Ernst Cassier, in his text The Myth of the State, makes the claim that the primary function of myth is to promote a feeling of unity and harmony between members of the society the myth belongs to. This is the lens through which I want to examine character. It's ability to aid literature in its role as myth, and in filling this role, the effect it has on uniting society and the masses. In his reflection on the genre film, Thomas Schatz says that considering something as popular folktale or myth gives it the ability to reflect ritualized collective ideals. The focus of his piece is on the role of the genre-film in culture, but the transition of his argument into the medium of literature is easily accomplished. One can see how characters that mirror aspects of humanity or that capture particular instances of the basic human condition are almost universally relatable to regardless of culture. Thus the power of character is made apparent through the life of a fictional entity we see parts of ourselves; they become a window of reliability. We relate to some of these sights, and some evoke feelings of separation, these two concepts both different and similar become a corner stone of character itself. We see the evil or selfish actions of a character and, shaking our heads disapprovingly, and compare their actions to our own that we perceive as noble or just. Though good and evil are concepts that all men and women can perceive, characters also reflect cultural conflicts, such as political, social, or economic struggles inherent to the experience a member of a particular culture would understand.
I have for a long time considered one particular subset of literature to be an exemplary example of modern myth. The comic book, or graphic novel, reflects the society and culture around it in a way that, to borrow a phrase from Claude Levi-Strauss, creates "the expression of unobservable realities in terms of observable phenomena." It is no great leap of logic to make the claim that it does this through the characters that live within its pages. Take the villain, representing chaos and self-service with no consideration for humanity as a whole. Either they operate outside of the laws that govern society, or make outright attempts to break down the laws themselves, to cast our carefully constructed world into doubt and unfamiliarity. We look down on them and in doing so we see what we don't want to be. In the contrast between them and us, we reaffirm our belief that we are different in a very fundamental way; that we are better because we adhere to the laws that all members of a society should adhere to. When we see Clark Kent saving innocent people from tragedy we silently approve of his dedication to the safety of all men and women. When we see Peter Parker struggling to balance a low paying job, a love life with a beautiful woman, and his role as a masked protector halting the attempts of thugs and low life degenerates from robbing banks and businesses we see our own lives, our own struggles and recognize the ability that we possess to rise above them to do good on a greater scale. When we see Captain America battling for truth and justice under a banner of red white and blue we see the noble pursuit of equality that we can each strive to live up to. This empathy and understanding the reader experiences is one of the greatest powers that character possesses. Though none of us have been infused with super-serum, been bit by radioactive arachnids, or are in fact the last son of Krypton, we see their exaggerated and fantastic lives reflecting our own will to do good, and this reassurance is a comfort. Some characters reflect the best parts of us, some reflect the worst. I believe this to be the real purpose of character: to examine a life that is not our own and compare it to ours, and in doing so, perhaps gain some insight on ourselves.
There is one major gap that needs to be bridged in order for the self-identification of the reader and the protagonist to be fulfilled. That gap is the one created by providing the protagonist with supernatural powers, or any kind of impossible ability (in the case of batman his resources and intellect exist on a near inhuman level, despite not actually having powers). Creating a character that does not face death is creating a character that is very difficult to identify with. Thus a weakness or vulnerability must exist, something that makes their mortality a tangible thing. Kryptonite can kill superman, and lack of exposure to the yellow sun earth orbits will drain him of power and stamina. Peter Parker is fall more vulnerable than Superman, but his primary weakness is the complication caused by his aunt and longtime love, Mary Jane Watson. In this situation we see his weakness embodied by the possibility of harm or death caused to the people he cares most about as a result of him fighting evil as Spiderman. The existence of vulnerability is essential to creating parallels between oneself and the hero, thus it is essential for a reader to see a character as an idealized self.
The characters I've mentioned have existed in the hearts and minds of the American people for decades, and yet they remain fresh and interesting. This is because they adapt to reflect the cultural conflicts taking place in the real world at the time they are written into existence. During their origins around the Second World War they stood as a fictionalized depiction of the American Ideals. They reflected the thought that America's participation in the battle against the Nazi war machine was one born of a desire to uphold truth, justice, and freedom. During Vietnam there was a divergence. While some stood behind the flag, even being written into stories of fighting alongside American soldiers or outing communist sympathizers in the states, others focused on the tragedy of America's involvement in the war. It was in the 1970's that the Time Magazine writer Gerald Clarke stated Superman was a reflection of the modern times; a character existing in a world where "only the man with superpowers can survive and prosper." It was during these times that well known and established characters began to change more drastically and much more frequently to reflect a society that was doing the exact same. The use of character served to reflect the difference in opinions on the war that existed in our society.
