The Myth of the American Superhero
Contents:
Lawrence and Jewett challenge readers to reconsider the relationship of this myth to traditional religious and social values, and they show how, ultimately, these antidemocratic narratives gain the spiritual loyalties of their audiences, in the process inviting them to join in crusades against evil.
Christian Living Grief and Suffering. Lawrence and Jewett challenge readers to reconsider the relationship of this myth to traditional religious and social values, and they show how, ultimately, these antidemocratic narratives gain the spiritual loyalties of their audiences, in the process inviting them to join in crusades against evil. Superheroic Presidents Redeem the Nation. Old Testament General Works. Arguing that the superhero is simply a distinct From the Superman of comic books to Hollywood's big screen action stars, Americans have long enjoyed a love affair with the "superhero. Chapter by chapter, the studies are a bit clunky, but over the course of the book, the reader builds up a very clear awareness of the sort of things Lawrence and Jewett are noticing and describing.
Finally, the authors pose this provocative question: Can we take a holiday from democracy in our lives of fantasy and entertainment while preserving our commitment to democratic institutions and waysof life? An interesting take on American popular culture and society, this book takes Joseph Campbell's monomyth as its starting point and tries to construct an American monomyth - an archetypal story that is In this engaging volume John Shelton Lawrence and Robert Jewett explore the historical and spiritual roots of the superhero myth and its deleterious effect on Americas The Myth of the American Superhero.
John Shelton Lawrence , Robert Jewett. From the Superman of comic books to Hollywood's big-screen action stars, Americans have long enjoyed a love affair with the superhero. In this engaging volume John Shelton Lawrence and Robert Jewett explore the historical and spiritual roots of the superhero myth and its deleterious effect on Americas democratic vision. The American Monomyth in a New Century. The Birth of a National Monomyth. Buffalo Bill Staging World Redemption.
Heidi Visits a Little House on the Prairie. John Wayne and Friends Redeem the Village. Buy the selected items together This item: The Myth of the American Superhero by Mr. Ships from and sold by awesomebooksusa.
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Please try again later. The authors assess the societal implications of exposure to repetitive presentations of anti-democratic pop heroes and heroines, demonstrating how American life has come to imitate art on numerous occassions. Packed with engaging content and providing numerous insights, this interesting book highlights the often detrimental role that entertainment media plays in shaping public opinion and challenges us to demand entertainments that might help to bring us together rather than drive us apart.
Jewett contend that America's unique conception of the hero is rooted in Columbus' discovery of Eden and the belief that Westerners must rescue the continent for the sake of progress and destiny. The authors discuss how the mythical template of a lonely and sexless but heroic individual who selflessly rescues terrorized communities was developed, tracing themes of oppression and heroic liberation back to the Indian captivity narratives of the s, the Western-themed dime novels of the s, the superhero comics of the s, and many movies beginning with "The Birth of a Nation" of to today.
The authors recount the Wild West shows of "Buffalo Bill" Cody and the Swiss character "Heidi" to explain how heroic characterizations became defined along gender lines. Jewett describe how male redemptive powers have steadily grown from the small-town heroics of John Wayne to the interplanetary adventures of Luke Skywalker.
The authors contend that these escapist fantasies may have particular appeal to men who have become alienated from women and government, citing the media heroes of various domestic terrorists who have justified their atrocities in the name of purging the world of evil. Without condemning any particular video game, novel or film for their role in inspiring such actions, the authors succeed in making us think about what might be the cumulative effect on attitudes and behaviors when people are exposed to these kinds of materials over long periods of time.
The Myth Of The American Superhero
Jewett suggest that superheroism and idol worship help to fill a spiritual void in an increasingly secular society. The authors examine the mystical overtones of "The Matrix", the New Age spirituality of the TV series "Touched by an Angel", the Christian conservatism of the "Left Behind" series and other works to discuss how 'credotainment' has emerged as a new form of entertainment.
And of course, the fans of "Star Trek" help to illustrate how the icons of pop culture have become the objects of reverence in our modern times. The writing is at times a bit stilted in that the authors seem compelled to conclude each major section or chapter of the book with their thoughts about democracy, but the authors deserve credit for the effort.
I highly recommend this book to everyone interested in media studies and democracy.
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The authors do a very good job of establishing a basic pattern for mythic storytelling in modern America. The pattern they establish of a heroic redeemer who enters an edenic community beset by evil and conquers by his superhuman powers before departing is a helpful matrix for thinking about many American cultural myths. The problem is that the authors ignore a great many of these myths in order to explore the more dubious aspects of their theory such as freudian sexual theory in Disney cartoons. There is no deep sexual meaning to Donald Duck getting his rear-end stuck in a fish bowl. It's just written for laughs.
It is also a problem that mythic characters like Superman and his ilk are largely ignored in this work despite their prominent place on the cover.
The Myth of the American Superhero is a scholarly nonfiction book by Robert Jewett and John Shelton Lawrence. It describes the idealized, fantasy violence so. From the Superman of comic books to Hollywood's big-screen action stars, Americans have long enjoyed a love affair with the superhero. In this engaging.
Furthermore non-iconic characters and films such as the Death Wish trilogy are elevated to great prominence despite the fact that they are not culturally pervasive enough to be classified as true myths. I highly recommend the first two or three chapters, but not a lot else. Check it out from your library rather than buying it if you can.
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An extremely revealing guide to an essential "great myth" of America, one that drives much of our politics and even religion, no less than film and novel plots. Not necessarily a healthy myth, but rather one more and more irrelevant to a culture that no longer lives on a "frontier" but in an enormously interactive megaculture whose borders are no more substantial than electronic.
Hundreds of examples make the arguments unavoidable. See all 3 reviews.