With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility - Essay Example

Spider-Man: With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility Spider-Man was created in 1962 by Stan Lee as a new type of hero that would be relatable to the neurosis and anxiety of the average young male. Created during the era of the Cold-War, Spider-Man would be one of the Marvel Comics creations to reflect the fears of atomic technology that stood in constant threat against the United States. As the a symbol of fear and the courage to overcome that fear, Peter Parker and his alter ego, Spider-Man, would stand in for the ’every man’ as a symbol of accountability and responsibility. As the events in Peter’s life led him through unimaginable sorrow, triumphant victories, heartbreaking defeats, and always that last minute interruption of the important normal life events that he would be perpetually late to attend, or miss altogether, Spider-Man would represent that duality between the man that is and the man whose life one would wish to live. In the beginning, Stan Lee had an idea. Lee wanted to create a character that was not confident - that did not ’know’ he would be victorious. He wanted a super hero that began as a teenage boy with the characteristics of the classic underdog adolescent. Peter Parker would be a weaker boy, subject to ridicule and rejection. He was a classic science nerd without the ability to be overly successful on a social level. However, not only 1 Client Last Name would Peter Parker be rejected by his peers, in the beginning, he was also rejected by Marvel Comics. Spider-Man was rejected when Stan Lee brought the project to Martin Goodman, the publisher for Marvel Comics. His rejection was because “Most of all, Goodman was convinced that no one wanted to read about a wimpy crime fighter who shed tears and made mistakes.” (DeFalco, pg. 9). Super heroes were larger than life, confident and the picture of perfection. In order to prove Goodman wrong, Lee would put Spider-Man into the last issue of a cancelled series, entitled Amazing Fantasies issue number #15. The issue sold successfully and the approval for Spider-Man to be launched into his own series was given. Up to this time all super heroes were superior specimens of human or humanoid derivation. “Not Peter Parker! He was always doubting and second guessing himself.” writes Tom DeFalco, editor at Marvel Comics and a contributing writer to The Amazing Spider-Man series. “He assumed that he would lose every fight and that all his missions would end in failure. But he didn’t let that stop him.” Great strength of character is the strength that lies behind Spider-Man’s allure. “If you want to be a good person, you have to be accountable for your actions.” (DeFalco, pg. 9). This great sense of responsibility and accountability is the leading theme behind Spider-Man’s drive to do good. He isn’t driven by glory or an over-stimulated sense of honor, but by the simple choice of whether doing good with his powers is the right thing to do. Of course, that isn’t to say that Peter Parker doesn’t benefit from his gifts. As he 2 Client Last Name grew stronger, his confidence grew. Peter Parker began as a typically weak ’nerd’ who was not well socially accepted. After he is bitten by the radioactive spider, exciting things begin to happen for Peter. His muscles grew, his need for glasses is gone, and with these things his social confidence increases. This growth is a metaphor for puberty. As the perils of adolescence are navigated, the awkwardness and low self-esteem is transformed into, what is hoped will be, a confident and successful adult. As Peter Parker experiences the growth of his amazing powers, his confidence creates for him a world that allows him to enjoy social acceptance. He did not always understand the responsibility of his powers. “His first impulse was not to fight crime but to become a TV star, and his self-centeredness led to the death of his beloved uncle.”(Bukatman, pg 206). As he discovers that gifts can be both blessings and burdens, Peter Parker reflects the essence of what it means to grow-up. He embodies the process of life as he goes from awkward teen, to college student, to employee, and then finally to husband and potential father. Stan Lee would say of Spider-Man, “When Peter fought back against the world’s injustice, it gave new hope to readers who needed someone, even a character from fiction, to show that they should never give up, but always keep fighting.” (Saffel, pg. 6). Spider-Man reaches the audience by being one of them and by struggling with the same kind of issues that are relevant to real life. Spider-Man was relevant on many levels. The issues began during the era of the Cold-War, when the atomic stand-off between the United States and the USSR was a 3 Client Last Name source of fear for the American public. Along with the Fantastic Four and the Incredible Hulk, Peter Parker’s transformation into Spider-Man was the result of radiation. A spider that was experimentally irradiated escapes and bites Peter leading to a change in his biological design. This origin reflects the fears that were current in the late fifties and early sixties, that would in fact last until the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. As well, the scientific community had been creating technologies at record speeds during World War II, and this continuation of advances, once free from the needs of war, had dramatically changed the world during the 1950’s. With the advantages of these advances had come a healthy fear of what might be the consequences of scientific discovery. The stories in Spider-Man are usually based on science gone bad and this reflects a growing culture that both embraces and fears the scientific advances that are not easily understood by those who use the benefits of those discoveries. Spider-Man’s first great nemesis is the Green Goblin, the father of his best friend who is transformed by a chemical compound that was being developed to enhance the strength of military personnel. The chemical did its job, but with the consequences of driving Norman Osborn mad. Not only did the Spider-Man series break new ground by presenting a new kind of hero, but it also took on socially relevant issues. It was the standard practice for all issues of comic books to be submitted and approved by a panel known as the Comic Code. However for issues #96 through #98 in 1971, Stan Lee decided to break the tradition and publish without approval. Within these issues Lee would address the issue of drug use. 4 Client Last Name As a result, the New York Times would run an article entitled, “Shazam! Here comes Captain Relevant!”