Now rage as a superpower is a very reasonable concept and one that resonates with everyone. We as human beings have a fright or flight response, anger in general is a defensive mechanism that manifests whenever we feel threatened. And even the enhancing of our strength is real, when we get angry our body releases adrenaline and cortisol into it prepping us for a fight. The body also diverts more blood into the muscles for higher physical excretion.
This natural effect is what gets amplified into superhuman levels in the case of the Hulk which makes him strangely relatable.
The Catharsis of Rage
But anger alone cannot be the reason we consider him one of the good guys, after all anger is an emotional trait with mostly negative connotations in society. We do not consider someone who is angry all the time to be relatable or good. In fact people who cannot control their anger are often shunned by society.
But there is an exception to this in the form of ‘Righteous Anger’. You see we as human’s also understand the need for anger, and an uncomfortable truth is anger is also very cathartic in nature. This cathartic nature is also why certain people are angry all the time it acts as a defense mechanism against insecurities and depression.
Can’t you see he’s in pain
So anger while deplorable, it is also fun and exciting. So what happens when there is a just reason to be angry. A reason for why you are allowed to be angry at the situation, this is what we call righteous anger.
The thing with the Hulk is that his reasons for being angry are often justified, or beyond his control. The military chases him because he looks like a monster, or to be used as a weapon of war. Hulk doesn’t start the fight, he ends it.
This is also where the character of Bruce Banner comes into play. Banner for in most iterations, while good hearted and brilliant, is a bit of a wimp. He is the perfect stereotype of a nerd and as such is often an easy target for getting bullied.
And we does get bullied, he gets angry and as it has been well documented by now, people tend to not like Dr. Banner when he gets angry (I wonder why).
A Monster Tamed
So at the start we discussed Mr. Hyde and Frankenstein’s Monster. About how the first is deplorable but the 2nd is sympathetic. That is because in the 2nd case the truth is they are not real monsters, just perceived as such. This is exactly the place where Hulk’s character lays as well. As monstrously strong as he is and the many frightening forms he can take. At the base the Hulk is a misunderstood being. And as such we feel a natural sympathy for him.
And unbelievable envy for his back muscles
When first the people closest to him and then eventually the world, sees past his garish exterior to the rather noble being he truly is we get amazing story arcs and one of the most powerful Heroes of the Marvel Universe.
For more Hulk check out: Top 5 versions of Hulk stronger than the Original
For more Superhero Psychology: The Psychology of Spiderman: Marvel’s very own Peter Pan
For Greek Gods and Monsters check out the NEW WORLD ODYSSEY series.
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