Abstract
Trans-media characters such as Superman are marked by both adaptability and continuity. Their enduring success functions like a cultural “algorithm,” with “constants” of character, setting, and structuring binaries (good over evil), and the “variables” of cultural context. This paper takes the latest Superman film as its case study, examining the ways in which a popular trans-media texts interpret and re-frame the ethical crises of today. Superman is a paradigmatic, adaptable trans-media figure. Since 1938, this instantly recognizable figure has flown effortlessly between comics, television, animation, and film. His earliest foes mirrored Depression-era worries: corrupt politicians, saboteurs, and war profiteers. In 2025, he contends with misinformation, xenophobia, and the complexities of global intervention. Using an integrated framework of narrative ethics, trans-media theory, and cultural analysis, the research investigates how (and if) the film’s narrative strategies and formal features presents a range of perspectives, cultivates empathy, and invites viewers to reflect on ethical dilemmas. Attention will also be given to audience and critical responses, exploring how this iteration of the character is received within today’s divided cultural climate. By positioning Superman and his mythos as a flexible trans-media system (or algorithm) anchored in structuring binaries, this paper demonstrates how such stories necessarily engage with our most urgent ethical conversations, even while meeting the demands of mass entertainment.
Presenters
Oisin HughesInstructional Assistant, Film and Digital Media Arts, University of New Mexico, United States
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
The Arts in Social, Political, and Community Life
KEYWORDS
Trans-media Theory, Cultural Algorithms, Narrative Ethics, Popular Culture, Empathy
