 The ambiguous role of science and technology in Marvel superhero comics: From their ‘Golden Age’ to the present-dayTechnological Forecasting and Social Change, 2023, vol. 186, issue PB Abstract: Science and Technology (S&T) is a key aspect of superhero comic books. Comics reach a vast audience and are rife with scientific references. They represent a valuable resource for communicating the value of science in popular culture. The Marvel universe has evolved exponentially since its birth in 1939, breaking into the cinema industry and reaching new audiences. However, a glance at some popular Marvel characters raises some concern about the part played by S&T in superhero stories and the debatable effects of S&T on superhero characters. In this paper, we analyse the use of S&T in the Marvel universe (1632 identified characters), to investigate whether comics books favour or impede the diffusion of S&T and to determine whether S&T has a positive or negative connotation in comics. In line with the existing literature, we argue that comics' use of science can influence public perception of and acceptability of scientific discoveries. Keywords: Superheroes; Comics; Science fiction; Science & technology; Perception (search for similar items in EconPapers) Downloads: (external link) Related works: Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:tefoso:v:186:y:2023:i:pb:s0040162522006709 DOI: 10.1016/j.techfore.2022.122149 Access Statistics for this article Technological Forecasting and Social Change is currently edited by Fred Phillips More articles in Technological Forecasting and Social Change from Elsevier |
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