LogFAQs > #882479902

The whole point of Superman is that he's an alien, he's basically a god - but that's not how he identifies. He's human. He's that boy back in Kansas, raised by Martha and Jon. He's truth. He's justice. He's American pie.

He had to hide who he was because his parents were afraid that he'd either be abused by bigger forces (such as the government or those who want power/knowledge), or because his life would be turned upside down if he wasn't Clark Kent. He lived his childhood as Clark, he went through his changes as Clark, and he fights for humanity because Martha and Jon raised him with truly pure human ideals. Without that, he's a tetherless ball of power with no morality or direction. Red Son is a comic that shows how Superman would've changed had he landed in Soviet Russia, and there's no Clark Kent to be seen in that series.

The point of Clark Kent is not only that it humanizes Superman to us, but it shows that Superman, in essence, actually is human. Give Superman a day off, or make him retire (such as in Kingdom Come),and what does he do? He goes back to the farm life. He doesn't go off in space and go live in the sun, nor does he try to seek fame, fortune, or personal comforts. He's just a typical dude with a good heart who happens to be the most powerful thing on Earth.
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dat bass.