Captain America and the Nationalist Superhero: Metaphors, Narratives, and Geopolitics

Nationalist superheroes - such as Captain America, Captain Canuck and Union Jack - often signify the nation-state for readers, but how do these characters and comic books address issues of multiculturalism and geopolitical order? In his engaging book, Superpowers, geographer Jason Dittmer traces the evolution of the comic book genre as it adapted to new national audiences. He argues that these iconic superheroes contribute to our contemporary understandings of national identity, the righteous use of power, and the role of the U.S., Canada, and Britain in the world. Tracing the nationalist superhero genre from its World War II origins to its contemporary manifestations throughout the world, Superpowers analyzes nearly one thousand comic books, and includes interviews with key comic book writers from Stan Lee and J.M. DeMatteis to Steve Englehart and Paul Cornell.

Jason Dittmer is Reader in Human Geography at University College London. He is also author of Popular Culture, Geopolitics, and Identity and coeditor (with Tristan Sturm) of Mapping the End Times: American Evangelical Geopolitics and Apocalyptic Visions.