The longevity that the comic book hero has maintained is truly astonishing. To imagine the comic book tale as a popular form of modern myth is also to acknowledge that unlike the traditional or most commonly recognized structures of myth, this one has been undergoing constant change, the amount of change itself growing exponentially since creation. The original character of Superman is intensely different from who he is now, and also who he was 20 years ago, or 30 years ago. The same is true for all heroes. The longer a character lives in the spotlight of our cultural awareness, the more it has to change and bend to the will of new aspects of that culture to remain relevant, to remain a true reflection.
To observe this in comic books one can look at the progression of many familiar characters through what is commonly defined as the Golden, Silver, and Bronze (or modern) age of comic books. The golden age is most frequently associated with the medium's beginnings, and extends into the 1950's. During this period the comic book reflected mythology not only in the terms that Schatz and Levi-Strauss put forth, but also in a very literal way. Wonder Woman originated as a princess of an pseudo Greek Amazonian Culture, the shield of Captain America that represents his country is easily comparable to the shield given to Aeneas that represents Rome, and Superman was a godlike figure who had come to earth from the heavens as a means to deliver the world from catastrophe and tragedy. Like Achilles and his heel, Superman was invincible to everything save his vulnerability to kryptonite. In terms of cultural reflection, we see Superman as the ultimate story of successful immigration to America. He came from an entirely different culture, but adopted the ideals of America's completely and entirely, often heralded as a character fighting for "truth, justice, and the American way." Captain America is the other prime example, his character is a very clear idealization of the American culture as a whole. While young men were taking off for Europe to battle the Nazi war machine, Captain America was fighting the exact same battle inside 4 color pages at every news stand across the country.
The Silver Age of Comic books took on the new interests that were captivating the nation during its run from the 1950's to the 1970's. These interests took on a science fiction theme, which seems only natural as, we see culture becoming very interested in the role of technology in American life. The rise of atomic power, the cold war, the red scare, and the space race all took place during the rise of Peter Parker who gained his powers from the bite of a radioactive spider and the Fantastic Four who gained their powers after being exposed to solar radiation while on a mission to space. Superman went from being restricted to living on earth to being able to fly to other solar systems and galaxies, his vision became so "super" that he could analyze microorganisms and perceive the entire electromagnetic spectrum. With the threat of nuclear war on the mind of the individual, Superman could now withstand an atomic bomb's blast and remain unharmed. New threats to the culture were being dealt as they came into existence in the mind of the average American. The introduction of the X-men coincided with the early stages of the civil rights movement and dealt very heavily with issues of racism through a safe, inoffensive, and approachable story. Though the original team was made up entirely of Caucasian men and women, they were labeled as mutants and thus faced a tremendous amount of bigotry and prejudice. They battled for equality of their people as they fought evil to protect the normal every day American citizen.
The Silver Age was also a time where attention began to focus heavily on the personal lives of each hero. People were no longer content to see a character's life take place only in the public eye. Spiderman exemplifies this especially with his struggle to balance family, a love life, and school as he uses his power to stop crime and help people in need. This signifies the need for change, not only to reflect culture, but also to expand and build on the complexity of the character, to keep them from becoming stagnant or boring. In discussing the western genre of American film, Robert Warshaw states "We do not want to see the same movie over and over again, only the same form." This idea couldn't be more related to the comic book medium.
Depending on the opinion one subscribes to, one event signifies the end of the Silver Age, or the beginning of the Bronze age, which runs from the 1970's to the 1980's: The death of Gwen Stacy at the hands of the Green Goblin, and in part, her lover Peter Parker. This death is significant in being the beginning of the move to dark and gritty story lines that reflect an American culture that itself was becoming more cynical and explorative in questioning already established thought. We see for the first time minority characters entering the limelight in comics. The new line up of the X-men has a blue character called Nightcrawler, who resembles a demon but is also a devout catholic and an extremely religious character, not to mention a Russian named Colossus, and an especially well known Canadian named Wolverine.
