Superhero Research Paper
Saving the Superhero. There has been a growing concern among parents and professionals alike that the superhero of yesterday is becoming the super villain of today. There has been steady shift from the comic book heroes that used to simply stand for peace, justice, and the American way, into the ultra violent, egocentric, and womanizing characters like we see depicted in the 2008 film Iron Man. In the film Tony Stark, also known as Iron Man, is depicted as a womanizing hero more worried about his ego than the greater good (Iron Man). When in 1963 readers watched in awe as Tony Stark escaped Vietnam in his legendary suit of armor. The superhero once helped us cope with hard times, gave us ideals to look up to, and promoted patriotism,
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but are now beginning to present problems in the home and at school. It is not the heroes or their writers, though, that are to blame. These characters we know and love exist in literally hundreds of child-friendly forms and the benefits of the superhero cannot be overlooked. The Hulk always has and always will "SMASH". It is up to parents to determine when and how their children see and imitate this action. Through early warning signs, knowing how to present the inevitably violent actions, and monitoring the media intake our children receive we can reclaim our once loved heroes and give our children back the super-powered heroes to look up to. Heroes are here to stay and that 's a known fact. Parents should not feel the need to scramble for the remote control during Saturday morning cartoons when Batman begins to air. Instead they should be watching their children for common warning signs like the ones psychologist Erika Bartlett has laid out in her article "The Effects Superheroes Have on Children". Bartlett encourages parents to recognize that: A child who refuses to accept limits or the word ‘no’ and will actually reference using a power to control the situation or the adult (for example "I am going to freeze you" or "blow you up"), A child will reference that they have armor or a shield (and they use it to ignore the adult and/or rules), and a child actually has used physical or verbal aggression.
These are three easily detectable signs that a child will display early on when they are starting to be at risk for the possible negative effects a superhero can present.
Bartlett notes in her article that certain children, largely those with a weak support system, such as children in broken homes or with unsupportive parents, are far more at risk than an average child. Bartlett further states that school yard hero villain play is significantly different than a child attempting to manipulate his/her surroundings by embodying the powers of a hero (Bartlett). Being on the playground and a child saying "you 're the Joker and I am Batman" is harmless superhero play but, when a child embodies the Hulks super strength to break free of his time out and directly disobey his/hers parents punishment, a parent must acknowledge this as one of the early warning signs. These warning signs should not cause parents to panic, but encourage and alert them that it is time to have the "superhero …show more content…
talk". When the warning signs begin to pop up or if the parent determines it is time to redirect some of the aggression their children are exhibiting in hero play, they need to be conscious of the benefits and not shut down hero play all together. Marica Mitchell, who is the director of higher education accreditation and program support at NAEYC, explains the benefits and how a superhero talk should be addressed. Mitchell observes that superhero play supports the development of a strong vocabulary, complex problem solving skills, social responsibilities, and democratic principles all accompanied with great physical activity. Mitchell models a parents transition into the topic of the superhero talk by saying, "Like with any other type of play, my role was to make sure the superhero play was both physically and emotionally safe". Parents can aid in the physically and emotionally safe superhero play by providing a proper environment that fosters the imaginary play. Limiting and considering the type and amount of superhero media shown parents can expect to avoid there issues completely. If children are presented with long hours of violent superhero action they will have learned key problem solving techniques from these ultra violent heroes. Parents need to follow superhero play and media by facilitating conversations that tackle the concept of violence as a problem solving tactic in the real world, as well as, providing examples of everyday heroes and encouraging them to take heroic actions such as recycling and sharing. Mitchell suggests, for example, parents can use examples like Dr. Martin Luther King to teach children what superheroes look like outside of the comics and movies, and what a heroic action in the real world is. It is also good for parents to encourage new types of heroic actions that reach out over a broad spectrum. Examples would include recycling, donating canned goods and clothing, and something as simple as walking the dog. By having the "superhero" talk, presenting real world heroes, and considering content and amount of media viewed parents can present a safe and imaginatively rich environment for their children to grow and learn in. Imitation is the back bone of superhero play for children. Someone has to be the hero to play or the games just would not work. There has been a spike in recent history of superhero play related injuries. The lack of or avoidance of the "superhero talk" leaves children thinking if they concentrate just like Superman they can fly too. A study, by four researchers from the National Institute of Health, takes five cases of superhero play related injuries and examines them to show that these were not just cases of kids being kids, but in fact it 's the result of uncommon risk taking in our children to emulate and imitate their heroes. All five cases involve boys whose ages ranged between three and eight, four of the boys attempted to imitate Spider Man and one Super Man (Davies, Surridge, Hole, and Munro-Davies). These cases show the children climbing out windows to attempt flying to climb the wall of their home like Spider Man is famous for each resulting in moderate injuries. The case does point out the children that have on the padded anatomically correct superhero suits managed to avoid more serious body injury due to the padding (Davies, Surridge, Hole, and Munro-Davies). This is far from acceptable though for teachers and parents alike. Superheroes can teach our children many great values among other benefits but the violence and risk taking needs to be reeled in at home by the parent. The "superhero" talk and recognition of early warning signs will greatly facilitate in the avoidance of injury by imitation. There is an unquestionable amount of benefits that superhero play and media brings to children.
