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Taylor, Aaron. "“He’s Gotta Be Strong, and He’s Gotta Be Fast, and He’s Gotta Be Larger Than Life”: Investigating the Engendered Superhero Body." Journal of Popular Culture 40. (2007): 344–60. Added by: joachim (7/20/09, 1:29 AM) Last edited by: joachim (3/11/13, 1:45 PM) |
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| Resource type: Journal Article Language: en: English Peer reviewed DOI: 10.1111/j.1540-5931.2007.00382.x BibTeX citation key: Taylor2007 Email resource to friend View all bibliographic details  |
Categories: General Keywords: Body, Gender, Superhero Creators: Taylor Collection: Journal of Popular Culture |
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The article discusses the conundrum of physical and mental prowess of comic book superheroes by examining two popular comic texts featuring the characters Superman, Batman and Wonder Woman. The nostalgic playfulness of the superhero comics of old has given way to a gritty realism. The article suggests that the superhero figures satirize the contemporary culture. The physical perfection resembles the fun house mirror. The progressive superhero body gives a glimpse of manifold corporeal possibilities as the ultimate paragons for the late twentieth-century cult of fitness. The article also highlights the negation of superheroes as hyperbolic reflections of a culture obsessed with fitness and the pursuit of idealized body.
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