Defense Mechanisms in Comic Literature
By Elizabeth Napoletano
Psychology permeates every aspect of human activity,
as it must, but is often overlooked in mundane and everyday activities. Comics,
the poor stepsister of literature, are frequently dismissed as an immature
distraction. Yet comics are a multibillion dollar industry and are avidly read
across the globe not just by children and adolescents, but by millions of sober
adults as well. In Japan, where Manga is a very big and lucrative business with
a following in the tens of millions, nearly half a million comic magazines are
sold every day. A very high
percentage of these are sold to adults, who enjoy them privately, in public and
private libraries, and at “manga cafes”, over 300 of which are just in Tokyo.
Comics are also big in Europe. France and Italy especially have significant
comics industries which cater to children, adolescents, and adults. In the
United States, where comics in the post World War II decades were largely
marketed to youth, recent decades have seen an explosion of both titles and
readership particularly aimed at a youthful but adult audience. Even many older
adults have been pulled into the vortex of the resurgence of popular comics by
the debut of nostalgia driven Hollywood films like “Batman”, “Spider Man” and
“the X Men”. To avoid studying the psychology of comics would be to neglect an
important and pervasive human phenomenon.
While there have been many literary studies of comics
that have included psychological aspects, I could not find much actual
psychological research published in America. There are numerous articles
debunking the less than scientific researches of the 1950’s, articles exploring
the popularity of comics, the cult of the superhero, and racial aspects. There
are also educational studies for the use of comics in developing literacy
skills. There are also sociological papers like that of Kinko Ito at the
University of Arkansas, who explores romantic fantasies and perversion in the
so called “Ladies Comics” of Japan. And there are many varied studies form the
Japanese Society for the Studies of Manga and Comics. But while there is much
psychologically interesting information in these works they are not, strictly
speaking, psychological studies. Most of the available psychological studies of
comics appear to come from Italy. Works such as A. Imbasciati and C. Castelli’s
“Psychology of Comics”, M. Mongai’s “Psychoanalysis and Comics”, and M.
Minelli’s “Notes of Psychology of Comics”, sound intriguing, but do not appear
to be readily available in English. One exception is Marco Minelli’s 1992
“Psychology of Italian Comics” which is at least partially translated.
Minelli’s
work is particularly interesting because it focuses on psychological defense
mechanisms that may be activated in the reading of comics. Minelli identifies
seven mechanisms as the most frequently occurring, in his words: (1)
identification, (2) projection, (3) shifting, (4) idealization, (5) denial, (6)
splitting, and (7) time and space far away. Unfortunately, the bulk of this
particular article has not yet been translated. A Babel Fish translation can
give us the ‘jist’ of his content, but is not precise enough to be definitive.
It would appear that “splitting” in Minelli’s study concerns itself with
regression and fetishes, and “time and space far away” to approach-avoidance
conflicts, but this is not clear. However, I have not been able to identify
examples of these last three in the comic literature with which I am familiar.
Therefore in this paper I will explore
examples of identification, projection, shifting and idealization that I have
found in comic literature.
Why
is it that we want to believe a man can fly? How come millions of Americans
flocked to the movie theaters last May to watch as teenager Peter Parker became
a living Spider-Man? What is the reason behind people embracing comic book
characters so much in recent times? One word could very well explain it;
Identification. In every culture, East or West, there is a need for the human
populace to take a bit of fantasy into their lives, and live vicariously
through the actions of others. Many people find this need fulfilled when they
read a comic book. The comic, with its graphic illustrations, allows for a
person to identify with the world created by the artist, a world which is not
genuinely theirs. So the actions that take place in the comic world are distant
enough from the real world, yet the reader can still find a way to emotionally
react to the situation that the characters are going through.
Identification as defined by Coon (2001)
is “incorporating the goals and values of another person into one’s own
behavior; feeling emotionally connected to a person and wanting to be like him
or her” (p.G-10). In this simple definition we learn that when one identifies
with another person it influences the other person’s behaviors and choices.
With children and teens this act of identifying with a specific person can be
seen in the actions that they take and by whom they are closely influenced.
