Description: A consideration of the modern Superhero comic as an expression of spiritual desire, showing what Superheroes can teach about our most essential human needs. >
Brief description: Ben Saunders is Associate Professor of English at the University of Oregon. He is author of Desiring Donne: Poetry, Sexuality, Interpretation (Harvard University Press, 2006) and co-editor, with Roger Beebe and Denise Fulbrook, of Rock Over the Edge: Essays in Popular Music Culture (Duke University Press, 2002).
Review Quotes:
"Ben Saunders gets at the crossover between psychology and superheroes, and at the difficulties it imposes, in his excellent 2011 book about the intersection between religion and superheroes, Do the Gods Wear Capes?" --Noah Berlatsky
"There have been many scholarly analyses of comic book superheroes recently, most of them thoughtful, some of them misguided. However, arguably the most sophisticated and the most human of these treatments is Ben Saunders' Do the Gods Wear Capes?" --Jack David Eller, Anthropology Review Database, February 2014 [Listed in "Too Many Words: 15 fantastic books to help you learn about comics"] "There's no shortage of books about superheroes and their mythological significance, but this one stands out from the rest. Written by Ben Saunders, who runs the Comics and Cartoon Studies program at the University of Oregon, Do the Gods Wear Capes? makes an enthralling case for superheroes as spiritual entities, and has the sharp analysis of text and pop culture to back it up. With chapters focusing on Superman, Wonder Woman, Spider-Man and Iron Man, this is a great way to see your favorite heroes in a new light." -blastr