| Title | : | Captain America and the Struggle of the Superhero: Critical Essays |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 0786437030 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9780786437030 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 243 |
| Publication | : | First published January 1, 2009 |
For more than 60 years, Captain America was one of Marvel Comics' flagship characters, representing truth, strength, liberty, and justice. The assassination of his alter ego, Steve Rogers, rocked the comic world, leaving numerous questions about his life and death. This book discusses topics including the representation of Nazi Germany in Captain America Comics from the 1940s to the 1960s; the creation of Captain America in light of the Jewish American experience; the relationship between Captain America and UK Marvel's Captain Britain; the groundbreaking partnership between Captain America and African American superhero the Falcon; and the attempts made to kill the character before his "real" death.
Captain America and the Struggle of the Superhero: Critical Essays Reviews
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It was interesting and yet curiously disappointing to read a dozen academic essays on the Captain America comic books. It was great to read insights on Cap's obsession with his dead sidekick, his infrequent use of guns, the villain propaganda, etc; however, I almost felt like this just wasn't right. Though I see comic books as great, thought-provoking literature, it is still all escapist literature. Wonderful stuff, but not meant for the academic elite (or at least not to be written about in that style with footnotes, works cited, etc.) Fine line, I guess. I had a professor in college who would turn over in his grave (he's not dead, I don't think) upon hearing of this book's publication.
