Table Of ContentSUPERMAN
AND
PHILOSOPHY
The Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture Series
Series Editor: William Irwin
A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down, and a healthy helping of popular culture clears the cobwebs from Kant.
Philosophy has had a public relations problem for a few centuries now. This series aims to change that, showing that
philosophy is relevant to your life—and not just for answering the big questions like “To be or not to be?” but for answering
the little questions: “To watch or not to watch South Park?” Thinking deeply about TV, movies, and music doesn’t make you
a “complete idiot.” In fact it might make you a philosopher, someone who believes the unexamined life is not worth living
and the unexamined cartoon is not worth watching.
Already published in the series:
24 and Philosophy: The World According to Jack Lost and Philosophy: The Island Has Its Reasons
Edited by Jennifer Hart Weed, Richard Brian Davis, Edited by Sharon M. Kaye
and Ronald Weed Mad Men and Philosophy: Nothing Is as It Seems
30 Rock and Philosophy: We Want to Go to There Edited by James South and Rod Carveth
Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski Metallica and Philosophy: A Crash Course
Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy: Curiouser and Curiouser in Brain Surgery
Edited by Richard Brian Davis Edited by William Irwin
Arrested Development and Philosophy: They’ve Made a The Office and Philosophy: Scenes from
Huge Mistake the Unfinished Life
Edited by Kristopher Phillips and J. Jeremy Wisnewski Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski
The Avengers and Philosophy: Earth’s Mightiest Thinkers South Park and Philosophy: You Know, I Learned
Edited by Mark D. White Something Today
Batman and Philosophy: The Dark Knight of the Soul Edited by Robert Arp
Edited by Mark D. White and Robert Arp Spider-Man and Philosophy: The Web of Inquiry
Battlestar Galactica and Philosophy: Knowledge Here Edited by Jonathan Sanford
Begins Out There Terminator and Philosophy: I’ll Be Back, Therefore I Am
Edited by Jason T. Eberl Edited by Richard Brown and Kevin Decker
The Big Bang Theory and Philosophy: Rock, Paper, True Blood and Philosophy: We Wanna Think Bad
Scissors, Aristotle, Locke Things with You
Edited by Dean Kowalski Edited by George Dunn and Rebecca Housel
The Big Lebowski and Philosophy: Keeping Your Mind Twilight and Philosophy: Vampires, Vegetarians, and the
Limber with Abiding Wisdom Pursuit of Immortality
Edited by Peter S. Fosl Edited by Rebecca Housel and J. Jeremy Wisnewski
Black Sabbath and Philosophy: Mastering Reality The Ultimate Harry Potter and Philosophy: Hogwarts for
Edited by William Irwin Muggles
The Daily Show and Philosophy: Moments of Zen in the Edited by Gregory Bassham
Art of Fake News The Ultimate Lost and Philosophy: Think Together,
Edited by Jason Holt Die Alone
Downton Abbey and Philosophy: The Truth Is Edited by Sharon M. Kaye
Neither Here Nor There The Walking Dead and Philosophy: Shotgun. Machete.
Edited by Mark D. White Reason.
Family Guy and Philosophy: A Cure for the Petarded Edited by Christopher Robichaud
Edited by J. Jeremy Wisnewski Watchmen and Philosophy: A Rorschach Test
Final Fantasy and Philosophy: The Ultimate Walkthrough Edited by Mark D. White
Edited by Jason P. Blahuta and Michel S. Beaulieu X-Men and Philosophy: Astonishing Insight and Uncanny
Game of Thrones and Philosophy: Logic Cuts Argument in the Mutant X-Verse
Deeper Than Swords Edited by Rebecca Housel and J. Jeremy Wisnewski
Edited by Henry Jacoby Forthcoming:
The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo and Philosophy: Avatar and Philosophy
Everything is Fire Edited by George Dunn
Edited by Eric Bronson
Dungeons and Dragons and Philosophy
Green Lantern and Philosophy: No Evil Shall Escape this Book Edited by Christopher Robichaud
Edited by Jane Dryden and Mark D. White
Ender’s Game and Philosophy
Heroes and Philosophy: Buy the Book, Save the World Edited by Kevin Decker
Edited by David Kyle Johnson
Sons of Anarchy and Philosophy
The Hobbit and Philosophy: For When You’ve Lost Your Edited by George Dunn and Jason Eberl
Dwarves, Your Wizard, and Your Way
Supernatural and Philosophy
Edited by Gregory Bassham and Eric Bronson
Edited by Galen Foresman
House and Philosophy: Everybody Lies
The Ultimate Daily Show and Philosophy: More Moments
Edited by Henry Jacoby
of Zen, More Moments of Indecision Theory
The Hunger Games and Philosophy: A Critique of Pure Treason Edited by Jason Holt
Edited by George Dunn and Nicolas Michaud
The Ultimate South Park and Philosophy:
Inception and Philosophy: Because It’s Never Just a Dream Respect My Philosophah!
Edited by David Johnson Edited by Robert Arp and Kevin Decker
Iron Man and Philosophy: Facing the Stark Reality
Edited by Mark D. White
SUPERMAN
AND
PHILOSOPHY
WHAT WOULD THE
MAN OF STEEL DO?