. The article, written by Saul Braun, would praise the relevant work, however this praise did not run throughout the comic book world. “Comics Code President, John Goldwater (of Archie Comic) had referenced a scene from The Amazing Spider-Man, #96 “showing a stoned black kid tottering on the rooftop”. Goldwater felt that indicated a bit of sensationalism, and [DC Editorial Director Carmine] Infantano believes the subject calls for a more thorough and responsible treatment.” (Saffel, pg. 68). While this commentary would suggest that the storyline had been irresponsible, Stan Lee said “If the story helps one kid not to try drugs, or one kid to lay off drugs - then its worth telling.” (Saffel, pg. 60) This sense of social responsibility was the essence of the Spider-Man story, and was carried through by Lee in the story choices. Lee’s decision to go forward in spite of tradition would change the ’code‘. By believing in his choices and pushing Spider-Man through to approval, and then utilizing the forum to discuss relevant social issues, Lee would change the course of this form of literature. Before those Spider-Man issues appeared, the portrayal of drug abuse was altogether taboo. After they were published, the article reported the publishers agreed to give themselves permission to deal with the subject. ‘Narcotics addiction’ says the new guideline, “shall not be presented except as a vicious habit.” thus by creating their ground- breaking story, Martin Goodman, Stan Lee, Gil Kane, and John Romita forever changed comics, brought a major issue to the attention of their readers, and paved the way for publishers, such as Goldwater and Infantino, to create their own relevant stories without threat of punishment. (Saffel, pg 62) Not only did the character of Spider-Man have impact on the American culture, the series 5 Client Last Name had impact on the literary culture of the comic book world. Many tragedies would befall Peter Parker in the form of death. The first death, that of his Uncle Ben, would change the course of his life as he accepted the grave importance of his gifts. This metaphor for growing up would lead to other deaths that would reflect milestones in life. His first real love, Gwen Stacey, would be killed by the Green Goblin, affecting Peter’s views on love, much the way that first heartbreak affects the average reader. He would lose his Aunt May as well, leading to a storyline of duality and the conflicts of inner personality reflected by the idea of cloned versions of Peter Parker and how different paths affected the individual clone’s outcome. As well, Peter and Mary Jane Watson, who became his wife, would face the circumstances of a still-born child, one of the worst pains a couple can bare. The character of Spider-Man changed the course of comic book creation. The super-hero was redefined to include the possibility of the average, or below average man gaining the responsibility of heroism. Spider-Man embodies the course of life through adolescence, which helps it to translate across the decades, staying relevant and fresh in each incarnation. The character has been a part of the comic book world, animated cartoons, a live action television series, and most recently, a series of movies starring Tobey Maguire, and directed by Sam Raimi. The first movie was released in 2002, forty years after Spider-Man made its comic book debut. The story of the movie was a retelling of the origin story, proving that time did not diminish the relevance of that story or of the character. While the romantic life of 6 Client Last Name Spider-Man has been reduced to just Mary Jane Watson, leaving out the other girlfriends that Peter Parker had throughout the comic book series, the responsibility of love is reflected well in the movie. Within the story, as Peter struggles with the impact of the introduction of his life on Mary Jane’s and how her life will be irrevocably changed if she must deal with the consequences of his alter ego’s life, we see the essence of the responsibility of love when two people must embrace what makes up the sum of each other’s lives. Spider-Man is about life. The story of Peter Parker is the story of the trials of life. It is the story of accepting the responsibility of one’s identity, and making a positive impact on the world with that identity. How one chooses to live is a reflection of character, and this point is made through the struggles that Peter Parker faces with his villains, and with his life. Peter Parker is perpetually late for the events of his life, he misses some of the more important events and must struggle with his responsibility to the public good against the responsibilities he maintains in his personal relationships. Peter proves that it can’t all be done and that hard choices have to be made in life. Peter Parker lives a metaphor for his audience. He embraces their failings, gives hope that they can win their struggles, and shows that making the hard choices can have consequences, but that it is the responsibility of each individual to embrace that sense of right. “With great power comes great responsibility.” Stan Lee 7 Client Last Name Works Cited Bukatman, Scott. Matters of Gravity: Special Effects and Supermen in the Twentieth Century. Hillsborough, NC: Duke University Press, 2003. Defalco, Tom. The Amazing Spiderman: The Ultimate Guide. New York: Dorling Kindersley Limited, 2007. Saffel, Steve. Spider-Man: The Icon. London: Titan Publishing Group Ltd., 2007. 8 Read More