COLUMN: Moral Kryptonite: Heroes become human
While sitting at the Thanksgiving table chomping down turkey and stuffing with the relatives, my 14-year-old cousin leaned over and whispered in my ear.
“Have you been watching ‘Smallville’ lately?” I admitted that I had not. Despite my entire family’s fascination with all things Superman, I had not been able to free up enough time to spend an hour in front of the television every week.
“Lana is having Lex Luthor’s baby!” she exclaimed, shocked that I didn’t know.
I was shocked too. For those of you who aren’t “Smallville” or Superman fans, you should know that Lex Luthor is the bad guy and should not being having children with anyone, especially Lana, the girl that Clark Kent is supposed to be head over heels for. The news that these kinds of things were going on in my absence was distressing.
Sadly, this comment opened a very interesting dinner conversation. Apparently, “Smallville” characters were not the only superheroes being corrupted. I was told the new Superman movie that came out not too long ago also contained its own illegitimate child, this time borne by Lois Lane. The baby had powers, which logically means he must be Superman’s kid.
This news was also distressing to me, for two reasons. First, because Lois Lane is married to someone else when she has Superman’s kid, and stuff like that just isn’t cool, and second because since Superman’s creation, he has always stood for truth, justice and the American way. He has been the good guy with no faults, something to live up to, minus the super powers, of course.
I think we have kind of dragged the Man of Steel’s name through the mud.
Why does this matter? Heroes always matter.
When I was growing up, my little brother loved superheroes, especially Batman and Superman. They were – and in lots of ways still are – close friends to him. He imitated them and pretended to be just like them all the time, fighting evil, serving justice. It was cute. And for the most part, my mother was OK with it. Batman and Superman were great heroes to have. They were good guys. They stood for good things. They always did what was right.
Not so now. Apparently, in the terms of modern-day superheroes, we are in the market for something a little less super and a lot more human. I’m sad we have lowered our standard.
I’m not saying all heroes are perfect. I don’t believe that. I think of my own personal heroes and, despite all their wonderful admirable qualities, which I admire and respect, I know they aren’t perfect. However, their imperfections are not what I would consider major transgressions to heroism. They are not dishonest or immoral. They keep their integrity no matter the situation or outcome. That’s the important part, the part that makes them a hero.
As you can see, this column is not on a serious political or social issue. It’s not a debate. It’s just a thought. My thought is: our standards are slowly lowering and in the long run, it’s going to hurt us. I don’t want my kids learning that dishonesty or other bad, yet so-called normal, behavior is honorable or heroic.
The question is: what do we do about it?
Mikaylie Kartchner is a senior majoring in print journalism. Comments can be sent to mikayliek@cc.usu.edu.