The end of the Bronze Age during the 1980's signifies the beginning of what is most commonly referred to as the modern age of comic books. This is widely accepted as the age that is still around today. The 90's brought about a strange turn for our heroes and villains. As information became more widely accessible and America became vastly more tolerant of race and background, the comic book became much less black and white, and far more open to interpretation. The joker is no longer evil, he is clinically insane. Galactus came to earth to destroy all life not out of malicious intent, but because he is hungry and devours worlds to survive, and his herald, the Silver Surfer performed his role out of duty and promise, himself harboring no ill intent. During this time period actions that were once considered evil become understandable, and caused by events and situations that cannot be helped.
We also see the rise of the anti-hero. Wolverine and Batman become "by any means necessary" heroes, often acting in ways that are unjust to serve a greater good. We see the Punisher as a direct opposite to the truth and justice of golden age Superman, killing people he deems bad without remorse or mercy. Stories became more complex to reflect a culture that itself was becoming more complex. The characters changing was unavoidable.
It is also during the Bronze Age that the literal death of the old hero occurred. Onslaught murdered not only Captain America, but the Avengers and the Fantastic Four. Batman has his back broken in a confrontation with the powerhouse Bane. The most well-known event in comic books during the 1990's is the death of Superman at the hands of Doomsday, a creature devoid of reason or understanding, a voiceless monster that crossed America destroying everything in his path. Superman's death was not the death of a character; it was the death of his past. It was the death of where the medium had begun; he was the one character who had changed the least, the one that still represented the American Ideal that comic books grew out of. He was killed and in his place, different variations of the character, all darker and more twisted came to be. American culture was no longer interested in the past, and wanted the medium to reflect what was happening in the present.
My own personal experiences in observing the comic book act as myth by reflecting cultural needs and conflicts revolve around post 9/11 America. Almost a decade ago, in a time when 9/11 was fresh in our minds, these characters, were drawn alongside firefighters and policemen. There are two images that still stand out in my mind.
One is Captain America kneeling, holding a young girl's hand; tears' flowing from his eyes as a policeman helps him to stand and a firefighter orders his fellow men to help rescue someone from the wreckage of the towers.
The other is Victor Von (Doctor) Doom, stoic and terrible in his Latverian castle, tears in his eyes at the cowardice of the people who committed the acts that make the day so memorable to us. Picture a young reader, not fully understanding the repercussions of what was occurring in the news, seeing his favorite literary characters crying over the events of that day. Imagine the understanding that would stem from that moment, the sudden clarity of just how big of an event it was. To pursue this reflection even further, recall the faltering support of the American government and the disillusionment with the Iraq war among many Americans in the years after the towers fell. In one of the biggest events in the history of the Marvel universe Steve Rogers, better known as Captain America directly assesses these feelings. He says:
Doesn't matter what the press says. Doesn't matter what the politicians or the mobs say. Doesn't matter if the whole country decides that something wrong is something right. This nation was founded on one principle above all else: the requirement that we stand up for what we believe, no matter the odds or the consequences. When the mob and the press and the whole world tell you to move, your job is to plant yourself like a tree beside the river of truth, and tell the whole world - "No, you move."
Again, we see a clear example of a character reflecting the conflicts of the world the reader resides in, so directly that he is almost breaking the fourth wall. In seeking understanding of the character, the reader can see the personification of cultural issues that need to be addressed, even if they are not fully aware of the issues in a conscious way. This is a perfect example of Levi-Strauss's unobservable realities versus observable phenomena. This particular example is one that is given extra emphasis by the fact that the character is justifying dissent against the authoritative powers of the society he stands for in pursuit of truth and righteousness. This reflection of conflict, defined by character, is exactly what Levi-Strauss and Schatz are defining as myth.
The idea of character is a vast one, and even if one assembled a room full of the world's most amazing creators of literature and character they would most likely end up providing different answers on what it truly is. However, in a time where the notion of myth is overshadowed by information, scientific discovery, and religion, where do we go to celebrate the temporarily resolved cultural conflict? Where do we look when we want to find answers to questions we may not have asked ourselves? What do we do when we find ourselves seeking out instances of our own nature, of our own humanity? The answer might be closer than you think; nestled in life of a character living in the pages of a newsstand comic. As a boy that was bitten by a radioactive spider, as a man fighting for truth and justice under the banner of a country that has begun to forget the real meaning of both, or as a red and blue clad hero that landed in Kansas as a baby wrapped in a red blanket over 50 years ago.
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