Finale

          I said it at the beginning of my presentation on her but I came in knowing little about Batwoman. In fact I did not know there was a Batwoman until this class. Now I know about her and her purpose when she was originally created. Through her creation I understood the expectations put on comics through Seduction of Innocence. Her creation and purpose says much about what parents at the time feared their children being exposed to. It is amazing the lengths society would go to prevent people from becoming opposite of what is expected.    

            All of my ideas about all superheroes were changed through this class. I always thought superheroes were superficial entertaining money makers. That there was nothing more about them other than what was presented on the surface people with powers that fight crime and threats to the world’s safety. I was wrong. Through this class I learned why people decide to become superheroes, the similarities and differences between a hero and a villain, and the philosophies that superheroes can represent. For example, what Wonder Woman says about immigration a melting pot or salad, what the Justice League say about family they are the best of the best, and what their storylines reflect about the era they are written in. It was difficult discovering the main differences between Golden Age, Silver Age, and Dark Age of comics, but once I did it made learning what those stories reflected about the era very interesting.

            Through the readings I learned to look for themes in reading. I am a big reader so it is not unfamiliar for me. However, I have not always been good at finding themes throughout my reading. It is probably because I spend more time imagining what is going on than actually paying attention. So for the readings to prove that there are larger themes present proves that there are more to the readings, even comics, than what is read on the surface. I will have to practice that on my readings for the summer.   

            Something I wish we spent more time on was Superheroes in real-life and probably entertained the thought of villains in real-life. If we have heroes in the real-world, who would be considered the villains? How would villains in the comic narratives compare to villains in the real world? I believe villains in the real world would be more like Veidt. The problem with many villains in movies and comics is that they monologue and then activate their plans. If we had villains in the real world they would make sure there was no way anyone would be able to stop their plan. If we did have villains with the abilities, resources, and goals as the one in comics that would surely mean doomsday for us.

            This class has helped me determine what a good citizen is by informing me of the morality or philosophy behind the choices people make. Bruce Wayne became Batman to go after all criminals after the death of his parents, Rogue wants to be  normal and hug people and that prompts her to receive the “cure”, and Rorschach sees the world in black and white and does not yield to see anything other than that. The citizens of the world have their own moral code that makes them who they are. When I go into my citizenship class next year, Democracy Project, I will keep this in mind. The heroes I see as good citizens would be the Justice League of America. Though they are used to doing things on their own they see past the differences that make them to fight for the greater good of humanity. This is what being a good citizen involves. Though we may not always agree with our neighbors and fellow countrymen we are all aiming towards the betterment of society and our lives.