Paper Example. Batman and Superman, Rhetorical Analysis

Superheroes are always good guys, but it is boring to read a comic book or a novel where an author writes of two such heroes who are pure friends. One such author, Abraham Riesman, wrote “What We Talk about When We Talk about Batman and Superman,” published in 2016 in the Vulture Magazine. He argues that while superheroes are always good guys, fans are desperate to see them fighting, which makes the writers of such superhero stories employ insane contrivances in their narratives, such as alternate universes and mind control to create most of the fights. Riesman begins by building credibility using a question, facts, and examples of novels and comic books while employing ethos, logos, and pathos to persuade readers and advance his argument; however, towards the end of the article, he gives his personal opinion of who he thinks should win over the other making his political and American empire argument weak as he chooses sides.

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In his article, Riesman begins by explaining how Batman and Superman, both superheroes, are not enemies, and then he describes how despite both of them being good guys, readers always love authors writing about them fighting instead of working together. Riesman continues with a discussion of how, for the past 30 years, both heroes have experienced several fights to the excitement of their fans as they are always unsure of who will win the war. However, the conflicts are not usually in vain, as many viewers and readers suggest; instead, they always mean something mainly how to make the world a better place. Riesman explains that Superman operates through inspiration and hope while Batman operates through intimidation and fear. To make his readers better understand the conflict between these superheroes, Riesman uses an example of Lex Luthor’s movies “god versus man, day versus night.”

Ethos

Throughout the article, Riesman uses several sources that strengthen her credibility and appeal to rhetorical techniques while building her argument about each of the superheroes, how they came to be, and the conflict between them. Such sources include examples of films, comics, and novels such as “Batman: The Dark Knight Returns,” “Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice,” “World’s Finest,” “The Man of Steel,” and “god versus man, day versus night” (Riesman 2). Citing these sources shows Riesman’s credibility in that he provides facts, statistics and opinions in an ethical way to support his claim that both superheroes fight for a purpose. He also uses an explanation of the way that Americans started distrusting power which was similar to the way that Batman began to distrust Superman.

“Very few tales since then have dared to put the two heroes so viciously at odds as they were in Dark Knight, but every story of conflict since is shadowed by Miller’s and Byrne’s Characterizations” (Riesman).

Riesman uses the ethos analysis with the hope that the readers will trust his argument, rely on him, seem knowledgeable and respect his views. The illustrations that he uses in the article allow the audience to consider his argument as genuine. Many other people before him have shown the conflicts between Batman and Superman and how they have always ended up with many fans enjoying the twists and turns taken in each form.

Logos

Adding to the ethos techniques, Riesman adopts a constant use of logos with cited facts of reason and logic as well as statements and statistics to make sure that his point is well understood and he persuades his readers. He points out various facts about Superman and Batman and how they bring out the idea of superheroes dealing with conflict through fights instead of working together. “They complete each other and accentuate each other’s different power-sets while having the same squeaky-clean tone and goals” (Riesman). These facts show the idea that Riesman supports both superheroes having a conflict as long as they are fighting for a specific goal. Riesman continues with other statistics:

“There was that same year’s Batman No. 612, written by Jeph Loeb and drawn by Jim Lee, where Batman uses that old Kryptonite ring to knock a mind-controlled Superman onto his butt” (Riesman).

These quotes are some of the many statistics that Riesman uses to support his claim that the fans of both superheroes love seeing them fighting, and they all expect their hero to win. Such details and facts build a logos appeal which is very convincing to the readers as they get a sense of the way that both Superman and Batman have over the years been in conflicts as they try to solve different issues. The facts also show the readers that this is a detailed issue that needs active discussion for them to understand the evolution of the conflict between both characters.

Pathos

In addition to the logos appeal, Riesman effectively uses pathos in various sections of the article. He uses different words that are emotional and sympathetic and act as an eye-catcher for his audience. Riesman notes that “they fought increasingly apocalyptic threats” and “Batman is without faith in anything beyond his immediate control.” The image that he creates in the explanation shows the reasons why Superman and Batman have conflicted as expressed in various articles, comics and novels. They help the readers understand that were it not for such conflicts; they would not understand the essence of political grounds, especially in the United States. “But the political question of the book is, in my view, only a symptom of a larger philosophical matter” (Riesman 14). Riesman’s goal is to make the readers understand why superheroes seldom work together in one story. Adding to his idea, he uses phrases and words like “faith,” “beyond repair,” “prosperity,” “reason,” and “give up.” These words evoke a feeling of a balance between failings and success that both superheroes try to fight for.

However, the article’s ending does not have the same strong effectiveness of ethos as in the beginning. Riesman notes that Batman lacks faith in anything that is beyond his control and that is he hates Superman in most of the past works because unlike him, he possesses a lot of faith (Riesman 12). His explanation shows that despite Riesman trying his best to convince the reader that both superheroes fight for a just course, they fight due to personal differences and a need for each of them to be more superior to the other. The use of the quote “these two being in such opposition, and so filled with bloodlust,” damages Riesman’s argument and credibility as readers are confused as to which of his arguments they should follow.

Conclusion

Although Riesman begins his article by convincing the readers that Superman and Batman fight to find justice, especially in the political world, he loses the strength of his argument in the end when he states that they fight to quench their bloodlust. Readers realize that the superheroes are not always fighting for the rights of their people; instead, they also do so for personal fulfillment and revenge. However, the questions that Riesman asks at the end make the readers not take his argument about bloodlust seriously. Riesman could have made his argument more convincing if he had stated in the beginning that when two superheroes appear in one concept, one of them ends up as a villain most of the time.

Works Cited

Riesman, Abraham. "What We Talk About When We Talk About Batman And Superman". Vulture, 2016. https://www.vulture.com/2016/03/batman-v-superman-c-v-r.html.