Watchmen Essay: Dr Manhattan
Throughout Watchmen by Alan Moore we are presented with the theme of breaking down the effectiveness of super heroes. Showing the world that super heroes, who are depicted as bearers of all things good and true, would not be feasible. These heroes are given authority over common mortals while remaining unwatched, which can have far more detrimental affects on society than a society without “super heroes”. Even the most prized person in spandex would too, like common mortals, present moral lapse and cognitive dissonance between what society wants them to do and personal ambition. Alan Moore shows this dubious morality of the most divine character in this graphic novel. Dr. Manhattan, a man turned into an omniscient being shows disconnect between the world and himself. Within the short essay entitled Dr.Manhattan: Super-powers and the superpowers, we see the flaws in allowing heroes to remain unwatched; to do as they please without the consequence of your average human. This helps exemplify the deconstruction of the political superhero. These flaws include dehumanizing of Dr. Manhattan in making him the United States of America’s nuclear deterrent, that Dr.Manhattan is not the Vitruvian Man; a perfect specimen, as society makes him out to be, and the fact that a “God Exists and he’s American” (Dr.Manhattan: Super-powers and the superpowers.II). This essay amplifies the theme of breaking down the effectiveness of super heroes, just as Moore sought to do.
In the race to become the world’s greatest superpower, the USSR and America develop the “Weapon to End Wars” (Dr.Manhattan: Super-powers and the superpowers.I); The Atomic Bomb. In the case of America, they have also developed an “Omnipotence-by-Assoc...
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...thetic Dr.Manhattan. This novel breaks the commonly portrayed political superhero stereotype by showing that even the most divine being, given the power to do anything he pleases, would rather sit around and watch the world be destroyed before intervening and changing the future for the greater good of mankind.
Alan Moore successfully breaks down the effectiveness of superheroes portrayed in your average comic book with his use of Dr.Manhattan:Super-powers and the superpowers inside his graphic novel Watchmen. Dr.Manhattan is made out to be less than divine. The American’s “placing our superhuman benefactor in the position of a walking nuclear deterrent”(Dr.Manhattan:Super-powers and the superpowers.II), depicting him as the Vitruvian Man and having a God present among mere mortals all lead to Moore being able to break down the common conceptions about superheroes.
A hero can be anyone. Even a man doing something as simple and reassuring as putting a coat around a young boy's shoulders to let him know that the world hadn't ended.” Behind all the action in The Dark Knight Rises is an important portrayal of crime and deviance in society. The superficial analysis of the plot makes The Dark Knight Rises seem like a simple hero and villain story, and nothing more. However, the film expresses concepts of justice and provides an important depiction of strain theory and the labeling theory.
To your average white American kid, a comic book is cheap entertainment— a leisure, a novelty. Your run of the mill issue of "Superman," perhaps the most generic superhero of all, is something to be read once, maybe even merely skimmed, while in the bathroom or the doctors' office. When finished with it gets thrown away mindlessly or tossed aside to join a mounting stack of similarly abandoned stories of fantastical heroism. However in the eyes of the young Indian boy, Sherman Alexie, as depicted in his essay, "Superman and Me," a tattered comic found in a donation bin was much more than that— it was a life line.
The Death Ray by Daniel Clowes is a graphic novel about the story of Andy and how he learned about his superpowers. A superhero is someone who has saved the day by accomplishing something heroic. Even though we look at superheroes as a something fiction, based on this we have everyday heroes around us such as firefighters, police officers, doctors and many more. In Clowes work, we quickly discover that this superhero theme plays out a little differently than what we are used to. The way that Clowes presents Andy to his super power, it is evident this is not an ordinary superhero story. It is arguable that despite the fact that Andy did more harm than good with his powers, his intentions were good. Therefore, he would be considered a superhero.
One of the most argued topics today, the end of World War II and the dropping of the atomic bombs still rings in the American ear. Recent studies by historians have argued that point that the United States really did not make the right choice when they chose to drop the atomic bombs on Nagasaki and Hiroshima. Also with the release of once classified documents, we can see that the United States ...
The United States gained supremacy by using the atomic bomb as a threat to force their enemies to surrender. After Japan led an attack on Pearl Harbor, the American forces retaliated by dropping an atomic bomb on Hiroshima, and then threatening to do the same on Nagasaki. “We have just begun to use this weapon against your homeland. If you still have any doubt, make inquiry as to what happened to Hiroshima when just one atomic bomb fell on that city” (Department). This shows how the atomic bomb was used as a means of intimidation; the use of the atomic bomb forced other countries into submission by threatening them with nuclear attack. Furthermore, the United States made it clear to its enemies that they had alternative options for reconciliation before nuclear attacks were to take place. The President of the United States explained “thirteen consequences of an honorable surrender,” and urged that Japan “accept those consequences and begin the work of building a new, better, and peace loving Japan” (Department). This demonstrates the use of an ethical appeal by the United States because it arrouses ones sense of duty to preserve peace. While war was inevitable, the U.S. hoped that the threat of nuclear destruction would force other countries into negotiating peace instead of fighting. Evidently, by using nuclear threats as a form of intimidation, the U...
