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La Maschera dell’Antieroe. Evoluzione della Mitologia e della Filosofia del Supereroe in Fumetti e Graphic Novel, dalla Dark Age a Oggi
Full text linkIl progetto “La Maschera dell’Antieroe. Evoluzione della Mitologia e della Filosofia del Supereroe in Fumetti e Graphic Novel, dalla Dark Age a Oggi” nasce con lo scopo di analizzare e approfondire gli aspetti filosofici propri della narrativa supereroica, considerando prevalentemente il media nel quale tale narrativa ha preso vita, il fumetto, ma senza tralasciare le più recenti manifestazioni del fenomeno come film e serie televisive. L’obiettivo è stato quello di scoprire quelle che sono le strutture tipiche del mondo supereroico e quali sono i concetti filosofici in esse impliciti. A questo proposito non si è utilizzato un determinato autore attraverso il quale analizzare la figura del supereroe, ma piuttosto si è cercato di partire da fumetti e graphic novel stessi, svelando gradualmente la filosofia che gli è propria. Per questo motivo, come è evidente dalla bibliografia, è stato necessario considerare un vasto numero di autori. Si è considerata la narrativa supereroica come “specchio” del mondo e della società occidentale, nel senso Stendhaliano del termine. Si inizia a parlare di supereroi con Superman, pubblicato per la prima volta su Action Comics #1 nel 1938. La figura non è rimasta immutata, ma si è evoluta e modificata assieme alla società nella quale è nata. Pur considerando anche le prime due età del fumetto supereroico, la Golden Age e Silver Age, si è scelto di partire dalla Dark Age, età che comincia circa all’inizio degli anni ’80. Questa è ancora oggi considerata la più grande (e da alcuni l’ultima) trasformazione che il genere ha conosciuto e dalla quale è nato il supereroe così come lo conosciamo oggi. Questa trasformazione è legata a quella che è una profonda crisi della società americana degli anni ’60 e ’70, crisi che esplode anche nel mondo dei supereroi influenzando, da un lato una decostruzione della figura stessa del supereroe e di ciò che rappresenta, dall’altro la nascita e l’ascesa di un elevato numero di antieroi che domineranno questo periodo. Testi come Watchmen di Alan Moore e The Dark Knight Returns di Frank Miller sono pietre miliari e opere emblematiche di questa Age. È stato osservato che aspetti caratteristici della rivoluzione della Dark Age sono riapparsi, mutatis mutandis, oggi: dopo un periodo di transizione del corso degli anni ’90, la figura del supereroe e dell’eroe è nuovamente controversa e a volte ambigua, mentre l’antieroe ha sempre più successo. Per questi e altri motivi si è voluta designare l’età contemporanea con il termine di Post-heroic Age. Il lavoro è stato strutturato in quattro sezioni principali. La prima, riguardante il supereroe, ha inquadrato le strutture e i concetti base di questa narrativa. Chiave per comprendere tale figura è il suo dualismo e il suo rapporto con la maschera. La maschera, intesa come idolo e doppia identità è l’elemento più distintivo del genere. Il supereroe non solo si “nasconde” dietro una maschera come facevano personaggi quali Zorro o The Phantom, ma assume una seconda identità legata a un simbolo e a una differente Weltanschauung. Questa doppia identità definisce il rapporto tra il personaggio e la sua società, permettendo all’eroe di mantenersi in un fondamentale stato liminale, in bilico tra il mondo umano, la società che protegge e della quale è parte grazie all’identità civile, e il mondo “super”, inumano, del quale fa parte nel momento che indossa la maschera. È possibile già cogliere, nel rapporto del supereroe con la maschera, le contraddizioni e le aporie che una tale figura comporta in particolare in relazione alla legge e alla morale. Il supereroe combatte per difendere lo status quo, la Giustizia, il “Bene”, ma per farlo agisce necessariamente al di fuori della legge, è – de facto – un criminale. È solo il permanere nello stato liminale che gli permette di “sopravvivere” e operare all’interno di questa contraddizione fondamentale. Perderlo significa – spesso – perdere lo status di “supereroe”, diventando un antieroe o un villain. Per approfondire il concetto di “maschera” si sono rivelate fondamentali le opere di Friedrich Nietzsche e Jean-Paul Sartre. Altro elemento chiave preso in esame è stato il rapporto del supereroe con la violenza, analizzato facendo riferimento principalmente all’opera di René Girard. Quali sono e cosa comportano i metodi utilizzati dall’eroe? Fino a dove può spingersi il supereroe per difendere il “Bene”? E in cosa consiste esattamente questo “Bene”? Queste le domande che hanno guidato questo punto dell’analisi. La seconda sezione ha preso in esame il villain, il cattivo. Fondamentale è il rapporto che lega tra loro le due figure, che si sono rivelate meno distanti di quanto potrebbero inizialmente sembrare. L’analisi sul villain ha definito e approfondito differenti tipologie. La separazione dei vari tipi di cattivo non è netta, ma è stata metodologicamente utile per focalizzarsi su determinati aspetti che un determinato villain rivela: ad esempio per approfondire il