It’s safe to say that many kids and adults look up to superheroes and it’s easy to see why- they’re super cool!
You don’t see a regular guy turning into a big green beast in real life and it’s something to gawk at. However, superheroes are more than just spectacle and colourful costumes.
If you’re worried that your kid might attempt to perform superhero stunts at home, you’re probably right but there is a lot more to learn from superheroes than just that as a lot of good can be gained from seeing them in action.
Here are three things kids can learn from superheroes.
1. With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility
One thing that we see in every superhero is this- they are constantly doing what is right, at any cost. Whether it’s something as minimal as a bank robbery or an inter-galactic threat that would cause the doom of all humanity, superheroes utilise their powers for the greater good of the world.
Source: CBR
A prime example would be Spider-Man AKA Peter Parker. You would assume that a geeky kid who has been dealt a bad hand at life would use his powers to turn things around for his own benefit but no, Peter Parker does the opposite.
The guy lives with his aunt and uncle in a suburban middle class home, he’s been picked on in school and he has trouble dating. He puts much of his own problems aside, risking his personal life as he dons the Spider-Man costume.
This is what makes Spider-Man a relatable character to kids. He’s the underdog, trying to do his best to stick by the words of his late Uncle Ben “With Great Power, Comes Great Responsibility”. Doing what is right with the gifts you have even if it means giving up what you want the most.
2. Do things from the heart
Source: Goomba Stomp
You can say that it’s pretty hard to learn anything from a powerful demi-god or a genetically enhanced super soldier especially since none of us have those capabilities (As far as we know). However, it’s safe to say that superheroes represent more than just muscle-y dudes hitting each other until something explodes.
If that’s the case, they’re not really superheroes are they? No. superheroes have taught us that it is not the powers that make the man/woman but the heart. Captain America isn’t who he is because he was a successful science experiment, he’s who he is because his will and heart makes him the hero we know and love.
We see the significance of this in Avengers: Endgame when Captain America proves his worth by being able to be the only one to wield Thor’s hammer (Aside from Thor himself). From here, we see that it’s not just the number of bench presses someone can do, it’s (as cheesy as it sounds) the heart that really counts. And that’s something that kids should know to value.
3. A good half of the art of living is resilience
Superheroes aren’t always perfect. This imperfection gives us a chance to view them in a different light. In many cases, these heroes are overwhelmed by their enemies who are, in many cases, much stronger than them. They are beaten down, broken, physically and mentally but… they manage to pick themselves up again.
Source: DC Universe
The odds can be overbearing for these heroes much like how the odds can be overbearing for young people. Villains bring these heroes down in many ways much like how obstacles in life do to young people. In cases like these, many give up and often times, these people are too young to handle some of the things life throws at them.
Superheroes are able to highlight these pitfalls as part of the process if you’re looking to pick yourself up again, whatever the odds. However broken, the will powers through and the hero goes another round, eventually emerging victorious. As the saying goes “What doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.”
*Featured image sourced from Looper
