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However, the rhetoric of Marvel also contained hints of the more literate shape of superhero comic books to come from Marvel in the 1970s. With a Comics Code established to supposedly make comic books safe children, Marvel did not seek to defy its rules per se⁴¹ but did identify a different audience for its comic books. One of Lee’s well- established strategies was to flatter his reader by crediting their intelligence as a factor that enabled cre-ators to produce popular Marvel stories. As previously mentioned, Lee was selling Marvel superheroes as a new and improved product, as not your father’s superheroes (or at least not the superheroes that you used to know).⁴²The second half of the statement was vitally important because Marvel courted older readers, particularly a college crowd that may or may not have been familiar with DC superheroes.⁴³Nevertheless, it would be impossible for Americans in general to not have some sort of knowledge of superheroes, and Marvel was looking to lose the kid’s stuff association particularly reinforced by the Comics Code.

The term to which Lee would often return would be realism, that, in any artform, does not mean true contact with the human lifeworld but artistic conventions used to represent reality. While realism is a term that certainly had the potential to appeal to the literate culture sensibilities of a college student who had never read superhero comic books, realism is also a somewhat ambiguous term. As the consummate salesman, Lee sometimes had difficulty sticking to it (sometimes identifying the appeal of comic books as being their ability to represent the fantastic).⁴⁴ With the medium, realism could also mean different things as a term applied to the narrative or the illustration (and as noted in chapter 4, neither Kirby or Ditko’s style qualifies as truly realistic). Regardless, when Lee did elaborate upon the term, he would apply it to the narrative and argue that realism took shape in Marvel superhero comic books through continuity, consistency, and psychological com-plexity (Pustz 52). The first two of the these three items do not contradict the basic idea of traditional storytelling at all,⁴⁵and the last item may not wholly, as a characters thoughts may sometimes be represented in limited degrees in epic poems. In addition, as discussed in chapter 3, the rudiments of self- conscious thought need not be seen as antithetical to traditional sensibilities.

However, when thoughts are represented in larger degrees in ways that contradict spo-ken words and/or become as important as actions, we are seeing an understanding of internal life foreign to traditional experience. This was always a potential (though not necessary) direction for comic books thanks to the thought balloon. Lee stated:

I’ve always felt it was important to let our readers know what a character was thinking as often as possible. Remember how Shakespeare always had Hamlet soliloquizing

through-out that famous play? Well, if it was good enough for Shakespeare —! Now, picture Spider-Man crawling up a wall. There’s no one with him, no one near him. Therefore, since he had no one to talk to, you have no dialogue. So, all you have is a costumed character mov-ing on a wall. But by addmov-ing the thought balloons, by showmov-ing what he’s actually thinkmov-ing, you get inside his mind and add a whole additional dimension to the story [Lee, Excelsior!

135–136].

Again, characterizations of his own work presented retrospectively in an autobiography must be understood as subject to a sort of convenient revisionism, this being an aspect of Spider-Man that became more pronounced as years passed (and Lee is being very vague in this statement anyway). But even taken with the proverbial grain of salt, Lee’s statement encapsulates much of what I believe does take place with Marvel superheroes. Part of Lee’s quotation sets up the thought balloon as a practical device to fill up space as Spider-Man is “crawling up a wall,” and this sets it in line with traditionality. However, using thoughts to provide “a whole additional dimension to the story” suggests as level of interiority unknown within the communal world of the epic poem; Lee even connects this convention of literacy to Hamlet, the quintessential example of self- consciousness out- of- step with the traditional world. Despite the initial typing of characters, Lee would begin to suggest a dif-ferent sort of character that may retain some aspects of traditionality but clearly leans toward literacy. For instance, four or five years after the debut of the Fantastic Four, more thoughts that reveal the self in contrast to outer behavior would be seen (such as the Things long-standing doubts about his relationship with Alicia Masters). Thinking of Marvel superheroes as a bridge between the psychology of orality and the psychology of literacy, a quotation from Wright sets up their significance in this way: “The heroes’ idiosyncrasies often impede their work as a team.... Despite their bickering and personality clashes, the Fantastic Four always prove to be a cohesive and formidable team in times of crisis.... These were heroes who reconciled the competing imperatives of individualism and communal responsibility”

(Wright 204–205). This is one of the most remarkable facts about the rebirth of tradition-ality in the United States, in that the country is not only founded as a literate society but founded upon literate ideals that stress individualism.⁴⁶And while individualism isn’t the same thing as interiority, individualism nevertheless indicates a predisposition against the exteriority more frequently associated with community. Many of Marvel’s superheroes worked in this way, as individuals set against community who nevertheless worked for the greater good of community (the Hulk perhaps being the most notable in this category, usually working to save the larger community by accident). Nevertheless, the most notable of Marvel’s creations along these lines, who I have intentionally neglected to mention up to this point but whom Lee specifically mentioned above, is Spider-Man. This neglect has been intentional as this hero seems to be the one with the most notable leanings toward the literate world through his thoughts and more so through the self- conscious nature of the Spider-Man story.

