• Home
  • Releases
  • Blog
  • Design
  • Posters
  • Submission Guidelines
  • About
  • Privacy Policy

Loser City

Multimedia Collective

  • Home
  • Releases
  • Features
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Interviews
  • Art
  • Submissions
You are here: Home / Features / The Truth Redefined: Superman and Passing in America

The Truth Redefined: Superman and Passing in America

June 12, 2015 By LoserCityBoss Leave a Comment

As part of DC Comics’ new DC You initiative, the publisher is seeking to diversify their books and send their tentpole titles in inviting, new directions. Batman is now a former police commissioner in a robotic suit, Wonder Woman is just a run of the mill bad book, and – most intriguingly – Superman has been left with a new status quo that sees him de-powered and his secret identity exposed in a storytelling initiative named Truth. I’m not a big fan of de-powering Superman for one simple reason but the idea of a public identity intrigued me.

At the time of writing, only one comic under the Truth umbrella has been released and that is Action Comics #41 by Greg Pak and Aaron Kuder. While Gene Luen Yang and John Romita, Jr. will tell the story of how Superman’s identity is revealed to the world by Lois Lane in Superman, Action Comics picks up with that status quo in place and uses it as a launching point to explore what has changed and what has stayed the same for the Man of Steel. Clark Kent has now been given the unenviable task of being Superman full-time with all the problems that creates but he’s still determined to do everything in his power to help others, he stands up to bullies, and he relishes his connection to humanity. The core of the character hasn’t changed so much as his environment and the reaction to him has.

This new situation that Superman finds himself in with his identity exposed is a major shift. It changes the game in such a way that I now have difficulty imagining DC Comics putting the genie back in the bottle without undoing a serious instance of progress. We should all know the origins of Superman, not about being put in the rocket and sent to Earth, but the environment in which he was created. Superman is the creation of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, two young Jewish men, during a time when anti-semitism was a serious concern. From his Moses-like backstory to his birth name (the “el” in Kal-El is borrowed from a Hebrew suffix used for God), Superman is a deeply Jewish character.

For seventy-five years, the dynamic has been this: Kal-El walks through the world doing his best to fit in as Clark Kent while alternatively embracing his roots as Superman. What Kal-El does as Clark Kent is referred to as “passing” (when a member of one group is able to move among another group and to be considered a part of it). He takes an Anglo name and hides his heritage (ex: Jack Kirby was born Jacob Kurtzberg) so that he can fit in among white America, something that many people have been and still are forced to do for their own safety in a hostile environment. Some groups are able to pass among others more easily than some and the ability to pass has been referred to as “passing privilege.” For men like Siegel and Shuster, the question of whether to attempt passing or to display their heritage was an all too unfortunate one and it may have spawned the fantasy of a character who could have it both ways by living two identities.

Superman Clark Kent

The world has changed somewhat in those seventy-five years. The question of passing is still an important one (look no further than the dangers faced by the LGBTQIA community) for many people but there has been greater awareness of how this can erase one’s identity. Today, a writer doesn’t have the same pressure to use a pen name because their real one might be considered “too Jewish.” Don’t get me wrong, it’s still a pressure that is there but it has lessened. However, some people have never had an option to pass.

The Truth arc is being spearheaded by Gene Luen Yang, the award-winning author of American Born Chinese, and he has had a different experience than Clark Kent. As the son of first-generation Chinese immigrants, Yang has not been afforded the same privilege to pass among a society that too-often labels not-white as “other.” Through the character of Jin Wang/Danny in American Born Chinese, Yang explored the fears of alienation that the children of immigrants feel and the desire to assimilate (or to become white as is literally the case with Jin Wang’s transformation into Danny) in order to avoid being ostracized by white society. The first comic Yang purchased was one featuring Superman and it may have been that the story of an immigrant who rises to prominence, not in spite of his heritage but because of it, that struck a chord with him. The difference is that Yang doesn’t have the luxury of being “Clark Kent” because he’s always Superman. And as he discussed in a panel at this year’s Special Edition: NYC, Greg Pak is Korean American but of mixed heritage so he has been able to pass effectively as white while also being recognized as Korean when among Korean people.

You can see how this idea must have gripped the creators and editors of the Superman group of titles. Here you have a character whose roots lie in the immigrant story and you pair him up with writers with a somewhat different take on that immigrant story. The decision to have Lois Lane “out” Clark Kent as Superman erases his passing privilege and puts him in the position of real people like Yang’s parents and many other non-white immigrants. It directly parallels Danny being forced to confront the harmful attitudes he has internalized and accept his true identity as Jin Wang when confronted by the Monkey King in American Born Chinese.

American Born Chinese Monkey King

In Action Comics #41, Clark Kent encounters a predominantly white group of people that almost immediately try to gang up and beat him. These people would have never thought of doing this to the almighty Superman but now that he’s been revealed to be the weakened Clark Kent, they see an opening to express their fear of his otherness. So Clark Kent has to beat up some bigots which is just fine by me since it is a proud tradition for the character (see: Superman versus the Ku Klux Klan). This is contrasted with the welcoming community of “Kentville” that Clark finds when he returns to his old stomping grounds in Metropolis. There he is met with celebration by his decidedly multi-cultural neighbors, who have an understanding that Clark’s heritage doesn’t make him any less of a person or any less of an American. His community is proud to celebrate their neighbor that had been forced to live in secret for so long and they stand with him in solidarity.

