Still debating on which Hollywood representation of Bruce Wayne was the
very best? No need to anymore. Here is a shot of every single actor who
has played the live action superhero morphed into one perfect Batman. It
includes Adam West, Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer, George Clooney, and
Christian Bale. This comes from Redditor morphinapg. Personally we would have left Kilmer's lips, but that is still one fine looking troubled millionaire.
I have to admit that I'd be much more interested to see a photo morphing all of the actresses who have played Catwoman: Julie Newmar, Lee Merriweather, Eartha Kitt, Michelle Pfeiffer, Halle Berry, and Anne Hathaway. The following YouTube video includes all of the actresses except Hathaway.
In an earlier post, I concluded that the search for a single superhero role model is counterproductive:
It takes a collection of gifted humans, a few mutants, some technological superstars, and effective leaders to create a climate to teach the students populating our classrooms because some of those students have kryptonite.
I still stand by that point, but that previous post seemed focused on a superheroes "powers" or technology that teachers can't bring into the classroom.
In Green Lantern and Philosophy, Daniel P. Malloy points out that Green Lanterns "must fearless and honest." Further, "there are two capacities or 'elements' one needs in order to use a power ring: willpower and imagination" (239).
The self appointed reformers who fashion themselves as the Guardians of Oa want teachers to have superpowers. Those reformers also attempt to prevent teachers from developing into an effective corps when they work to divide and conquer with testing, merit pay proposals, and demonization for being fallible humans.
Teachers don't have superpowers. They don't have a power ring that they can use to create whatever they need in a given situation, and they don't have a lantern that they can use to get a full charge every 24 hours. Like every other human being, they rely on caffeine, sugar rushes, and energy drink.
Teachers bring bring their character and temperament into the classroom every class period. They and their students would be well served if teachers emphasized and developed courage, honesty, willpower, and imagination.
Andrew Sullivan posts this clip of a 9 year old New Hampshire boy asking Republican candidates which superhero they'd be.
Unsurprisingly, most of them named Superman. Surprisingly, none of them mentioned that they wanted to be Superman because he stood for truth, justice, and the American way. I have to hand it to Rick Santorum; he stays on his family values message when he discusses Mr. Incredible.
At the risk of being presumptuous, allow me to match superheroes with the candidates.
Mitt Romney is Plastic Man. The name matches the candidate's smile and the power to stretch oneself matches Romney's ability to tie himself into knots as he tries to explain his rapidly evolving political positions.
Herman Cain should have selected Booster Gold. Cain's candidacy was more of a book tour than a campaign; Gold is as much a huckster as he is a hero.
Lest I be accused of ignoring the Marvel Universe, Reed Richards, aka Mr. Fantastic, the Fantastic Four's scientist extraordinaire, should have been Jon Huntsman's choice. Huntsman is the only Republican who accepts a scientific consensus on climate change. At least he used to accept the scientific consensus.
Newt Gingrich and Tony Stark match up pretty well. Stark, aka Iron Man, claims to be a futurist just like Gingrich claims to be an idea man. Both have personal lives that have been shambles.
The only hero who matches Ron Paul's stand on the gold standard is The Lone Ranger who uses silver bullets. They both have been linked to some questionable stances on race issues as well.
The Scarlet Witch can alter reality; Michele Bachmann wants to
Rick Santorum wants to be a first tier candidate, but he comes up short. In that respect, he's just like Bucky Barnes who wants to be just like Captain America but doesn't quite measure up.
Finally, Rick Perry and the Thing both need to think things through a bit more than they do. Sometimes a simple message isn't quite enough.
Yes, I have no life. I am, however, married and do not live in my mother's basement.
His post got my comic book geek juices flowing, and I began pondering which superhero would make a good teacher. I even skimmed the entire run of Avengers Academy to look for examples of superhero pedagogues. As the cover of issue #11 shows, the traditional classroom has a powerful hold on the the American psyche, even the one in the Marvel Universe. I've seen a few of those expressions in my classroom.
The short answer is no superhero would be a good teacher. Some like the Hulk or Batman seem too driven by anger; Captain American or Professor Charles Xavier may be too idealistic. Many including Reed Richards or Iron Man possess an intellect that would make it difficult to communicate with average students. Others like Thor come from an era that would make it impossible to relate to contemporary students. Most have personal lives that make reality TV pale in comparison.
That's not to say that superheroes don't possess qualities that teachers should have. I would hope that teachers possess some of Spider-Man's wit. Metaphorically, they need to have Luke Cage's unbreakable skin and Wolverine's healing power. All should posses the desire to do the right thing, a quality that motivates superheros.
Perhaps a better discussion might be what sort of teachers should someone founding a "Justice League of Teachers," "A League of Extraordinary Teachers," "Teacher Avengers" want? Batman may not have any superpowers but kryptonite doesn't bother him. Captain America leads the Avengers even though he's never been the most powerful or most intelligent.
Some reformers seem to believe there's a "super teacher serum" that will allow every teacher to get every student to proficient in every subject. The truth is far different. When I walk into a classroom, I'm dealing with human beings with unique minds, personalities, histories. Some will shut me out before I utter my first word or assign the first activity. Others have shut out every other teacher but will listen to a few things I say.
Reformers would do well to understand that there's a reason that there's only one Hulk, Captain America or Batman; people react to stimulus whether it be radiation, "super teacher serum," or personal catastrophe differently. It takes a collection of gifted humans, a few mutants, some technological superstars, and effective leaders to create a climate to teach the students populating our classrooms because some of those students have kryptonite.
This Twitter site and this webiste from the Wichita Eagle help people deal with grammatical conundrums. So far my favorite has been noted by the Bookslut Blog.
"Affect" is usually a verb. "Effect" is usually a noun. Kryptonite affects Superman; its effects are debilitating.
