Youth : OPINION : Let’s Bring Superman Back
He leaps tall buildings with a single bound, is faster than a speeding bullet and is more powerful than a locomotive. All impressive, awe-inspiring feats by the super-hero once upon a time are now passe. No one seems to bother with the classic vision of a hero anymore. Some people even laugh at the ideals they represented: purity of purpose, virtue and the desire to do good. Instead, we look to the great dollar sign, the symbol of success and the true measure of the heroic figure in our modern society. Is this the concept of the hero these days?
Ask a little kid who his heroes are and most likely he’ll reel off some names of sports figures or entertainers. Ask him why they’re his heroes and he’ll probably say they’re “cool” because they’re very visible. He’s seen them on television. They make a lot of money. They wear “cool” clothes. They’re talented.
It’s certainly not because they exhibit altruistic qualities and such. And these “heroes” are not reserved for the very young. Many adults crave the stardom of the rich and famous and that’s probably because our society has become so oriented toward material gain. They think what you have makes you what you are or the more you have, the more you become. By our adulation, we feed their egos so they become richer and more self-absorbed than ever. It is a vicious cycle.
So what happened to Superman? He was great in the old days. His wealth lay in his supernatural powers; he had a regular job and a troubled love life. He tried hard to be human. He was fun and he made his fans happy. Those were the simple times, when putting a criminal behind bars made everyone feel satisfied. You just had to perform a good deed with a little flair and you were admired. Now such purity seems corny. Poor Superman is dated. His appeal has suffered the blows of the kryptonite of society. He just isn’t cool enough anymore. Oh, there are still some individuals around who maintain that they admire people who perform selfless acts: those who risk their lives to save others or sacrifice for strangers as some did during World War II by harboring those escaping tyranny. Sometimes it’s even closer to home: They admire a parent or a sibling.
Once in awhile, they even mention respect. That’s a quality that seems to be dying right along with Superman. Some of the most popular heroes these days have a smart mouth and gain popularity because they make derogatory or inflammatory statements in public. They are excused because of their status or their entertainment value.
What would it take to bring Superman back? The 1950s? A new mentality? Censorship of the media? Many people feel it’s a lost cause. We should just keep things on a personal level, have our heroes in private, corny or not. Maybe Superman can become a basketball player and live in Beverly Hills. That alone would greatly multiply his following. He could always develop an Austrian accent, a space between his front teeth and . . . he’d be back!