Comics have always had characters that young children can identify with. When
Bill Finger and Bob Kane needed to create a way to draw young boys into reading
the Batman comic they created “The
Boy Wonder” Robin. Bob Kane, in interviews over the years, has said that he and
Bill Finger designed Robin to act as a Robin Hood character. In doing so the
duo came up with a character that younger boys could identify with at a
different level then the brooding “Dark Knight” Batman, to whom their older
brothers gravitated.
In many ways Identification is the biggest
draw for fans of comics. Here a reader, especially a teenage, can look at a
character like Peter Parker and see their own shortcomings without turning an
intense critical gaze upon themselves. This allows them to see their failings
without fear of crushing their own spirits, and makes their inadequacies seem
more bearable. As Wolman (1989) puts it, Identification is “a defense mechanism
consisting of the imitation of others in an effort to master too intense
stimuli” (p171). In his paper, “Psychology of Italian Comics”, Marco Minelli http://digilander.libero.it/romanzi/comicspsycho.htm 3/30/2003) points out that through identification
with comic characters readers can vicariously fulfill desires that could not be
fulfilled in their real lives.
Publishers have primarily aimed their
magazines at a market of teenagers and adults in their early twenties. It is
this group that has the greatest ability to identify with the main hero in a
comic magazine. More people identify with the character of Peter Parker (a.k.a.
Spider-Man) then any other character. Peter’s story is somewhat universal, and
he became one of the first superheroes to have realistic problems. When Stan
Lee and Steve Ditko created the character back in the 1960s there had not been
a teenage superhero. Until Spider-Man, teens were relegated to sidekicks: Batman’s Robin and Green Arrow’s Speedy are two of the best known examples. Lee and
Ditko opened up a wide range of issues when they created Spider-Man, making
Peter as a geeky science kid in High-school, and focusing on how he dealt with
social problems as well as masked villains. Unlike Bruce Wayne, of Batman fame,
Peter was not a millionaire who could afford strange new gadgets, nor was he
like Superman, indestructible and able to deal with villains with one mighty
blow. Peter was limited to his intelligence, and worried more about getting a
date with Gwen Stacy than with crazed psychos running around his city. Peter
Parker is an every man, and that is how Marvel comics still portray him to this
day.
In 2000, Marvel Comics created the
Ultimate Marvel Universe, a new version of the Marvel Comics’ Universe where
the characters were de-aged and lost all their long history. This gave two
writers, Brian Michael Bendis and Mark Miller, along with artists Mark Bagley
and Adam Kubert, a chance to recreate two of Marvel’s biggest franchises,
respectively, Spider-Man and the X-Men. Bendis and Begley not only have
succeeded in creating a Spider-Man for the new millennium, it is one that still
rings true to the original Lee/Ditko version while making Peter Parker into a
character with whom any teenage boy can identify.
Peter Parker is your average high-school
teenager. Any teenage boy can relate to Peter’s troubles. He wears glasses and
is considered a geek by his peers, and is taunted by the boys on the basketball
team, namely Flash Thompson and Ox. In the very first issue Flash threw a
burrito at Peter, and Peter didn’t react to the taunting. Peter is very shy
around girls, and is close friends with Mary Jane Watson. In addition to his
shyness, Peter also is awkward, and tends to need some help getting out of
situations. This help is provided by his Aunt May and Uncle Ben, as well as his
one friend, Harry Osborn. Peter also has a part time job at the Daily Bugle as
a web site designer. Most teenage boys
can automatically identify with Peter. Here they see a young man like
themselves, who has troubles that are all too real to them. Dealing with
relationships with girls, being bullied by those who are with the “in” crowd,
and trying to balance school, work, and friends. Peter can also be identified
with by those who have lost a parent or sibling. In Peter’s case it was his
Uncle Ben who was shot by a burglar, who Peter did not stop in the streets
after gaining his spider powers. Teens can easily equate the book’s core
message of “With great power comes great responsibility” to their lives. Boys
who have the job of being the “man of the house,” identify well with Peter and
how he works out his relationships with his Aunt May. They can sympathize with
Peter’s plight.