Alan Moore’s “Watchmen” focuses on several characters throughout the novel making the idea of a main character moot. However, one character can be described as the most influential to the plot of the graphic novel. Rorschach can be seen as such due to the fact that he narrates a large portion of the novel, and his heroic code that he follows. Not only does he influence the plot by those two reasons, but also by uniting the characters after a long silence. The Comedian is the only character that almost perfectly fits as the character with the most influence on the plot of “Watchmen.” The death of his character allows for the plot to be set in motion. He has not only has he shaped every other character in the novel, but the symbol that represents his character can be found throughout the graphic novel. Although Rorschach can be interpreted as the most influential character of “Watchmen,” The Comedian influenced more aspects of the plot than any other character of the graphic novel.
Alexie, Sherman. "Superman and Me." Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles Times, 19 Apr. 1998. Web. 14 May 2014. http://articles.latimes.com/1998/apr/19/books/bk-42979
Watchmen is not just a graphic novel, but also a unique representation of American idealism as expressed through character image. Although the characters are portrayed as "superheroes," each is psychologically complex in that they become symbols for the flaws of American culture. Together, the characters of Watchmen reflect an unflattering image of American identity. We sacrifice morals to defend principles, rather than saving people. We sacrifice ourselves for commercial gain and for the fame that comes from the worship of strangers.
... based upon historic events, the protagonists portrayed here perpetuate the idea that man has always chosen for his super-heroes the qualities which he desires for himself: power, near-perfection, pride and loyalty. We celebrate theism as heroic qualities in the twentieth century. Will there ever be different qualities, qualities that might preserve a civilization longer than the civilizations that created these two brutal epics?
Many people argue that the USA was the pre-eminent superpower throughout the Cold War and since this time the only true global power. While it is seen that the USA was the pre-eminent superpower during this period the USSR’s power cannot be denied. The Cold War is defined as a battle of ideologies with communism and capitalism battling to become the dominating world view.
That was, until the introduction of a real “super” hero, promoting the world to declare, “the superman exists, and He’s American!” and subsequently pass the Keene Act outlawing all costumed crime fighting not sanctioned by the U.S. (Watchmen, get page number). Yet, after the murder of the Comedian, an ex costumed crime fighter, and hired hand for the government, a series of events slowly unveil a conspiracy concerning the safety of the entire human race. The narrative follows a cast of “heroes” reacting to this event, spending particular time on Rorschach, the deontological nihilist who obsesses over solving the Comedian’s death, Ozymandias the Rawlsian Utilitarian who wishes to bring society out of the cold war into a new age, the existentialist and now deceased, Comedian who acted mainly as the puppet to the american government, and Dr. Manhattan, the most powerful being in the universe whose only flaw is an entire lack of empathy. While each character is an unique critique of the medium’s cliches, each one also represents a unique aspect of American Cold War Political Dogma. Rorschach is a manifestation of the unchecked paranoia of Mccarthyism, Ozymandias represents the liberal opposition during the Cold War, the Comedian represents unchecked American egoism, and Dr. Manhattan represents nuclear
The possible employment of nuclear weapons between the two superpowers during the Cold War was unprecedented. The power of this stalemate shattered the paradigm of warfare and demonstrated how significant this military revolution’s effects were even at the mere threat of nuclear weapons use. Regarding this standoff between t...
To conclude, the graphic novel Watchmen presents the non-fantastic representation of a superhero, implying that not all heroes are like Superman. This notion is explored within the novel by mentioning the realistic motives of the characters choosing to become superheroes, by Rorschach’s representation and through the heroic reactions of the New Yorkers to a street crime. These elements all contribute to Watchmen’s uniqueness and complexity as a superhero comic.
Jenkins talks about how civic imagination is the collective ability to imagine common futures(Jenkins et al., 11). Through a series of cases which expand on how the superhero narrative has been appropriated by different groups that wish to let their voice be heard, it is clear that imagination opens a space for resistance and better possibilities. Fan communities portray new models of cultural participation as they reformulate and create movements because they see themselves as agents of social change(Gordon & Mihailidis 6).. Such is the example of the DREAMers, a young undocumented community seeking education that used the figure of Superman to open a dialogue around citizenship rights(Jenkins et al., 7). Their testimonies gave a face and a voice to a reality and condition that before was not much more other than a subject that needed to be addressed. Imagination turned into a voice that could and would be listened to. These movements show how civic participation, personal experience and media can unite to achieve engaged discourse. They have become credible solutions that through collaboration and strategy can give hope and create a public narrative that brings action and change(Ganz
In the novel Watchmen by Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, interprets the achievement of order and law through the use of power and violence by superheroes. This novel consists a total of seven different characters to demonstrate how superheroes obtain peace in society through the use of violence. The writer portrays the plot in different characters’ perspectives by guiding readers in their point of view. This motivation also assists readers to examine the loneliness and the feeling of isolation during Dr. Jonathan Osterman, Walter Joseph Kovacs and Laurie Juspeczky’s life experiences.