Superman on the Couch, Danny Fingeroth
Superman on the Couch, Danny Fingeroth
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Superman on the Couch
What Superheroes Really Tell Us about Ourselves and Our Society

Author: Danny Fingeroth

Narrator: Danny Fingeroth

Unabridged: 5 hr 51 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 08/27/2022

Synopsis

Why are so many of the superhero myths tied up with loss, often violent, of parents or parental figures? What is the significance of the dual identity? What makes some superhuman figures “good” and others “evil”? Why are so many of the prime superheroes white and male? How has the superhero evolved over the course of the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries? And how might the myths be changing?Why is it that the key superhero archetypes—Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man, the X-Men—touch primal needs and experiences in everyone? Why has the superhero moved beyond the pages of comics into other media?All these topics, and more, are covered in this lively and original exploration of the reasons why the superhero—in comic books, films, and TV—is such a potent myth for our times and culture.

About Danny Fingeroth

DANNY FINGEROTH was an award-winning writer and editor at Marvel Comics. A highly-regarded pop culture critic and historian, he is the author of books including Superman on the Couch: What Superheroes Really Tell Us About Ourselves and Our Society and co-editor of The Stan Lee Universe, an annotated collection of Lee-rarities from his personal archives. Fingeroth worked with Lee on numerous projects and conducted original, in-depth interviews with him (and many others) in the course of researching A Marvelous Life. Fingeroth has lectured on comics at Columbia University, the Smithsonian Institute, and at Milan’s MiMaster Institute, among many other venues.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Ana on January 02, 2016

Light reading with an interesting historical aspect.......more

Goodreads review by Andy on April 05, 2009

It's entertaining light reading for a book that tries to wax philosophical on comics. I picked up the book at my school library in order to get some backstory on a paper I was going to write and while there were a handful of decent points (and really none of his points are BAD-just his writing) I do......more

Goodreads review by Brent on August 09, 2024

I don't necessarily agree with all of Mr. Fingeroth's social analysis, but I enjoyed hearing his opinions. His lively writing style makes for a fun read, and there is some good comic book history in here.......more

Goodreads review by Marília on June 26, 2021

The author described really well how (male) superheroes are easy characters to relate to, even though they usually are orphans, ETs or have superpowers. That happens because, in our complex psychological system, we all have the need to be accepted as who we really are inside, and be loved despite ou......more

Goodreads review by Erinc on October 12, 2008

From my blog: Reviewing Comics n his 2004 volume Superman on the Couch comics industry veteran Danny Fingeroth aims to go beyond the history of superhero comics and analyze the reasons for our persistent fascination with them and what this can tell about our societies. For his analysis, Fingeroth iden......more

Quotes

“Fingeroth draws on his decades of working at Marvel Comics (including work as the editorial director of the Spider-Man comics family) to write this personal, engaging, and earnest work…The result is an easygoing exploration of superheroes’ cultural significance.” School Library Journal

“[Superman on the Couch], like the escapist but enduring media it chronicles, proves an illuminating read.” Publishers Weekly

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