As noted by Mitchell superhero play supports the development of a strong vocabulary, complex problem solving skills, social responsibilities, and democratic principles all accompanied with great physical activity. There are other more subtle benefits superhero play and media brings to the table that the general consensus over looks. Take for instance, Captain America’s involvement with World War II. Americans were having a hard time understanding why we became involved in Europe and what was taking place overseas. Captain America was used to symbolize our involvement in the war, helping people to see that we were fighting the good fight against the tyranny of Nazi Germany. Captain America also presented a way to help Americans understand the war that was simple, fun, and boosted American military support (Bryant 3). Ironman was used in almost the same fashion during the Vietnam War. Ironman was created during the Vietnam conflict and was portrayed being directly involved in the war when he escaped capture using his iconic suit of highly advanced armor. The Vietnam war was met with great resistance throughout the entire conflict, but Ironman gave Americans the hope that even when captured, they would be able to escape or succeed every time (Bryant 5).Ironman has transcended generations and wars to bring more American support to the U.S. Military. In the 2008 Iron Man movie, the
main character, Tony Stark who later becomes Iron Man, is kidnapped in Iraq and held as a prisoner of war until he escapes using a suit of armor he creates out of outdated missile parts (Iron Man). If we review Aiden Bryants ' research, we can plainly see that those exposed to pro-American media involving superheroes express a more patriotic set of answers to the questionnaire provided by Bryant (Bryant 16-21). This suggests that superhero related media not only has a positive and uplifting effect about foreign affairs and the U.S. Military, it is directly related in helping, and not only in adults, the understanding of both why and what our nation stands for. The benefits that superhero play and media bring are extremely important and should not be overlooked simply because the way main stream media is re-characterizing the superhero. Parents and professionals alike that are intimidated by superhero play will claim that the end of the superhero has arrived and they are nothing but villains. By pointing out only the back fire we are seeing today, such as superhero play related injuries, they have ground to stand on. Only by ignoring the large pool of benefits that superhero play offers, for instance complex problem solving and extended vocabulary, is there a valid argument that includes the removal of superheroes from the American house hold. Captain American will always be there for the little guy, especially if that is our children. In conclusion superhero play offers many advantages for our children. Everything from expanding vocabulary, complex problem solving, physical activity, and the development of morals (Mitchell). It is up to the parent though to recognize the warning signs of potential risk taking and overly violent play and step in when needed. Children need their parents to separate reality from fiction and explain being a hero is a great thing but they are not Superman. Encourage the developmental benefits through hero play but also pause the action and explain what is wrong to the child (Mitchell). By recognizing the early warning signs and having the superhero talk America can take back their great superheroes without fear of their children being hurt or using the powers against their peers and parents. The superhero is not a villain, although there has been changes to characterization and plot. The superhero still offers our children a rich and beneficial environment, that encourages and builds both cognitive and physical development needed in the healthy development of our youth.
Works Cited
Bartlett, Erika. "Examiner.com." The Effects Superheroes Have On Children. Clarity Digital Group LLC, 17 May 2012. Web. 14 Jul 2013. .
Bryant, Aidan. "Effects of Superhero Media on Nationalistic Attitudes." MA thesis. Syracuse University, 2010. Web. .
Davies, Patrick, Julia Surridge, Laura Hole, and Lisa Munro-Davies. "Superhero‐related injuries in pediatrics: a case series." National Center for Biotechnology Information. National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 10 Jul 2013. .
