I think the biggest responsibility for a superhero is concealing their identity. On a daily basis, we all tend to act in various ways around different types of people. If you live the life as a night time crime fighter and an average Joe during the day, then keeping your identity hidden is imperative. In the case of Clark Kent, if Louis was to find out that he was Superman, she would be constantly worrying about his safety and forbid him to go fight crime. It would prevent him from upholding his duties and protecting the city. Another point that Grant Morrison pointed out was when he was discussing the thought of marriage to Louis Lane. As a married couple, Kent would feel obligated to tell her the truth. Lin marriage, Louis would carry out various roles such as making sure he is home in time for dinner. While it may be an act of love, it seems to me that it can be quite destructive. Another reason why it is important to have a secret identity is because it can protect the ones you love. When you are fighting some of the world’s strongest super villains, you don’t want them holding your family and friends for ransom and putting their life into danger.
The rise of the superhero is all based on the society they came from. As a comic book artist the hardest problem is to create an appealing story that is going to sell. By implementing current events in the stories, it provided young readers with not only insight but imagination as well. Wars played a large role in the creation of comics. When you have a recession and life is focused on war efforts, it is hard to simply ignore the topics. I also think this pertained to young readers because they were not old enough for the draft. The superheroes on the front lines of battle gave them something to believe in and make them feel as if they were a part of it. With the comic code being put into play as well, artists were limited on what they could write about. With these types of restrictions it was the events in society that shaped the superheroes.
Comparing these insights to my own life is rather difficult. When I think of concealing your identity it would be hard to do tremendous tasks and not receive the credit for them. Keeping a large secret to myself would be beyond difficult and every day I would probably wish that I could confide in someone. But even then, I don’t think there is anyone that you could fully trust to keep that secret. At the same time I also believe that you should be yourself all the time and your behavior should not change depending on who you are around. Superheroes have huge duties and many responsibilities. They are inspiring and motivational, but I don’t think I could ever fill that big of shoes.
I agree with you that it would be amazing hard to try an be a superhero. When you put into perspectives that you have done it really sounds like an inpossible job. Like you said, who wouldn't want the credit for saving the world from alien invaders or nuclear bombs? But at the same time, who is going to come after you personally after knowing who you are? It seems like it would be a very hard position to fulfill which is probably why it makes it so awesome to read about.
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