Jekyll/Hyde Syndrome: Examining the relationship between heroes and villains

The element of superhero comics that has captured my interest as a topic for the final paper is the relationship between hero and villain. I have frequently noticed in my reading of comic books both in and out of class that superheroes have a tendency to create their own villains (or in some cases to be their own villains). In order to explore this phenomenon I will write a paper using Hegel’s theory of the master-slave dialectic, along with scholarly publications on similar topics. My paper will examine the symbiotic relationship between hero and villain as seen in The Dark Knight Returns, Promethea, Fantastic Four, etc. I will discuss the need for a hero to have a counterpart villain of near equal strength and ability in order to add interest to their continual struggle against the forces of evil (because thwarting bank robberies all the time gets a little dull). I will alter Frank Miller’s notion that the city has to be bad enough to justify the hero and say instead that there must be a villain evil enough to justify the hero (and usually such a being must be created, since super villains are not naturally occurring). I will consider the possibility that villains represent something besides themselves; that they are a figurehead for greater societal problems that have no body to be attacked. I will discuss how superheroes that fight against themselves are just internalizing this classic angst. I will talk about the physical differences between heroes and villains, costumes, dialogue, etc. I may conclude that the world might actually be safer if superheroes didn’t exist, since there would be no super villains. As you can see I still have a bit of work to do as far as honing the topic, but this should give you a pretty good idea of what I’m aiming for. I appreciate any and all feedback!