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ShareWashington: Spider-Man has found life outside of comic-book pages, says an associate humanities librarian for Texas Tech University Libraries.
In an article published in the International Journal of Comic Art, pop-culture guru Rob Weiner basically says that Spider-Man and his costumed peers have entered mankind's collective consciousness, filling a shared need for heroes.
"When I started reading graphic novels, I was struck by the fact that stories about Spider-Man or Batman and Superman could have as many plot twists and turns as any story by Shakespeare, Stephen King or Leo Tolstoy," he said.
"I was struck by how good some of the writing was for these so-called "kiddie" books, and that somehow these archetypical characters like Spider-Man were replacing Odysseus and Zeus as part of modern mythology," he added.
Spider-Man's resume includes a number of films, a TV series, magazine appearances, graphic novels, videogames, and action figures.
His fans can often be seen clad in his costume, while doing something as humble as feeding the homeless.
"While some of this (affectation) is categorically tongue-in-cheek and they don't have 'super powers,' these actual-world costumed figures are trying to do good for their fellow citizens, which shows just how pervasive fictional realities can be," Weiner said.