Edited by Mark D. White
A John Wiley & Sons, Inc., Publication
This edition first published 2013
© 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Wiley-Blackwell is an imprint of John Wiley & Sons, formed by the merger of Wiley’s
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Superman and philosophy : what would the Man of Steel do? / edited by Mark D. White.
pages cm. – (The Blackwell philosophy and popCulture series)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-118-01809-5 (pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Superman (Fictitious character) 2. Philosophy in literature. 3. Comic books, strips,
etc–Moral and ethical aspects. I. White, Mark D., 1971–
PN6728.S9S866 2013
741.5′9–dc23
2012050375
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Cover image: © PeskyMonkey/istockphoto
Cover design by www.simonlevyassociates.co.uk
Set in 10.5/13pt Sabon by SPi Publisher Services, Pondicherry, India
1 2013
Contents
Introduction: It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane … It’s Philosophy! 1
Part One The Big Blue Boy Scout: Ethics, Judgment,
and Reason 3
1 Moral Judgment: The Power That Makes
Superman Human 5
Mark D. White
2 Action Comics! Superman and Practical Reason 16
Brian Feltham
3 Can the Man of Tomorrow Be the Journalist of Today? 26
Jason Southworth and Ruth Tallman
4 Could Superman Have Joined the Third Reich?
The Importance and Shortcomings of Moral
Upbringing 37
Robert Sharp
Part Two Truth, Justice, and the American Way:
What Do They Mean? 47
5 Clark Kent Is Superman! The Ethics of Secrecy 49
Daniel P. Malloy
6 Superman and Justice 61
Christopher Robichaud
v
vi CONTENTS
7 Is Superman an American Icon? 71
Andrew Terjesen
Part Three The Will to Superpower: Nietzsche,
theÜbermensch, and Existentialism 83
8 Rediscovering Nietzsche’s Übermensch in Superman
as a Heroic Ideal 85
Arno Bogaerts
9 Superman or Last Man: The Ethics of Superpower 101
David Gadon
10 Superman: From Anti-Christ to Christ-Type 111
Adam Barkman
11 Superman Must Be Destroyed! Lex Luthor as
Existentialist Anti-Hero 121
Sarah K. Donovan and Nicholas Richardson
Part Four The Ultimate Hero: What Do We Expect
fromSuperman? 131
12 Superman’s Revelation: The Problem of Violence in
Kingdom Come 133
David Hatfield
13 A World Without a Clark Kent? 145
Randall M. Jensen
14 The Weight of the World: How Much Is Superman
Morally Responsible For? 157
Audrey L. Anton
Part Five Superman and Humanity: A Match Made
onKrypton? 169
15 Superman and Man: What a Kryptonian Can Teach
Us About Humanity 171
Leonard Finkelman
CONTENTS vii
16 Can the Man of Steel Feel Our Pain? Sympathy and
Superman 181
Andrew Terjesen
17 World’s Finest Philosophers: Superman and Batman on
Human Nature 194
Carsten Fogh Nielsen
Part Six Of Superman and Superminds: Who Is
Superman, Anyway? 205
18 “It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane, It’s … Clark Kent?”
Superman and the Problem of Identity 207
Nicolas Michaud
19 Superman Family Resemblance 217
Dennis Knepp
20 Why Superman Should Not Be Able to Read Minds 225
Mahesh Ananth
Contributors: Trapped in the Philosophy Zone 237
Index: From Brainiac’s Files 243
Introduction
It’s a Bird, It’s a Plane …
It’s Philosophy!
Superman may not have been the first superhero, but ever since his
introduction in Action Comics #1 in 1938, he has been the model for
every superhero to follow. For the past 75 years, Superman has
thrilled millions with his adventures in comic books, movies, and
television shows. His legacy transcends national, cultural, and gener-
ationalborders, mainly because he strikes so many universal themes.
He’s a strange visitor from another planet who longs to be human. He’s
a mild-mannered farm boy from Kansas who wins the heart of a
cosmopolitan reporter from the big city. He’s the idealistic big blue
boy scout who befriends a cynical dark knight detective. Finally, he’s
the ultimate hero who serves as an inspiration for the rest of the
world’s costumed protectors—and a few of its best philosophers.
Many people struggle to identify with Superman, regarding him as
too perfect, too noble, too good. These qualities just make him an
ideal, though, not something to reject but something to aspire to.
When we scratch the surface, we find Superman is not that simple. In
fact, he raises a lot of intriguing philosophical questions. If Superman
is that good, why does he so often resort to violence? Why does he lie
to protect his secret identity, and how does he reconcile this with a
reporter’s devotion to the truth? Could Lex Luthor be right in telling
us Superman is the real threat to humanity? Is Superman the realiza-
tion of Nietzsche’s Übermensch—and is that a good or bad thing?
Just how important is the big red “S,” the cape, and the spit-curl to
Superman and Philosophy: What Would the Man of Steel Do?, First Edition. Edited by Mark D. White.
© 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. Published 2013 by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
1
2 INTRODUCTION
who Superman is? And is there a good reason why Lois can’t tell that
Clark Kent is really Superman?
Superman and Philosophy addresses all these questions and more.
It doesn’t matter whether you’re a casual Superman fan or if you’ve
read all the comics, seen all the movies, and watched all the live-action
TV shows and cartoons. The 20 chapters in this book will answer
some questions you’ve always had, make you think about Superman in
ways you never realized were possible, and teach you a little philosophy
along the way. So tell the Chief you’re taking the day off, find your
own Fortress of Solitude, and start reading. Up, up, and away!
I would like to thank Bill Irwin, the real Superman behind the
Blackwell Philosophy and Pop Culture series, for giving me the honor
of editing this landmark volume. (I really didn’t need to see him in the
costume, though. The Supergirl costume, I mean.) I also thank Connie
Santisteban and Jeff Dean at Wiley-Blackwell for supporting this
book from start to finish. Special thanks go out to my contributors,
who have a job at my large metropolitan newspaper whenever they
want. Finally, all my thanks to the wonderful creators who have made
Superman such a symbol of heroism for the last 75 years, especially
the two who started it all, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster.
Part One
THE BIG BLUE
BOY SCOUT
ETHICS, JUDGMENT,
AND REASON