Iron Man. Dir. Jon Favreau, and Writ. Mark Fergus. Paramount Pictures, 2008. Film. 15 Jul 2013.
Mitchell, Marcia. "naeyc." The Year the Superheroes and Villains Came. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 13 Mar 2013. Web. 14 Jul 2013. .
but are now beginning to present problems in the home and at school. It is not the heroes or their writers, though, that are to blame. These characters we know and love exist in literally hundreds of child-friendly forms and the benefits of the superhero cannot be overlooked. The Hulk always has and always will "SMASH". It is up to parents to determine when and how their children see and imitate this action. Through early warning signs, knowing how to present the inevitably violent actions, and monitoring the media intake our children receive we can reclaim our once loved heroes and give our children back the super-powered heroes to look up to. Heroes are here to stay and that 's a known fact. Parents should not feel the need to scramble for the remote control during Saturday morning cartoons when Batman begins to air. Instead they should be watching their children for common warning signs like the ones psychologist Erika Bartlett has laid out in her article "The Effects Superheroes Have on Children". Bartlett encourages parents to recognize that: A child who refuses to accept limits or the word ‘no’ and will actually reference using a power to control the situation or the adult (for example "I am going to freeze you" or "blow you up"), A child will reference that they have armor or a shield (and they use it to ignore the adult and/or rules), and a child actually has used physical or verbal aggression.
These are three easily detectable signs that a child will display early on when they are starting to be at risk for the possible negative effects a superhero can present.
Bartlett notes in her article that certain children, largely those with a weak support system, such as children in broken homes or with unsupportive parents, are far more at risk than an average child. Bartlett further states that school yard hero villain play is significantly different than a child attempting to manipulate his/her surroundings by embodying the powers of a hero (Bartlett). Being on the playground and a child saying "you 're the Joker and I am Batman" is harmless superhero play but, when a child embodies the Hulks super strength to break free of his time out and directly disobey his/hers parents punishment, a parent must acknowledge this as one of the early warning signs. These warning signs should not cause parents to panic, but encourage and alert them that it is time to have the "superhero …show more content…
talk". When the warning signs begin to pop up or if the parent determines it is time to redirect some of the aggression their children are exhibiting in hero play, they need to be conscious of the benefits and not shut down hero play all together. Marica Mitchell, who is the director of higher education accreditation and program support at NAEYC, explains the benefits and how a superhero talk should be addressed. Mitchell observes that superhero play supports the development of a strong vocabulary, complex problem solving skills, social responsibilities, and democratic principles all accompanied with great physical activity. Mitchell models a parents transition into the topic of the superhero talk by saying, "Like with any other type of play, my role was to make sure the superhero play was both physically and emotionally safe". Parents can aid in the physically and emotionally safe superhero play by providing a proper environment that fosters the imaginary play. Limiting and considering the type and amount of superhero media shown parents can expect to avoid there issues completely. If children are presented with long hours of violent superhero action they will have learned key problem solving techniques from these ultra violent heroes. Parents need to follow superhero play and media by facilitating conversations that tackle the concept of violence as a problem solving tactic in the real world, as well as, providing examples of everyday heroes and encouraging them to take heroic actions such as recycling and sharing. Mitchell suggests, for example, parents can use examples like Dr. Martin Luther King to teach children what superheroes look like outside of the comics and movies, and what a heroic action in the real world is. It is also good for parents to encourage new types of heroic actions that reach out over a broad spectrum. Examples would include recycling, donating canned goods and clothing, and something as simple as walking the dog. By having the "superhero" talk, presenting real world heroes, and considering content and amount of media viewed parents can present a safe and imaginatively rich environment for their children to grow and learn in. Imitation is the back bone of superhero play for children. Someone has to be the hero to play or the games just would not work. There has been a spike in recent history of superhero play related injuries. The lack of or avoidance of the "superhero talk" leaves children thinking if they concentrate just like Superman they can fly too. A study, by four researchers from the National Institute of Health, takes five cases of superhero play related injuries and examines them to show that these were not just cases of kids being kids, but in fact it 's the result of uncommon risk taking in our children to emulate and imitate their heroes. All five cases involve boys whose ages ranged between three and eight, four of the boys attempted to imitate Spider Man and one Super Man (Davies, Surridge, Hole, and Munro-Davies). These cases show the children climbing out windows to attempt flying to climb the wall of their home like Spider Man is famous for each resulting in moderate injuries. The case does point out the children that have on the padded anatomically correct superhero suits managed to avoid more serious body injury due to the padding (Davies, Surridge, Hole, and Munro-Davies). This is far from acceptable though for teachers and parents alike. Superheroes can teach our children many great values among other benefits but the violence and risk taking needs to be reeled in at home by the parent. The "superhero" talk and recognition of early warning signs will greatly facilitate in the avoidance of injury by imitation. There is an unquestionable amount of benefits that superhero play and media brings to children.