In several issues Aunt May nearly finds
out about Peter’s secret, and he has to have Mary Jane cover for him. Mary Jane
becomes a prominent character in Ultimate
Spider-Man as the sole person in Peter’s close social circle who knows
about Peter’s powers. In one of the earliest issues of Ultimate Spider-Man Peter
confides in Mary Jane the fact that he is Spider-Man. Her reaction at first is
disbelief, and Peter must show her that he can walk on walls, and the two teens
share a near kiss. This is an easy moment of identification, for both sexes, as
a first kiss is something most people remember all their lives. The act of
Peter telling M.J. about his powers is very much like a teenage boy trying to
explain his feelings for a girl. More recently readers saw the opposite of this
situation where Mary Jane and Peter broke up for a while. In the story, M.J.
was feeling upset due to worrying over Peter getting killed while he was
battling a villain called Dr. Octopus, as well as feelings of jealousy towards
a new character in the series named Gwen Stacy. Certainly any young teenage boy
has run into this situation where their girlfriend is jealous of another female
friend of theirs.
These are just a few examples that show how boys
identify with Peter Parker, but teenage girls can also identify with Peter
Parker and his situations. The fact that Brian Michael Bendis is able to make
Peter realistic to both sexes impresses me. Peter’s own social situations work
for teenage girls as well as teenage boys. In one issue, after Peter is bitten
by the spider, he is taunted by the boys and girls at his school for throwing
up on Mary Jane’s shoes. The embarrassment of this sort is a real worry for
teenage girls who fear being stigmatized by their peers for doing something
that would be considered stupid. Peter tends at times to display some feminine
quality to him, but not enough to make him effeminate to the readers. Going
back to the first issue, after Peter is smacked by the burrito, Mary Jane comes
over to talk with Peter and the two are interrupted by Peter’s Uncle Ben. The
shy looks and blushing facial expressions call to mind similar situations for
girls when they are talking with a young man and their mother interrupts them.
There is also the fact that after Peter is given his spider like powers he
joins the basketball team; only to drop out when he comes to the realization
that they don’t like him for himself, and only care to use him to win games.
The very next issue he is verbally attacked by his former team mates, and Flash
Thompson, the player Peter replaced. A girl who has been in sports and has had
to quit the team, or any girl who is trying to befriend someone who is
considered unpopular, has felt this sort of peer pressure before and can
readily sympathize with Peter. Add on the fact that Peter argues with his Aunt
May, much like a daughter and mother would fight, and his own relationships
with friends, Mary Jane and Gwen Stacy, one can see situations that young women
can relate to.
Finally there is the fact that both sexes can identify
with Peter’s learning to deal with his secret identity and home life.
Spider-Man comes about due to the empowering of Peter Parker, and teens can
understand his wrestling with these issues. They too feel they have hidden
talents but can not reach them yet, and this makes living through Peter’s
exploits more real for them. When Peter first gains his power he tells no one,
and chooses to try professional wrestling in order to make some money. In doing
so he is living out a fantasy that some teens wish they could, allowing for him
to gain fame and fortune, as well as helping out his family. Upon gaining his
powers, Peter was given amazing abilities, but most of his major battles he had
to solve without using his powers. In the
Ultimate Universe Peter lives his life as normally as possible. When he told
Mary Jane about being Spider-Man he did not resolve the issue by dressing up as
Spider-Man and showing off to Mary Jane. Rather he logically explained to her
what happened, “The Spider bit me.” Which explained everything to Mary Jane and
only a small bit of convincing was needed to assure her that he spoke the
truth. The fact that Peter didn’t need to use his abilities in this situation,
and resolved it with a happy conclusion gave the reader a chance to feel better
about their own problems, and that they too can solve a difficult dilemma
without using magic powers.
Another major
fact that allows both sexes to identify with Peter is the secret identity issue
he has with his Aunt May. After his battle with Craven the Hunter Peter had to
come home and face a rather angry Aunt May. She wanted to know where he had
been, and he wanted to tell her the truth, but he could not, so he just stood
there, and she refused to talk to him, and grounded him. Peter’s dilemma with
his Aunt could easily happen to any teenage reader, be it a boy or a girl, most
have been trapped in a similar situation.
The counter balance of the powers is that he has to
deal with this secret identity. This is a curse in a way for Peter, because he
has to allow things to happen to himself that he knows he could easily stop.
For example, Ox, Flash Thompson’s friend at one point figures out that Peter is
Spider-Man; and decided to prove it by kicking Peter and making him leap out of
the way before his foot meets Peter’s butt. Peter must, much to his annoyance,
allow himself to be kicked, and winds up crying. Teenagers know that they have
problems like Peter’s where they must make sacrifices in order to keep their
own hidden talents in the dark for a while.
