Alan Moore's Watchmen As The Golden Age Of Superheroes In American Literature

When read with a critical eye, the world of superhero comics often offers a lens with which we can examine society, our values, the meaning of justice, and the role of the individual in regards to the greater community. If all of this information is garnered from critical reading, then the way in which the medium of comics constructs these meanings will reflect an embrace or a rejection of the common symbols and ideology of it’s source culture. In the case of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbon’s 1987 graphic novel, Watchmen, the second approach is used, as Moore’s writing draws upon the common cultural understanding of superheroes and exaggerates or tweaks them, exposing their underlying ideals. In this way, Watchmen functions not only as a

Superheroes can be defined in many ways by many experts. Clare Pitkethly’s academic background consists of comparative literature, culture and communication as she also speaks and writes comic books and superhero, defines a superhero to be different. In Pitkethly’s article “Straddling a Boundary: The Superhero and the Incorporation of Difference,” talks about

A hero is universally seen as a selfless individual who puts the needs of others before themselves. Heroes usually hold the same values; honor, nobility, integrity, and strength. Now what happens when a person does not hold those heroic values? What if their motivations did not have good intentions? These are the questions that will be answered using the deconstruction critical lenses. “Today, it is much harder to detach the concept of heroism from morality; we only call heroes those whom we admire and wish to emulate.” (Lebarge web) The Greek myth of Theseus and the Minotaur has evolved into the modern trilogy of Batman which, when deconstructed, reveals how the selfish motivations of

The concept of a hero has been around for many generations, and the meaning of a hero is defined in ways people grasp its idea. A hero can be a person who has a superpower and is willing to make a personal sacrifice for the benefit of others or can be an ordinary everyday person who just wants to help people out of his or her own heart. Linda Seger’s article, “Creating the Myth,” tackles the idea of a “Hero 's Myth,” and shows the ten steps of how heroes are transformed from an ordinary person to the Savior. On the other hand, Robert B. Ray piece titled, “The Thematic Paradigm,” emphasizes that in modern films, it is either having an “Outlaw Hero or an Official Hero,” which he uses three stages to demonstrates how they are different each other in the way they perform in the society. Further, the article, “Out of Character: Wonder Woman’s Strength Is Her Compassion - What Happened?” by Stevie St. John, explains how Wonder Woman was viewed as a compassionate woman in the 1940s and 1950s, and in the 2000s she changes into a more violent person. In this essay, I argue that a hero is subjective, and is defined by the villain or event that they had to adapt to suddenly.

Superman, Wonder Woman, Spiderman—what do all these characters have in common? They are all products of the human aspiration to be saved. The word hero is passed around too much these days. A hero is not a football player that scores the game-winning touchdown or the goaltender who saves his team from a loss. A hero is usually an ordinary person that did extraordinary things. A true hero is really never a hero at all; at least not in their own mind. However, there are various cases today in which we see the exact opposites of these characters, the anti-heroes. The anti-hero is one who cannot be classified as a hero, for that said character lacks natural heroic qualities. However, the anti-hero cannot be described as a villain either.

The portrayal of superheroes in films has changed in terms of their character, appearance, style and strength. Superheroes has been a popular theme in hollywood films since its inception. They are what peoples imagination can only think of. A perfect human being who saves the world .The first time superhero appeared on T.V was “The Adventures of Captain Marvel” in 1941. Superheroes was on the rise within popular comic books in 1930′s to the 1940’s as well in which they were considered the ‘Golden Age of Comic Books’ . Comic books became widespread and popular which translated into making films about them.

Good and bad a requirement in all superhero stories, without either one of them the story just remains incomplete. Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons two well-known writers in the graphic story medium. Both authors worked together to create a fantastic piece of work; The Watchmen. In the graphic novel, Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, the central theme portrayed throughout the graphic novel is the good versus bad. Throughout history, us humans have tried to obtain powers over others, for example, the World Wars, British rule in India, Rwanda Genocide; they were all a big fight for power. Some used the power for good things while other used it for evil things. It isn’t necessary for a hero to have super powers they can just be seen as anyone that helps out the society and

An archetype is an universal theme or pattern in literature, television, and character. One of today's archetypes is superheroes. They all tend to start from a tragic, usually family death, background, but somehow they constantly want to ameliorate the world. Then at some point, they will discover a gift they have and use their inhuman powers towards the benefit of humanity. However, they all have a weakness that reminds them that they are human. They will learn to cope with their problems and eventually overcome it. My example of this archetype is Supergirl on the CW. Her family dies on Krypton, when it explodes, but sends her to Earth to take care of her cousin (Superman). Because he was already Superman when she arrived, she had

