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From the perspectives of positive psychology and positive
communication, superheroes are often depicted as possessing virtues
and serving as inspirational exemplars. However, many of the
virtues enumerated as characterizing the superhero (e.g., courage,
teamwork, creativity) could just as easily be applied to heroes of
other genres. To understand what is unique to the superhero genre,
How Superheroes Model Community: Philosophically, Communicatively,
Relationally looks not only to the virtues that animate them, but
also to the underlying moral framework that gives meaning to those
virtues. The key to understanding their character is that often
they save strangers, and they do so in the public sphere. The
superhero's moral framework, therefore, must encompass both the
motivation to act to benefit others rather than themselves
(especially people to whom they have no relational obligation) and
to preserve the public sphere against those who would disrupt it.
Given such a framework, Nathan Miczo argues that superheroes are
not, and could not, be loners. They constantly form team-ups, super
teams, alliances, partnerships, take on mentorship roles, and
create sidekicks. Social constructionist approaches in the
communication field argue that communication, in part, works to
shape and create our social reality. Through this lens, Miczo
proposes that superheroes maintain themselves as a community
through the communicative practices they engage in.
In this book, Nathan Miczo demonstrates that humor operates at
different levels of identity, exploring how within- and
between-group dynamics shape the creation and reception of
disparagement humor. While positive forms of humor arise in
interpersonal settings, negative forms reflect the activation of
group-based, communal identities. Building on this dual sociality
view, Miczo critiques the superiority theory of disparagement
humor, rooted in Hobbes's definition of laughter, and tied to his
notion of a "war of all against all." Miczo employs the agon (Greek
for contest) to replace the Hobbesian metaphor with a view that
groups use disparagement humor to pursue rival goals. This
perspective forwards the multifunctional utility of humor in social
life, analyzing examples of naturally occurring interaction drawn
from studies in Communication, Psychology, and Anthropology.
Scholars of humor studies, communication, and anthropology, will
find this book of particular interest.
From the perspectives of positive psychology and positive
communication, superheroes are often depicted as possessing virtues
and serving as inspirational exemplars. However, many of the
virtues enumerated as characterizing the superhero (e.g., courage,
teamwork, creativity) could just as easily be applied to heroes of
other genres. To understand what is unique to the superhero genre,
How Superheroes Model Community: Philosophically, Communicatively,
Relationally looks not only to the virtues that animate them, but
also to the underlying moral framework that gives meaning to those
virtues. The key to understanding their character is that often
they save strangers, and they do so in the public sphere. The
superhero's moral framework, therefore, must encompass both the
motivation to act to benefit others rather than themselves
(especially people to whom they have no relational obligation) and
to preserve the public sphere against those who would disrupt it.
Given such a framework, Nathan Miczo argues that superheroes are
not, and could not, be loners. They constantly form team-ups, super
teams, alliances, partnerships, take on mentorship roles, and
create sidekicks. Social constructionist approaches in the
communication field argue that communication, in part, works to
shape and create our social reality. Through this lens, Miczo
proposes that superheroes maintain themselves as a community
through the communicative practices they engage in.
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