Superhero Influences: Connotations and Cultural Codes in Comic Book Culture

Abstract

This thesis examines the role and representation of the superhero in establishing socio-political ideology through connotations and cultural codes. Beginning with an analysis of some of the earliest images of Superman and Batman from Action Comics #1 and Detective Comics #27, this thesis will capture the associative properties reflected in the Americanized superhero. While analyzing the shared characteristics of Superman and Batman, Chapter 1 also discusses the political ideology embodied in Captain America in Captain America Comics #1. Chapter 2 investigates the socociopolitical and socioeconomic representatioion in Frank Miller's Batman: Year One and transitions into an analytical comparison of The Punisher's role in vigilantism and Batman's personal vendetta against crime. Exploring the socioeconomic gap between Batman's character and the people of Gotham City, Chapter 3 also examines the role of the anti-hero and reads the Punisher and the Joker as the anti-hero and the supervillain.