White The Virtues of Captain America

Modern-Day Lessons on Character from a World War II Superhero
1. Auflage 2014
ISBN: 978-1-118-61925-4
Verlag: John Wiley & Sons
Format: EPUB
Kopierschutz: Adobe DRM (»Systemvoraussetzungen)

E-Book, Englisch, 256 Seiten, E-Book

The first look at the philosophy behind the CaptainAmerica comics and movies, publishing in advance of themovie release of Captain America: The WinterSolider in April 2014.
In The Virtues of Captain America, philosopher andlong-time comics fan Mark D. White argues that the core principles,compassion, and judgment exhibited by the 1940's comic bookcharacter Captain America remain relevant to the modern world.Simply put, "Cap" embodies many of the classical virtues that havebeen important to us since the days of the ancient Greeks: honesty,courage, loyalty, perseverance, and, perhaps most importantly,honor. Full of entertaining examples from more than 50 years ofcomic books, White offers some serious philosophical discussions ofeveryone's favorite patriot in a light-hearted and accessibleway.
* Presents serious arguments on the virtues of Captain Americawhile being written in a light-hearted and often humorous tone
* Introduces basic concepts in moral and political philosophy tothe general reader
* Utilizes examples from 50 years of comics featuring CaptainAmerica, the Avengers, and other Marvel superheroes
* Affirms the value of "old-fashioned" virtues for the modernworld without indulging in nostalgia for times long passed
* Reveals the importance of the sound principles that America wasfounded upon
* Publishing in advance of Captain America: The WinterSoldier out in April 2014.

Autoren/Hrsg.

White, Mark D.

Inhaltsverzeichnis

Introduction vii
Acknowledgments xiii
Notes on Source Material xiv
About the Author xvi
1 Superhuman Ethics Class 1
Utilitarianism 2
Deontology 6
A Civil War ... of Ethics! 10
Virtue Ethics 13
Virtuous Deontology ... No, Deontological Virtue ...Maybe "Deontovirtue"? 18
2 Captain America as a Moral Exemplar 25
Can a Fictional Character Be a Moral Exemplar? 26
Aren't Fictional Characters Liable to Be Perfect? 29
Fifty Years, Dozens of Writers ... One Captain America?34
3 Five Basic Virtues 45
Courage 46
Humility 50
Righteous Indignation 54
Sacrifice and Responsibility 58
Perseverance 63
4 Honor and Integrity 76
The Honor of Captain America 76
External Honor as Respect 78
Internal Honor as Integrity 85
Principle and Compromise 88
Duty and Sacrifice (Again) 96
5 Judgment 109
Making the Hard Decisions 110
Whose Right Answer? 115
Tragic Dilemmas and How to Avoid Them 118
"Black-and-White" or Red, White, and Blue?
When Judgment Evolves 122
Hitting the Threshold 131
6 Principle and Politics 143
Patriotism: The Captain and America 143
Cosmopolitanism 146
The American Dream Versus the American Reality 150
"I'm a Hero, Not a Politician!" 153
Principle over Politics 156
Captain America in (Principled) Action 161
Secret Empire/Nomad 161
The Captain 163
Civil War 166
7 Can Captain America Help Us Achieve Greater Unity andCivility? 178
The "Divided States of America," Then and Now178
The Three Core American Ideals 181
Justice 182
Equality 184
Liberty 186
Debating What We Disagree On While Recognizing What We Share188
Now It's Our Turn 193
Appendix: Why Are There Seven Volumes of Captain America andFive Volumes of Avengers? 198
References 202
Index 221

Über Autor(innen)

Mark D. White is Professor and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at the College of Staten Island/CUNY and co-editor of Batman and Philosophy.