Current Events > Why does Superman even need his Clark Kent persona?

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He doesn't really have a reason to live among humans. He's basically a god. Bruce Wayne for example is a billionaire and widely known contributor to society. Many people would quickly be aware if he were to disappear.

Clark Kent on the other hand is just some guy working for the Daily Planet. Most people probably wouldn't even realize if he just slipped away and was never seen again. Superman could live out his life in the Fortress of Solitude because he doesn't technically need to live among humanity to protect the Earth.
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Johnathan and Martha taught him humility.
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Although he has superpowers, he's still human at heart with human emotion and the need to seek social approval.
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So he could fit in with society and live normally.
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rofflemypancake posted...

He's basically a god.

Which is why Clark Kent. To remind him that he might be almost a god but heisn't in fact one. Except in the versions Clark Kent is his real self.

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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eye_gouger posted...

The whole point of Superman

That was great. I'd never really thought about Superman in those terms before. (Admittedly, I know very little about him) I empathize with the character a lot more now.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RiRWwxFjqNM
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rofflemypancake posted...

Clark Kent on the other hand is just some guy working for the Daily Planet. Most people probably wouldn't even realize if he just slipped away and was never seen again.

Isn't he a very well known reporter, and author of at least one book, with a Pulitzer? You make it sound like he's some lame intern delivering the mail.

rofflemypancake posted...

Superman could live out his life in the Fortress of Solitude because he doesn't technically need to live among humanity to protect the Earth.

If he doesn't live with people, could he still keep caring about people?
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