followed. In ordinary life, Superman is the mildmannered journalist Clark Kent, but, when his extraordinary abilities are needed to fight evil, he dons the version of 1930’ s athletic wear that serves as his costume, assumes his alter ego, and uses his powers for altruistic purposes. The forms of evil requiring Superman’ s attention have changed over time. In the 1930s, an age marred by the Great Depression and organized crime, Superman fought crooked businessmen and politicians. When the Cold War emerged in the 1950s, Superman championed the“ American Way” against totalitarian threats. In the face of a dark mood that has emerged in our neighbour to the south, along with the state-sanctioned cruelty promoted by some of its leaders and citizens, the new 2025 Superman movie celebrates humour and kindness. Maybe superhero stories are shaped as much by the evils we fear as the human qualities we admire.
As welcome as a superhero movie promoting kindness might be, there are contemporary threats that the superhero genre cannot address. We live at a time when some fear that everything is broken. We are tempted to believe that we need to place ourselves in the hands of a strong leader— a superhero— who can fix things because the ordinary people— the Clark Kents— are powerless. However, we know from twentiethcentury history that this very temptation can be a doorway toward an authoritarian society. Wouldn’ t it be better to believe that we ordinary people can fix things within each of our own range of influence? Within our families, our community leagues, our volunteer organizations, our political organizations, our places of worship, and more, we can build the networks of trust that make us feel that things are working. We can be the unsung heroes that we need.
Lloyd Den Boer is a retired educator who lives with his wife in Edmonton. Ordinary people in every sense of the words, they make it a mission to contribute to the well-being of their family, neighbourhood, religious community, and more. Usually, they receive more than they have given.
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