legame tra villain ed eroe si sono considerati il Doppelgänger e il genio criminale, l’arcinemico del supereroe. Le altre categorie individuate sono quella del mostro, del comandante nemico, del comune supercriminale e del villain eroico. Alla base dell’analisi sul villain sta la figura del mostro, inteso anche in senso morale. Il mostro è una figura chiave per studiare non solo il cattivo ma anche la dimensione dell’inumano, rappresentata dalla maschera e legata, quindi, anche al supereroe. La terza sezione è il “cuore” di questo lavoro e si concentra sulla figura dell’antieroe. Tale figura si è rivelata centrale per comprendere e definire chi è il supereroe oggi. La domanda “quando un personaggio è un antieroe, quando invece un villain o un supereroe?” non permette una facile risposta. Elementi chiave per stabilire chi è un antieroe si sono rivelati essere la maschera, il rapporto del personaggio con la società, e il conflitto morale che di norma propone. Centrali le figure antieroiche definite “Ribelli” e “Rivoluzionari”, personaggi come V di V per Vendetta, Rorschach di Watchmen o il Punitore dell’universo Marvel. Da un punto di vista filosofico si è fatto riferimento principalmente, ma non solo, ad Albert Camus (Il Mito di Sisifo e L’Uomo in Rivolta) e al concetto di Übermensch Nietzschiano. Altre tipologie di antieroi prese in considerazione sono state: le “Parodie” (come Deadpool o l’italiano Rat-Man), i “Non-eroi”, personaggi cioè che rifiutano il ruolo di eroe e la maschera (come molti mutanti dell’universo Marvel o Jessica Jones) e infine le antieroine. Lo studio delle antieroine apre l’ultima sezione dell’opera, incentrata sulla figura della supereroina, o più in generale sulla superdonna. Si è rivelato necessario considerare separatamente e approfonditamente la figura della donna nell’universo supereroico, in quanto questa presenta delle peculiarità non indifferenti rispetto ai superuomini e ha conosciuto un’evoluzione differente. L’universo supereroico era, e in parte ancora è, principalmente maschile e a tratti maschilista. Sono state descritte e approfondite le questioni riguardante il sessismo presente nella narrativa supereroica e gli stereotipi legati alla donna, costretta spesso ad assumere ruoli “piatti” della vittima, della fidanzata o della femme fatale. Aspetto fondamentale venuto alla luce è il legame che tutte le figure femminili hanno con il concetto di antieroe, in quanto personaggi di rottura e critica di un universo prevalentemente maschile. L’analisi sulla superdonna ha anche fornito l’occasione di ripercorrere le età del fumetto supereroico e le tematiche affrontate nel corso del lavoro, per mostrarne le similitudini e le differenze nel caso specifico di eroine e villainesses. In particolare, è stato studiato il tema del corpo, in relazione alla superdonna, ma anche al supereroe in generale, tema che chiude il lavoro andando anche a ricollegarsi direttamente con quello della maschera.The project “The Mask of the Antihero. Evolution of the Mythology and Philosophy of the Superhero in Comics and Graphic Novels, from the Dark Age to the Present” aims to analyse and explore philosophical aspects inside the superheroes’ narrative, by considering comics and graphic novels, without neglecting the most recent manifestations of the phenomena like film and series. The objective is to define the structures of the superhero’s genre and the implicit philosophical concepts. The method is not to consider a specific author to analyse the superhero figure, but rather to start from comics and graphic novels themselves and gradually reveal their philosophy. Thus, as it is evident from the bibliography, it was necessary to consider various authors. In this work, the superhero’s narrative is considered a Stendhalian “mirror” of the western world and society. The genre starts with Superman, who appears for the first time on Action Comics #1 in 1938. The “superhero” did not remain unchanged since the so-called Golden Age, but he evolved together with the society in which he was born. The first two Ages of superheroes’ history (Golden and Silver Age) are taken into account, but the exam starts with the Dark Age (early 1980s). The Dark Age’s transformation is today still considered the biggest (sometimes even the last) revolution of the genre, which defines the superhero as he is today. The Dark Age’s revolution is directly linked with a profound crisis of US-society during the 1960s and 1970s. This crisis affected the superhero’s world and forced a deconstruction of the superhero figure. The “Good” the superhero embodied is questioned, and new antiheroes arise and dominate these years. Graphic novels like Alan Moore’s Watchmen and Frank Miller’s The Dark Knight Returns are emblematic milestones of this Age. It is observed that Dark Age’s characteristic aspects have reappeared, mutatis mutandis, today: after a transitional period in the 1990s, the figure of the superhero and the hero is again controversial and sometimes ambiguous, while antiheroes are increasingly successful. For these and other reasons, the contemporary Age is designated with the term Post-heroic Age. The thesis is divided