It is not only Spider-Man that teens and young adults
can identity with. There are several comic books in the world over that provide
teens the use of the identification mechanism. Marvel Comics’ X-Men is a big
seller of the identification mechanism. The X-Men gain their Mutant powers when
they are in puberty, and are an excellent source in dealing with issues of
race, teen empowerment, and growing emotions in adolescence. In Japan there are
Shonen and Shojo comic magazines that are designed for boys and girls
respectively, as well as young men and women comics. Yugi-Oh was created in
1996 by Kazuki Takahashi; the story follows a shy, and small, young boy named
Yugi Moto who solves an ancient Egyptian puzzle and combines his body with an
ancient pharaoh. The theme of the book is that you should trust in yourself,
and your heart. Both boys and girls can identify with Yugi and his story. Yugi,
like Peter, is socially awkward but has one big talent in that he has a great
ability to play card games, and with the help of the ancient spirit he
eventually takes on the bullies and evils that attack him. Like Peter, Yugi
struggles with responsibility and is helped by three friends. The spirit in the
puzzle is almost a symbol for hidden talent that must be found by testing and
trying different pieces in a puzzle.
Anyone who has had some exposure to
comics knows something of Dr. Victor Von-Doom, the self proclaimed leader of
Latveria and archenemy of Dr. Reed Richards of the Fantastic Four. Dr. Doom’s
major claim to fame is that he blames Reed Richards for everything bad that
happened in his life. The two men met in college and one day Richards tried to
help Victor re-work his formula so that it would actually work. Doom believed
he deliberately tampered with the formula which subsequently caused an
explosion that scared Victor’s face. Since that time Victor Von-Doom has lashed
out at Richards, blaming him for his failed attacks, and seeks revenge upon the
entire Fantastic Four. Doom believes that Richards purposely is out to get him,
and believes that Richards is jealous of Doom’s superior intellect. In every
way Victor Von-Doom shows exactly how a reader can project their own thoughts
and short comings onto other people.
Projection as defined by Coon (2001) is “attributing
one’s own feelings, shortcomings, or unacceptable impulses to others” (p G-16).
In other words, projection happens when a person places their own weakness upon
others in order to cover up, or deny, that they have that weakness. Most
notably projection can happen within the comics as well as with readers.
Villains tend to be the most logical projection for readers who feel that they
have shortcomings, and weakness. Most villains are actually the opposites of
the heroes, and over time the reader learns to project the hero’s weaknesses
onto his, or her, arch rivals. The most obvious of this projection act being
Batman and the Joker. Bruce Wayne the
civilian identity of Batman struggles to balance his conscious in his monthly
comic. Wayne has a survivor’s guilt complex that has made him split his
personality at times, and creating a sharp contrast between himself and his
alter ego. Yet fans of Batman are always pointing out how intelligent, and
amazing Batman is, pushing his weakness: the fact that he uses violence and
other means to pull the truth from his rogue gallery, and his lack of patience
with his associates, onto the villains. Recently in the Batman Comic (2001),
writer Jeph Loeb had Batman recall what one of his associates, Dick Grayson
(Nightwing), said about the battle between Batman and the Joker, “How I
[Batman] represent the order that is necessary to live in Gotham City and the
Joker is the chaos that disrupts the order” (p. 2).
Dr. Doom
and the Joker are but two of villains that are used to project a hero’s
weakness away from him. Two of the more interesting projection cases are DC’s
Lex Luthor and Superman, and Marvel Comics’ Norman Osborn and Spider-Man. Lex
Luthor is a self made man, and extremely smart businessman who has been
Superman’s rival for years. Superman is known as the “Boy Scout” by most comic
fans. Superman is supposed to be the most moral character in the DC Comic
Universe; he is the essence of honor and good. Super strong, with special
abilities which make him the premier super hero in the DC Universe, Superman
does not seem to have any psychological weakness or shortcomings. His alter ego
Clark Kent is normally used to show Superman’s human side, and does have some
shortcomings, but is never shown to be unmoral or wrong. This is where the
character of Lex Luthor comes into play. Luthor, like Joker to Batman, is
Superman’s opposite, he is greedy and he only acts moral when it can benefit
him. In 2000 DC used their mega-series Batman:
No Man’s Land as a launching point for Lex Luthor to make a bid for the
Presidency. In the Superman comic’s that followed, Luthor pretended to be an
honest politician, and Superman found himself conflicted. Luthor was trying to
better the United States, but his main goal was to empower himself. He later
helped to create the Worlds at War
saga that helped bolster public opinion of him. Unlike the “Man of Steel” Lex
is a normal man with no super powers, yet readers are able to project upon him
undesirable traits that will not work on other DC villains.
