Our superheroes, ourselves PDF
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Our Superheroes, Ourselves This page intentionally left blank Our Superheroes, Ourselves Edited by Robin S. Rosenberg 3 3 Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide. Oxford New York Auckland Cape Town Dar es Salaam Hong Kong Karachi Kuala Lumpur Madrid Melbourne Mexico City Nairobi New Delhi Shanghai Taipei Toronto With offi ces in Argentina Austria Brazil Chile Czech Republic France Greece Guatemala Hungary Italy Japan Poland Portugal Singapore South Korea Switzerland Thailand Turkey Ukraine Vietnam Oxford is a registered trademark of Oxford University Press in the UK and certain other countries. Published in the United States of America by Oxford University Press 198 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10016 © Robin Rosenberg 2013 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without the prior permission in writing of Oxford University Press, or as expressly permitted by law, by license, or under terms agreed with the appropriate reproduction rights organization. Inquiries concerning reproduction outside the scope of the above should be sent to the Rights Department, Oxford University Press, at the address above. You must not circulate this work in any other form and you must impose this same condition on any acquirer. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Our superheroes, ourselves / edited by Robin S. Rosenberg. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references and index. ISBN 978–0–19–976581–2 (acid-free paper) 1. Comic books, strips, etc.— Psychological aspects. 2. Superheroes—Psychological aspects. 3. Psychology in literature. 4. Archetype (Psychology) I. Rosenberg, Robin S. PN6714.O89 2013 741.5´9—dc23 2012035088 1 3 5 7 9 8 6 4 2 Printed in the United States of America on acid-free paper To Stephen, with whom anything is possible This page intentionally left blank Contents Acknowledgements ix Contributors xi Introduction xiii Robin S. Rosenberg Part I: Our Relationship with Superheroes ONE Our Fascination with Superheroes 3 Robin S. Rosenberg TWO Superhero Comics as Moral Pornography 19 David A. Pizarro and Roy Baumeister THREE Are Superhero Stories Good for Us? Refl ections from Clinical Practice 37 Lawrence C. Rubin FOUR Emotions in Comics: Why the Silver Age of Comics Made a Difference 53 Peter J. Jordan FIVE The Effects of Superhero Sagas on Our Gendered Selves 73 Elizabeth Behm-Morawitz and Hillary Pennell viii Contents Part II: The Humanity of Superheroes SIX Our Superheroes, Our Supervillains: Are They All That Different? 97 Travis Langley SEVEN Are Superheroes Just SuperGifted? 115 Robin S. Rosenberg and Ellen Winner EIGHT The Very Real Work Lives of Superheroes: Illustrations of Work Psychology 139 Gary N. Burns and Megan B. Morris NINE How Super Are Superheroes? 159 Robert J. Sternberg TEN Seven Roads to Justice for Superheroes and Humans 175 Mikhail Lyubansky Index 203 Acknowledgments This book, like every book, is a result of teamwork. The teams whose work has led to this book are numerous and varied. Many thanks to the psychologists who contributed to this book—for being willing to go a bit far afi eld from the usual type of chapters you write, and for doing it so well. Without you, there would be no book. Thanks also go to the teams of comic book creators, interpret- ers, and storytellers, whose stories have intrigued and inspired so many of us. The team at Oxford University Press deserves thanks both for their interest in publishing not just one book on superheroes, but a series, and for their faith in me to be series editor. Specifi cally, thanks to editor Abby Gross, and Director of Publicity (and superhero fan) Purdy, as well as Suzanne Walker, Justyna Zajac, Joan Bossert, and Tracy O’Hara.
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