As noted by Mitchell superhero play supports the development of a strong vocabulary, complex problem solving skills, social responsibilities, and democratic principles all accompanied with great physical activity. There are other more subtle benefits superhero play and media brings to the table that the general consensus over looks. Take for instance, Captain America’s involvement with World War II. Americans were having a hard time understanding why we became involved in Europe and what was taking place overseas. Captain America was used to symbolize our involvement in the war, helping people to see that we were fighting the good fight against the tyranny of Nazi Germany. Captain America also presented a way to help Americans understand the war that was simple, fun, and boosted American military support (Bryant 3). Ironman was used in almost the same fashion during the Vietnam War. Ironman was created during the Vietnam conflict and was portrayed being directly involved in the war when he escaped capture using his iconic suit of highly advanced armor. The Vietnam war was met with great resistance throughout the entire conflict, but Ironman gave Americans the hope that even when captured, they would be able to escape or succeed every time (Bryant 5).Ironman has transcended generations and wars to bring more American support to the U.S. Military. In the 2008 Iron Man movie, the
main character, Tony Stark who later becomes Iron Man, is kidnapped in Iraq and held as a prisoner of war until he escapes using a suit of armor he creates out of outdated missile parts (Iron Man). If we review Aiden Bryants ' research, we can plainly see that those exposed to pro-American media involving superheroes express a more patriotic set of answers to the questionnaire provided by Bryant (Bryant 16-21). This suggests that superhero related media not only has a positive and uplifting effect about foreign affairs and the U.S. Military, it is directly related in helping, and not only in adults, the understanding of both why and what our nation stands for. The benefits that superhero play and media bring are extremely important and should not be overlooked simply because the way main stream media is re-characterizing the superhero. Parents and professionals alike that are intimidated by superhero play will claim that the end of the superhero has arrived and they are nothing but villains. By pointing out only the back fire we are seeing today, such as superhero play related injuries, they have ground to stand on. Only by ignoring the large pool of benefits that superhero play offers, for instance complex problem solving and extended vocabulary, is there a valid argument that includes the removal of superheroes from the American house hold. Captain American will always be there for the little guy, especially if that is our children. In conclusion superhero play offers many advantages for our children. Everything from expanding vocabulary, complex problem solving, physical activity, and the development of morals (Mitchell). It is up to the parent though to recognize the warning signs of potential risk taking and overly violent play and step in when needed. Children need their parents to separate reality from fiction and explain being a hero is a great thing but they are not Superman. Encourage the developmental benefits through hero play but also pause the action and explain what is wrong to the child (Mitchell). By recognizing the early warning signs and having the superhero talk America can take back their great superheroes without fear of their children being hurt or using the powers against their peers and parents. The superhero is not a villain, although there has been changes to characterization and plot. The superhero still offers our children a rich and beneficial environment, that encourages and builds both cognitive and physical development needed in the healthy development of our youth.
Works Cited
Bartlett, Erika. "Examiner.com." The Effects Superheroes Have On Children. Clarity Digital Group LLC, 17 May 2012. Web. 14 Jul 2013. .
Bryant, Aidan. "Effects of Superhero Media on Nationalistic Attitudes." MA thesis. Syracuse University, 2010. Web. .
Davies, Patrick, Julia Surridge, Laura Hole, and Lisa Munro-Davies. "Superhero‐related injuries in pediatrics: a case series." National Center for Biotechnology Information. National Center for Biotechnology Information, U.S. National Library of Medicine, n.d. Web. 10 Jul 2013. .
Iron Man. Dir. Jon Favreau, and Writ. Mark Fergus. Paramount Pictures, 2008. Film. 15 Jul 2013.
Mitchell, Marcia. "naeyc." The Year the Superheroes and Villains Came. National Association for the Education of Young Children, 13 Mar 2013. Web. 14 Jul 2013. .