Watchmen is a revolutionary piece of literature. It is technically a comic book, some prefer to call it a graphic novel. There is a negative connotation that goes along with that. Graphic novels are frequently presumed too childish and fantastic to actually teach any insightful lessons or even make you ponder them at all. Watchmen is a graphic novel that transcends this undue criticism of comic books. It is, “One of the first instances ... of [a] new kind of comic book ... a first phase of development, the transition of the superhero from fantasy to literature." (Klock, pgs. 25-26)

Subsequently, while most superhero plots involve an element of fantasy, the characters in Moore’s graphic novel are, for the most part, embedded into pessimistic version of reality with only lifelike traits. Obviously, the one glaring exception in Watchmen is Doctor Manhattan, who is transformed into a being capable of a number of otherworldly abilities. However, the other five heroes in the story are regular humans who take the initiative to aid in the protection of society. This is unlike most superheroes in previous comics, who are often blessed with a divine power that allows them to conquer all evil. Additionally, referring to the society in which Moore’s heroes are immersed in, it is situated in a location known to its readers, with a certain twist. While Superman has his Metropolis and Batman has his Gotham City, the six costumed adventurers are based in New York City, or more accurately, a filthy parody of it. The universe in which Moore sets his story is the closest to reality, with a hyperbolic emphasis on the evil in society, in which superheroes have been set it. Hence, the problems presented to the superheroes are not something to be combatted with fantastical talents, but more nuanced with realistic obstacles without a clear solution. In Watchmen, the imminent threat of nuclear war is a state of affairs that would have been realistic for readers, particularly during the time period of the graphic novel’s release in 1987. This, coupled with the urban violence

Rorschach wasn’t always Rorschach he was born Walter Joseph Kovacs. Rorschach didn’t have an easy life growing up, his mother was prostitute, and didn’t even know who his father was. His mother was abusive, he was raised in poverty, and as a child he got into an extremely violent fight with two bullies in school. When the situation and his home life were investigated he was taken into a shelter or “Home for Problem Children”. He had a couple of hobbies as a child that got him into the physical state he is now, and eventually started working at a dress shop. Rorschach then made a mask out of a dress that was rejected by its owner. Rorschach was reading a news article two years later about the rape and murder of a young girl, and he wanted to do something about it. Rorschach then began fighting crime under the mask vigilante named “Rorschach”. Rorschach believes that people are either good, or

Allen Moore’s sordid depiction of twentieth century life presents a complex world, where the distinction between a virtuous hero and a villainous wrongdoer is often blurred. In stark contrast to the traditionally popularized portrayal of superheroes, whose unquestionably altruistic motives ultimately produce unrealistically idealized results; the realistically flawed characters of Watchmen exist in a multi faceted world characterized by moral ambiguity. America’s imperialistic ambitions have long been justified as an expression of American idealism. Much like the portrayal of superheroes in popular culture, America’s intervention in foreign affairs was portrayed as the result of a clearly defined problem, where American intervention was

Watchmen by Alan Moore and illustrated by Dave Gibbons utilizes the literary tool of symbols. Symbols such as the smiley pin, clocks, and the haunting “who watches the watchmen” graffiti all come up several times in the graphic novel, thus alluding to a deeper meaning. Time is a major theme throughout the comic and plays a significant part in the structure and outcome of the story. This theme is successfully coupled to the theme of destiny by the use of the clock and other symbols that are present throughout the comic. Symbols such as clocks, the smiley pin, and the graffiti are utilized to efficiently connect the themes of time, justice and loss of innocence throughout Watchmen.

Now in these days everyone one likes to read comic books since they became part of our society. What makes them interesting is how entertaining they could get giving us different points of views on different stories of superheroes. Many of us believe that “Classic superheroes stories are wildly fun, suspenseful and exciting” (Tom and Matt Morris) forgetting the idea of what really makes a hero. Different perceptions of superheroes are considered based on their wrong actions and way of thinking. Frank’s Miller Batman: The Dark Knight Returns is one of the comic books that make us “rethink the conception of the superhero and press each of us to reconsider some of the fundamental moral principles

Back towards the beginning of American history we see superheroes arising for the first time in our culture. They were not necessarily able to fly or see through walls. However, they were still extraordinary people. Their stories were passed from father to son and the story grew with every telling. People like Paul Bunyan and Pecos Bill were just two of the many tales of the time which spoke of men doing extraordinary things. These tales wouldn’t excite forever, though. As years go by our country and its people become less and less naïve and craved more. A giant man with a blue ox and an axe just could not suffice. People become more and more numb to pain and murder, and needed more than these tall tales.