Why do we need superheroes?

Those friends, though, inevitably turn out to like James Bond, Sherlock Holmes, or some other fictional hero doing things real people can't do—superheroes in civvies. Every culture has stories like this; our forebears told them around campfires or mead-halls, 20th-century kids read them in comic books. read more

We need heroes because they are a representation of our ideals, fantasies and values. Heroes are stand-ins for ourselves in our stories, which tell us who we think we are, what our yearns and desires are and where our imagination takes us. read more

But adults need heroic models as well. Heroes reveal to us the kinds of qualities we need to be in communion with others. 4. Heroes save us when we’re in trouble — This principle explains the powerful appeal of comic book superheroes. read more

Instead, what we need is writers with some integrity and wisdom, who have the courage to slap some sense into these overgrown children, and remind them that these “heroes” they’re so excited about don’t, in fact, exist, and actually “believing in” them is a sign of neurosis, not an occasion for hope. read more