Although the premise may have been a light outgrowth of Captain Marvel with his teenage alter ego, the story of Spider-Man had its own unique trappings that took into account much more carefully the experience of teenage life. Debuting in Amazing Fantasy

#15,⁴⁷Peter Parker, an insecure high school student, is raised by his elderly aunt and uncle whom he loves, but he is cast out of the popular social circles whose attention he craves.

Upon attending a demonstration on “radioactive rays,” Parker is bitten by an irradiated spider and soon realizes that he has gained spider- related superpowers: strength, speed, agility, and the ability to scale sheer surfaces. After “testing” his powers in an amateur fight

for which he wins money, a promoter convinces Parker that his powers will make him a star. After designing a costume and constructing web- shooters, “Spider-Man” makes his first appearance on television. Upon leaving the studio, Parker ignores the a police officer who calls for help as he chases after a thief; the criminal escapes, and, when the officer turns on Parker, he responds by saying, “Sorry, pal! That’s your job! I’m thru being pushed around — by anyone! From now on I just look out for number one — that means — me!”

(Lee, “Spider- Man!” 8). However, Parker remains devoted to his aunt and uncle and is shocked to find another police officer at his home, reporting that his uncle had been shot and killed by a burglar. Donning his celebrity costume and using his superpowers to track the burglar, Spider-Man captures him only to discover that the burglar is the man he failed to stop earlier in the story. The narrator then ends Parker’s story with what was a standard sentiment in superhero comics and in exact phraseology would become one of the enduring clichés for Marvel superheroes: “A lean silent figure slowly fades into the gathering darkness, aware at last in this world, with great power there must also come — great responsibility! [italics mine]” (Lee, “Spider- Man” 11). Within this story of Spider-Man, there is actually only one thought balloon used to indicate how Parker feels about his aunt and uncle, “They’re the only ones who’ve ever been kind to me! I’ll see to it they’re always happy, but the rest of the world can go hang for all I care!” (8). Even though the number of thought bubbles and the thought itself is rather unremarkable, the story does set up a fuller basis for an interior life in a few others ways with Parker talking to himself (in what amounts to soliloquies). Upon creating his web- shooters, he says, “So [my classmates] laughed at me for being a bookworm, eh? Well, only a science major could have invented a device like this!” (6) and upon catching the burglar, he says, “My fault — all my fault! If only I had stopped him when I could have!

But I didn’t — and now — Uncle Ben — is dead...” (11). Again, this sort of introspection does not depart greatly from the obvious themes of the story, and the basic story had many of the trappings of the superhero story, from orphan status to an alter ego to justice above the law; specifically, the guilt that will motivate him as a costumed crime fighter is not too dif-ferent from the revenge motive of Batman. Nevertheless, there are some notable departures from the superhero story that works together with Parker’s slight but still present interior life, suggesting a more literate sense of self- consciousness. After all, Parker is a stereotype based not so much on past superheroes as on the stereotype of the typical comic book reader in his slight build, social awkwardness, and book- smart ways. In addition, he fails to do what so many people surprisingly endowed with extraordinary powers do so very naturally in superhero stories: put on a costume to fight crime for the greater good of humankind.

On one hand, the argument could be made that Spider-Man is another variation on the traditional epic in the form of the superhero story, but, on the other hand, there are enough elements that it would be foolish to ignore the seeds of literacy planted within the story.

Even though the first Spider-Man story is a far cry from a fully self- conscious analysis of the superhero story, comic book readers caught a glimpse of where superheroes would even-tually go with self- conscious characters and self- consciously constructed narratives.

Over the course of years, Lee would make more extensive use of the thought balloon in many of the Marvel titles, but this use was undoubtedly most pronounced in Spider-Man, the most introspective of Marvel heroes (perhaps initially considered to be inclined to navel- gazing as a teenager). One of the most well- known of Parker’s introspections would take place in the “Spider-Man No More” story presented in the numerically significant Spi-der-Man #50 (an issue, incidentally, written in 1967 after the departure of Steve Ditko and drawn in a more realistic style by John Romita). After beginning in the middle of

Spider-Man’s fight with quickly dispatched thugs and Spider-Spider-Man’s trademark humor, the people just saved from the thugs recoil with fear from Spider-Man. Initially, Spider-Man offer a soliloquy about the situation as he crawls a wall, trying unsuccessfully to shake off the public’s regard for him as a criminal: “Well who cares what people think anyway? That’s just the trouble — I care!” (Lee, “Spider- Man No More!” 4). This leads Parker to continue to contemplate the ways in which his life as Spider-Man disturbs his life as Peter Parker, often drawing him away from those things that he cares about most, such as his Aunt May.