Shifting is a defense mechanism in which the person
changes his attitude from one extreme to another. For example, a person who
normally respects authority may shift to behavior in which he does not respect
authority as a consequence of an irritating event. For instance, when a person
who usually supports the police gets a speeding ticket he may develop a less
respectful opinion of the police for a short time. According to Minelli
(http://digilander.libero.it/romanzi/comicspsycho.htm, 3/20/2003), individuals
who are not normally prone to violence may shift to violent attitudes when it
comes to patriotic ideals or perceived injustices. They may at least harbor
feelings that it would be justifiable to behave barbarously as long as it is in
defense of one’s country or ideals, or as revenge against perceived wrongs and
injustices. This is most pervasive in comics that deal with war, and battles
against evil protagonists. Frank
Castle is a vigilante. He was once an FBI Agent whose family was killed by a
group of mobsters. When the murder took place Frank shifted from the devoted
government agent, to a man who no longer feels bound by the law. As the
Punisher, Frank feels justified to be judge, jury and executioner. Readers who
feel outrage at injustice may gain a sense of satisfaction from reading stories
in which the Punisher breaks the law to serve a higher justice.
The last defense mechanism that I will
explore is idealization. An ideal is the thought of a personality, type of
character, or line of action in emotionally colored terms as representing a
goal to be sought after. Idealization is representation of an object or person
in terms of one’s ideals or desires (Wolman, 1989). Kinko Ito at the University
of Arkansas, at Little Rock, says that many Japanese find Caucasian facial and
body features then their own, and this is reflected in their comics (Ito,
2000). This has been referred to as “the Japanese gaiiin complex,” a
“psychological, racial inferiority complex towards foreigners, especially
Caucasians and their physical features” (as cited in Ito, 2000). The effect of
this complex is noticeable in such Magna as: Yugi-oh, Love Hina, Sailor Moon,
Astro Boy, Pokemon, Cute Honey, Lupin the III, and countless others. On the
American comic scene, Superman is perhaps the most glaringly obvious example of
idealization. Even setting aside his super powers he is the perfectly moral and
upright human. A close second to Superman is Captain America, the penultimate patriot.
Steve Rogers embodies all that a real American should be, and does so with
grace and humility. On the female side we have Wonder Woman, the premier super
heroine. She is considered a goddess, and was sculpted from clay. As Mark Waid
has stated in the JLA, Wonder Woman is the spirit of truth. She is considered
the perfect woman.
There are many other psychological mechanisms at work both within comics and between reader and comic. Sadly, I have found very little research available in English, though there is much more in foreign languages, especially Italian. The reading of comic books is an activity that is part of the lives of billions of people. There are many other forms of entertainment that they could be using or reading, and yet they choose to read comics. This indicates that they, the public, have a real need for this form of entertainment. Since comics are significantly different from other forms of entertainment and art, the psychology of comics must then be at least somewhat unique. Existing studies of comic psychology have been indicative but have barely scratched the surface. It is important that further studies be made in the psychology of comics, because comic book reading is a significant world phenomenon that it merits more study.
Elizabeth Napoletano
Coon,
D. (2001). Introduction to psychology:
Gateways to mind and behavior.
Wadsworth/Thomson Learning.
Minelli,
M. (1992). Psychology of Italian Comics. [6 paragraphs.] Available: http://digilander.libero.it/romanzi/comicspsycho.htm
Ito, K. (2000). The world of Japanese “Ladies
comics”: From romantic fantasy to lustful perversion. University of
Arkansas at Little Rock.
Wolman, B. B.
(Ed). (1989). Dictionary of behavioral
science. New York: Academic Press Inc.
Loeb, J. (2001, June). Hush: Chapter seven the joke. Batman,
pp.2