SHAZAM: Some Comic Geek Stuff

Bloggers or assorted lifehack experts frequently publish lists of things they wants school to teach.  The lists frequently include bromides like Polonius's "to thine own self be true."  Quite frankly, I wish we could teach some comic books because comic books sum up most of the "how to succeed" points that many of the lifehack blogs enunciate.

For example, this post on Hilife2B tells readers to "become really good at one thing."  Nearly every superhero has one skill:  The Thing and She-Hulk are strong; Green Arrow has mastered using a bow; The Flash is fast;The Human Torch controls his flames, and The Invisible Woman controls her force field.  Each strives to master the particular strength.

The other things comics teach is SHAZAM.  For any youngsters that might stumble upon this blog, Shazam is the acronym that Billy Batson utters to turn into Captain Marvel.  SHAZAM stands for the wisdom of Solomon, the strength of Hercules, the stamina of Atlas, the power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles, and the speed of Mercury.  If you don't believe me, ask Wikipedia.

Outside of the fact that SHAZAM is fun to type and say, the work provides two important reminders.  First, the qualities it supposedly stands for are important to succeed in nearly every endeavor.  Second, it's a reminder that one needs people to look up to and learn from.  This post about creating a personal High Jedi Council elaborates on the point (I apologize for mixing geek genres to try to prove a point; I promise not to make any Star Trek reverences in this post.  Also, please note that I blanch at the idea of including Oprah on any list of mentors, but its his high council, not mine.)

The most important thing that comics teach is that one has to accept contradiction.  Mastering a skill and learning to rely on oneself seems to contradict the idea that one frequently needs help.   Many of the superheroes are technical geniuses, but many others rely on ancient weapons like swords, bows, or whips.  More importantly, the heroes who master the old weapons frequently defeat villains who have technologically superior tools.

In the NCLB era, no one's going to let me teach a high school comic book class.  It's tough to create a standardized test with bubbles that spell SHAZAM,