After being informed by the neighbor that his aunt had fallen ill, called out repeatedly for him, and fallen asleep only after the doctor administered a sedative, he thinks, “If I had been at home — like any other normal guy — they could have reached me fast! But no ... I was out ... flexing my muscles ... trying to help the very people who fear me!” (4). After finding out his grades are declining and having to turn down a date from Gwen Stacy (both because of his perceived responsibilities as Spider-Man), Parker begins to think even more about the negative public perception encouraged by newspaper publisher and now media personality, J. Jonah Jameson; in an alleyway, Parker thinks:

Being Spider-Man has brought me nothing — but happiness! In order to satisfy my craving for excitement — I’ve sacrificed everything that matters — Aunt May — my friends — the girls in my life — and — for what...?? Can I be sure that my only motive was the conquest of crime? Or was it the heady thrill of battle — the precious taste of triumph — the para-noiac thirst for power that can never be quenched??... I was just a young, unthinking teen-ager ... when I became ... Spider-Man... Every boy — sooner or later ... must put away his toys ... and become ... a man! [7–8].

The last panel featuring these thoughts is a full- page panel that shows Parker in the back-ground, walking away from a trash can in the foreground containing his Spider-Man costume:

an excellent use of relative size to maintain a sense of realistic perspective and yet communicate the relative importance of Parker

ver-sus Spider-Man. In the subsequent panels, Spider-Man’s “retirement” is revealed and publicized, becoming a subject of debate for pundits and caus-ing a rise in crime throughout the city.

Although his personal life begins to improve (caring for his Aunt May, studying for his college classes, paying attention to romantic possibilities), Parker even tually can’t resist the needs of those around him. After saving a security guard from some criminals without his costume, the resemblance between the guard and his Uncle Ben reminds Parker of the overriding rea-son for his life as Spider-Man: the fail-ure to act that caused the tragedy of his uncle’s death. After a quick recap of his origin, Parker soliloquizes:

I can never renounce my Spi-der-Man identity! I can never

As usual, Peter Parker is thinking about his life (and as becomes increasingly apparent, his thoughts crowd out his image) (from Spider-Man #50, p. 4).

fail to use the mysterious powers which a mysterious destiny has seen fit to give me! No matter how unbearable the burden may be ... no matter how great my personal sacrifice — I can never permit one innocent being to come to harm ... because Spider-Man failed to act ... and I swear I never will! [18].

The story ends with Parker again donning the costume and in order to stand against the tide that caused him to doubt himself, he reveals to Jameson his intention to return to action. In some ways, this basic story frame could be seen as very similar to the standard practice of recapitulating superhero origins by adding to the significance of those origins with fresh narrative details (as described with Batman in chapter 2). The thing that causes Parker to return to his role as Spider-Man is an event, a new call to action in the form of the attack on an old security guard; he is much like Achilles, who is brought to introspection by a specific event and brought out of introspection by another event. And similarly, Parker’s story does end with a reaffirmation of heroic values and a speech that affirms his responsibility to the community. However, with all of this stated, it is clear that the time he spends with his own thoughts is much more focused on the self and clearly divorced from the action that moves the plot forward; on pages 6 and 7, very little happens, and Romita fills panels with representations of Parker from multiple perspectives and with various expressions to continue some sort of movement within the visual narrative as Parker thinks and thinks.

In addition, while he may be choosing between destinies, he is divided in many ways, not just between Parker and his costumed identity; Parker’s future is unclear and frustrated, regardless of which path he chooses (and Spider-Man represents more than one thing to him as good humor and thrills on one hand and guilt and social consciousness on the other).

This self- consciousness of literate culture is only intensified by a narrative that seems to be about the superhero story as well as being a superhero story: fighting crime in costume is not only a choice for Parker but fighting crime in costume is a subject of public debate and cultural division.

If this is one of the points at which Marvel superhero comic books became most fully realized as literature, its important to note that it was something to which Lee built, and, as I demonstrated, he did not begin with a clear intention to make superhero comic books literate or self- conscious. As already noted, Lee, Kirby, and Ditko initially set for themselves the rather modest goal of making superhero comic books different (even though they often implied that they were different in ways that they were not). Regardless, Lee began to think in terms of his own hype, and the creators who took the titles after these creators were often converts of his inaccurate but dynamic rhetoric, reading past stories in terms of self- conscious literacy. As the author of Marvels (a revisionist history of the Marvel universe), Kurt Busiek’s introduction to that text is an excellent example of this sort of creative rereading of the early Marvel stories. After admitting that he was not a regular reader of Marvel superhero comic books as they were published, Busiek argues that everything he presents is part of the source material: “For all that Marvels has won praise for its humanity, for its perspective, for its depiction of a complex and mostly- believable world, and for all that I’m willing to accept credit for what I contributed to the project..., it ultimately boils down to this: If it wasn’t there in the first place, it wouldn’t have ended up here” (Marvels 261). But while a contem-porary reader might choose to regard the Fantastic Four’s first encounter with Galactus as a critique of the superhero power fantasy and an acknowledgment of the Nietzschian origin of the superman, the fact remains that Lee and Kirby were still part of a largely traditional system and were in the process of crafting a better epic, as much as they were crafting a superhero for a literate reader. While leaning toward literacy, the early stories of Marvel

superheroes were far from fully committed to the precepts for literate culture, and their

superheroes were far from fully committed to the precepts for literate culture, and their