It’s not a perfect metaphor; so far there have been no minority groups that are capable of shooting lasers out of their eyes and Superman is actually a different species. But, as the X-Men have proven over the years, a metaphor doesn’t have to be perfect for it to become important to people. Maybe I’m being naïve but I can see this development becoming important to someone that struggles with the question of whether or not to attempt passing or someone that hasn’t been given that option. Superman already means a lot to many people, but this could broaden his range in a really exciting way.

Superman Truth

My only fear now is that this development may be undone in the future and that Superman will once again be forced to hide his heritage from the world in order to live a “normal” life. This is a big deal. A bigger deal than Spider-Man or Nightwing losing their secret identities could ever hope to be. I can understand wanting to return to the easy tension of a secret identity but to do so with Superman after this progressive move would be considerably tone deaf. One can only hope that this move will prove to be a definitive and influential moment in the character’s history that finds a way to endure.


At 20 years old, Mark Stack knows that he loves comics more than anything. Heck, all of his English teachers have known it too whether it was from him writing an analysis of dystopian themes in media using V for Vendetta or drawing a comparison in class from the serialized works of Charles Dickens to the comic book. Mark, taking a cue from one of his idols, is currently studying Journalism at San Diego State University while working part-time in a comic shop and moonlighting as a writer online. You can read his work at Comics Bulletin, Eat.Geek.Play and more. He’s on Twitter at @MarkOStack

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window)

Related

Filed Under: Features Tagged With: American Born Chinese, Clark Kent, comics, Gene Luen Yang, Greg Pak, passing, Superman

About LoserCityBoss

It's a dirty job but someone's gotta do it

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

SOCIAL

FacebookInstagramTumblrTwitter

Buy Loser City Apparel

loser city T-shirt

Be a Loser

Sign up for Loser City's mailing list to receive weekly updates about the latest articles, shows, and releases.

TRENDZ

Anatomy of a Page art Austin CBS comedy comics Dark Horse DC DC Comics documentary Fantagraphics Film Fossil Records Games HBO hip-hop horror humor IDW Image Comics Indie indie comics jake muncy manga Marvel Marvel Comics Melissa Benoist Music penny dreadful Pete Toms punk Questionable Comics Review Ryan K Lindsay sci-fi Seattle Showtime Supergirl SXSW Television the CW TV video games Video of the Week ymmv

Top Posts & Pages

  • Codeine Crazy
  • Mind the Gap: Nagisa Oshima's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence
  • Lost in My Mind: I Believe in Unicorns is a Gauzy and Inventive Exploration of Girlhood
  • Trophies of Over Indulgence: A Look Inside the World of Gainers
  • All Things Must Change: Silk Rhodes' Debut is Delicious Audio Foreplay
  • Visual Domination: Angelina Jolie's Sexual Power in Mr and Mrs. Smith
  • The Transfiguration of Fiddleford McGucket
  • Fossil Records: Lee Hazlewood's Requiem for an Almost Lady
  • Fluid Exchange: I Roved Out by Rupert Everton
  • Below Her Mouth is Yet Another Disappointing Film About Lesbian Experiences

Follow Loser City

  • Email
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Tumblr
  • Twitter
Instagram did not return a 200.

Follow loser_city on the Gram

Loser City is…

Comics, shows, a secret critical network -- we aim to fail big.

Danny Djeljosevic: Co-Founder

Morgan Davis: Co-Founder

Nick Hanover: Glorious Godfrey of LC

David Fairbanks: Creative Writing Editor

Kayleigh Hughes: Film Editor

Julie Muncy: Games Editor

David He: Assisting Consultant*

Contributors: Nate Abernethy, John Bender, AJ Bernardo, CJ Camba, Liam Conlon, Daniel Elkin, David A. French, Rafael Gaitan, Dylan Garsee, Stefanie Gray, Johnson Hagood, Shea Hennum, Zak Kinsella, Austin Lanari, Marissa Louise, Francesca Lyn, Chase Magnett, Justin Martin, Diana Naneva, Claire Napier, Joshua Palmer, James Pound, Mike Prezzato, Lars Russell, David Sackllah, Keith Silva, Nicholas Slayton, Carly Smith, Ray Sonne, Tom Speelman, Mark O. Stack, Dylan Tano, Mason Walker

Art

Why So Angry: Refusing to Forget Stories of Abuse

Poetry: My God, My World

Comic Cinema Club: Sorcerer by Rafael Gaitan and Mike Prezzato

Nonfiction: Progeny in Crisis by Kayleigh Hughes

The Persistence of Synergy: Scenes from the Stock Business Photo Prison Hellscape

More Art

Interviews

Dhani Harrison Plots His Own Path With Solo Debut In///Parallel

Boston Terriers and Desert Vibes: A Conversation with Jay and Sanders Fabares of “The Pale”

Questionable Comics: Becky & Frank and Rachael Stott

More Interviews

Copyright © 2025 · Metro Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in