into four main sections. The first concerns the superhero, and it considers the basic structures and concepts of superhero’s narrative. The key to understanding the superhero’s figure is its dualism and its relationship with the mask. The mask is intended as an idol and double identity; it is the genre’s clearest marker. Superheroes do not just “hide” behind a mask: they assume a whole new identity linked to a symbol and a different Weltanschauung. The double identity defines superhero’s relation with society and thanks to it the character can remain in a liminal state, in a balance between the human world, the society he protects, and the “super”, inhuman one, the world of the mask. The relation with the mask shows the contradictions and the aporias, which the superhero figure implies, especially in connection with law and morality. The superhero fights to defend the status quo, Justice and “Good”, but his mission requires that he acts outside the law. He is – and must be – a criminal. Only thanks to his liminal state he can operate despite this critical contradiction. If the superhero loses this state, he could become an antihero or even a villain. The works of Friedrich Nietzsche and Jean-Paul Sartre are fundamental to define the concept of “mask”. Another significant element examined is the superhero’s relationship with violence, analysed mainly through René Girard’s work. What are the methods used by the hero, and what do they involve? How far can the superhero go to defend the “Good”? Furthermore, what exactly is this “Good”? These questions guide this point of the analysis. The second section is regarding the villain. The relation between hero and villain is crucial, and the two figures prove to be less different as they seem at the beginning. There are different villain types: this distinction is methodologically useful for examining aspects revealed by a particular villain category. For example, the Doppelgänger and the Archenemy studies help define the relationship between superhero and supervillain. The other villain types are the Monster, the Enemy Commander, the Common Super-Criminal, and the Heroic Villain. The Monster (also in a moral sense) is the basis of the analysis regarding the villain. The Monster is also a crucial figure to study the inhuman dimension connected to the mask and, consequently, to the superhero. The third section is the “heart” of this work, and it is focused on the antihero. This figure proved to be central to comprehend and define the superhero today. The following questions do not have an easy answer: “Why do we define a character an antihero? Why a villain or a superhero?” Key elements to define an antihero are his mask, the relationship with his society, and the moral conflict he usually causes. The antiheroic figures defined as “Rebels” and “Revolutionaries” are fundamental for understanding what an antihero is: they are characters such as V (V for Vendetta), Rorschach (Watchmen) or The Punisher (Marvel universe). From a philosophical point of view, Albert Camus’ The Myth of Sisyphus and The Rebel and the Nietzschean Übermensch are crucial at this point of the analysis. Other types of antiheroes taken into consideration are the “Parodies” (such as Deadpool or the Italian Rat-Man), the “Non-heroes”, (characters who reject the role of hero and the mask, like many mutants of the Marvel universe or Jessica Jones) and finally the antiheroines. The chapter about the antiheroines opens the last section, which considers the superheroine and the superwoman in general. It is necessary to consider superwomen separately because they present important peculiarity compared to supermen, and they had a different evolution. The superheroes’ universe was, and in part still is, male-dominated and sometimes even sexist. The issues concerning the sexism present in superhero fiction and the stereotypes related to women often forced to assume the stereotypical roles of the victim, girlfriend, or femme fatale, are described and deepened. A fundamental aspect revealed is the link that female figures have with antiheroes, as characters of rupture and criticism of a predominantly male universe. Superwoman’s analysis also provides an opportunity to retrace the ages of superhero comics and the issues addressed in the course of the work to show the similarities and differences in heroines and villainesses’ specific case. In particular, the body’s theme is studied, concerning both superwomen and superheroes. This theme closes the work by reconnecting directly with that of the mask
Doping graphene with boron: A review of synthesis methods, physicochemical characterization, and emerging applications
No full textGraphene based materials can be effectively modified by doping in order to specifically tailor their properties toward specific applications. So far the most used and widely investigated dopant heteroatom is probably nitrogen. However, boron is also an equally important element that can induce novel and complementary properties leading to specific implementation in alternative devices and technologies. In this paper, we survey the most recent preparation methods of boron doped graphene, including materials with specific morphology such as nanoribbons, quantum dots and 3D interconnected systems. We illustrate the results of theoretical and experimental studies dealing with the description and understanding of the main structural, electronic and chemical properties of this material. The emerging applications of boron doped graphene in several technological fields such as electrochemistry, sensors, photovoltaics, catalysis and biology are extensively reviewed
