut of reading the same ideas. Sometimes, new ideas and thoughts are rare and hard to come by. As a fan of Superman, I find myself reading a lot of the same opinions, mostly because I find myself reading the thoughts of people who share very similar viewpoints about the character, the mythology, and the philosophical implications of his existence. I find this weekly journaling and reading to be incredibly insightful as it allows me to read articles and thoughts from people who are not necessarily in the group. I am given the chance to find out what people who are outsiders think about Superman.
This week, I read a couple of interesting articles analyzing Superman and his relevance in popular culture. One article that stuck out to me was “The Trouble With Superman.” (http://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2016/02/the-trouble-with-superman/435408/) A lot of the things said in the article have been said before, but the author’s word choice and often unconventional opinions gave me the impression that they were not particularly invested in Superman. In the article, Asher Elbein writes that Superman’s biggest problem regarding relevancy is that DC Comics has no idea how to handle their flagship character. While Elbein isn’t necessarily wrong, he also doesn’t seem to have a full understanding of what makes the character work, let alone suggest a way to make the character relevant again. For example, Elbein references an event that happens in Action Comics (vol. 2) #42 in which Superman, depowered after a long and incredibly convoluted series of events, punches a cop. Elbein states that making Superman confront current social issues, much like he did during the first few years of his existence, is the the answer to make him relevant again. Not much else is offered in terms of suggestions.
Regarding another article that I happened to read (http://thefederalist.com/2016/09/25/superman-unconsciously-fights-relativism-one-popular-adventures/), author Jace Lington takes a more philosophical approach to the character. In the article, Lington references a moment in All-Star Superman in which Superman states that he has no right to impose his beliefs on anybody. Lington takes this moment and analyzes it, as well as the implications, as well as Superman’s unintended hypocrisy. According to Lington, in fighting against evil and injustice, Superman’s actions are in a sense him imposing his beliefs on others. Furthermore, Lington writes that this contradiction raises a lot of questions about relativism.
Regardless of how popular Superman might be currently, there will always be some sort of discussion regarding him.