The Ethics behind Captain America

At the time, Captain America was supposed to represent the ideal American patriot, who loved fighting for his country and helping his fellow citizens. He also shows specific attributes such as bravery and loyalty to his country, wearing his countries colours bright and proud for everyone to see and recognise him by, and having a motto of "favouring freedom over blind loyalty." Joe Simon, one interview, "I've always considered myself very

patriotic," and mentions that they were looking to create a hero in response to the Nazi's during World War II. Captain America's whole moral structure is based on his extrinsic values for America, fighting for his fellow citizens and doing whats right in order to defend their freedom, and prevent the enemy from taking it. Some of the enemies featured in some comics are actual or based off of, real people that are against the United States, for

example, Adolf Hitler, and Electro (who is an attempt created from the Russians to fight him). These values added to the character of Captain America made him more attractive to all ages, especially in a time when there was an impending threat of world destruction. The country needed someone to look up to and encourage the youth at the time that there was hope, and that America was doing all the right things in order to preserve their freedom, which was what the authors were aiming for, even before the cold war started.

Written by Franklin Parada Jr.

Comments

The Argument Found Within "Captain America Commie Smasher"...and Why it Wasn't Unique

The major argument made in the Captain America text is that Captain America, as a comic book character geared specifically toward American boys, should represent the idealistic patriotism and masculine fearlessness that existed, though sometimes infrequently, throughout the Cold War . Physically speaking, Captain America’s image was that of a man who barbarically attacked America’s arch nemesis the Communists, all while emblematically donning the star-spangled banner and wielding an indestructible shiel d with an unmistakable American star on the front. The argument made here was that American boys, at the ripe, young age somewhere between peak imagination and adolescent stubbornness, could be easily influenced by this symbolic, distinctly American, role model. Chances are, many children did not fully grasp the profound threat, both physically and ideologically , that America faced at the time. Yet, it is also probably safe to say that they frequently hear d their parents anxiousl...

Captain America's Emotional Appeal

Marvel Comics wanted a hero who could stand up for our country and make the people proud to be American in a time of crisis and peril. For them, it was Captain America. They were able to make him fight against enemies based on of real-world problems/enemies, while still incorporating elements of imagination and exaggeration, for example, one of his enemies that he fought during the 1960's was the threat of the " Madbomb " specifically the "big daddy" version which could affect the entire country if it went off, making everyone act insane. The creators also tried to make him more relatable to the common American Citizen, wanting to enlist in the army as soon as he got the chance, but he was not physically fit, was too short, too skinny, and even failed his eye exam. But it didn't bring him down and tried anything in order to join the fight, which is where he got his powers when he was put in life-threatening conditions, in order to push his body to the limit,...

How Captain America was Shaped by His Audience

Even at a time when romance, horror, and crime genres received the most positive public reception, Atlas (Currently known as Marvel) knew full well the power it possessed to influence easily persuadable American teenage boys, especially in a time of immense fear under the American atmosphere. Recognizing this, Atlas capitalized on the opportunity to provide an exciting, imaginative outlet for them to escape from the realities of the Cold War. It was clear that Captain America’s primary audience was the male youth across America. Captain America represented so many idealistic aspects of American masculinity and as a patriotic wind gust throughout the United States, teenage boys came to idolize the Captain. His super suit was easily discernible as the stars and stripes of the American flag, and his powerful appearance fed into the mind of the young Americans that looked at him as a role model, the American role model . It is important to ...

Marketing to the Nuclear Family