A rational approach to the optimization of efficient electrocatalysts for the next generation Fuel Cells
Full text linkThe PhD project has been performed in the Surfaces and Catalysts group active in the Department of Chemical Sciences, within the frame of the grant “A rational approach to the optimization of efficient electrocatalysts for the next generation Fuel Cells”, funded by CARIPARO foundation. The project has been focused on the preparation and characterization of new carbon-based materials for applications in Polymer Electrolyte Membrane Fuel Cells (PEMFCs), also known as oxygen-hydrogen FCs. The preparation of the materials has been performed using different techniques, depending on the type of the target material and on the possible applications that these materials can offer. With reference to the studied model systems (Highly Oriented Pyrolytic Graphite (HOPG) and Glassy Carbon (GC)), the introduction of doping heteroatoms has been performed by ion implantation, while the study of new chemical functionalities has been allowed by the use of Wet Chemistry techniques, in particular derived from the electrochemical synthesis.
The deposition of thin films or nanoparticles (metal or oxides of transition metals) on the ion-modified materials has been carried out in-situ by using advanced techniques under Ultra High Vacuum conditions (UHV), such as Physical Vapor Deposition (PVD). Within the study of the model systems, PVD was chosen because of its ability to provide an atomic scale control of the metal deposition. In a second time, conventional deposition techniques such as chemical or electrochemical reduction of suitable metal precursors have been performed, in a synergistic combination between Surface Science and Electrochemistry-derived techniques.
The characterization of these materials has been performed using the facilities of the Surface Science group, such as the X-ray and Ultraviolet Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS - UPS), Scanning Tunneling and Atomic Force Microscopy (STM - AFM), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Energy Dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and Low Energy Electron Diffraction (LEED). To get a deeper insight in the chemistry/structure/properties of the prepared systems, synchrotron light-based techniques such as HR-XPS, NEXAFS, ARPES, ResPES and PEEM have been extensively used. The study of the electro-catalytic activity has been performed using conventional Electrochemistry techniques, in particular Cyclic and Linear Sweep Voltammetry (CV - LSV), as well as electro-dynamic techniques such as Rotating Disk Electrode (RDE). Finally, in order to support the experimental data or to bring their understanding at a deeper level, simulations using Density Functional Theory (DFT) have been performed in collaboration with the group coordinated by Prof. Cristiana Di Valentin (University of Milano Bicocca). During the course of the doctorate, several collaborations have been pursued with other research groups operating in the Department of Chemical Sciences or abroad, such as the "Interfaces and Energy Conversion E19" research unit, Technical University of Munich (TUM, Germany), coordinated by Profs. O. Schneider and J. Kunze-Liebhäuser
Devil in Heaven : The Role of Matt Murdock's Parents and Friends in the Creation of Daredevil's Identity
Full text linkRecommended Citation
Favaro, Marco (2025) "Devil in Heaven: The Role of Matt Murdock's Parents and Friends in the Creation of Daredevil's Identity," Heroism Science: Vol. 10: Iss. 2, Article 2.
DOI: 10.26736/hs.2025.02.02
Available at: https://scholarship.richmond.edu/heroism-science/vol10/iss2/2Traumas and losses mark superheroes´ lives from the beginning. Often orphans, superheroes start their journey with the loss of a paternal or maternal figure. This tragedy destroys their previous world and identity, but it also gives them a purpose. The superhero character, Daredevil, is no exception; he experiences loss and pain, too. Matt Murdock’s life is marked by the death of many people close to him, starting with the loss of his father, which leaves the deepest scar on him. The assumption of the "super" identity is necessary to replace the previous one, shattered by the trauma suffered. Matt, traumatized, needs to create a new persona. This new persona comes with a new worldview and values, a new moral code that conflicts with the mainstream one. Daredevil's story highlights the contradictions of his character involving the balancing of his violent vigilantism with an Übermenschliche morality
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
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