Fantastically reasonable: ambivalence in the representation of science and technology in super-hero comics

Abstract

A long-standing contrast in academic discussions of science concerns its perceived disenchanting or enchanting public impact. In one image, science displaces magical belief in unknowable entities with belief in knowable forces and processes and reduces all things to a single technical measure. In the other, science is itself magically transcendent, expressed in technological adulation and an image of scientists as wizards or priests. This paper shows that these contrasting images are also found in representations of science in super-hero comics, which, given their lowly status in Anglo-American culture, would seem an unlikely place to find such commonality with academic discourse. It is argued that this is evidence that the contrast constitutes an ambivalence arising from the dilemmas that science poses; they are shared rhetorics arising from and reflexively feeding a set of broad cultural concerns. This is explored through consideration of representations of science at a number of levels in the comics, with particular focus on the science-magic constellation, and enchanted and disenchanted imagery in representations of technology and scientists. It is concluded that super-hero comics are one cultural arena where the public meaning of science is actively worked out, an activity that unites “expert” and “non-expert” alike.

X-Men Ethics: Using Comic Books to Teach Business Ethics

“…However, sometimes scientistsÕ best intentions result in the creation of a supervillian such as the Lizard in Spider-Man. Comic book universes are ideal areas for society to work through its concerns about science and technology addressing technical concepts as well as social issues and concerns (Locke, 2005).…”

The Chemedian Brings Laughter to the Chemistry Classroom

“…The main character -The Chemedian -could be seen as a superhero, though one that draws on more recent developments in this genre (she is female, a rebel, a bit naughty and has 'magical' powers). The character also draws on what Locke (2005) defines as the science-magic constellation. She is clearly a magical character in that she comes from another dimension and can control and modify scientific properties at will.…”

“…As a genre, they are perceived as low brow, being neither art nor literature and they are condemned for their outlandish use of fantasy (Locke, 2005). Criticism of the portrayal of gender roles or violence has been levelled at commercially available comic strips (see for example, North, 1940).…”

Mixed Messages for Our Next Generation of Scientists

“…Therefore, it is not surprising then that science educators have long since suspected a connection between the relationship of media and its inluence upon students' perceptions (or conceptions) of scientists [31][32][33]. Numerous authors have argued that media signiicantly contribute to students' schema development [1,6,28,[31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38][39].…”