This chapter first briefly surveys how early portrayals of Marvel comics superhero Luke Cage—as a hyperviolent, lascivious, and unintelligent, albeit impenetrable and powerfully built Black superhero—fueled the racialized stereotyping of Black men. The chapter then investigates how this early image is deconstructed in later comics, from the mid-2000s to the early 2010s. Luke Cage’s portrayal as a father and a partner fully devoted to raising his daughter, Danielle, with his wife, the superheroine Jessica Jones, was developed throughout the mid- to late-2010s, offering the image of an emotionally invested and nurturing Black paternal figure, which Prtenjača examines through a close reading and visual analysis. The chapter ultimately shows that Luke Cage exercises alternative forms of Black masculinity and fatherhood, mirroring those performed by Black Men dubbed as “New” by critic Mark Anthony Neal.

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Powering Through Stereotypes: Black Fatherhood and Alternative Masculinity in Luke Cage Comic Books

  • Zvonimir Prtenjača

摘要

This chapter first briefly surveys how early portrayals of Marvel comics superhero Luke Cage—as a hyperviolent, lascivious, and unintelligent, albeit impenetrable and powerfully built Black superhero—fueled the racialized stereotyping of Black men. The chapter then investigates how this early image is deconstructed in later comics, from the mid-2000s to the early 2010s. Luke Cage’s portrayal as a father and a partner fully devoted to raising his daughter, Danielle, with his wife, the superheroine Jessica Jones, was developed throughout the mid- to late-2010s, offering the image of an emotionally invested and nurturing Black paternal figure, which Prtenjača examines through a close reading and visual analysis. The chapter ultimately shows that Luke Cage exercises alternative forms of Black masculinity and fatherhood, mirroring those performed by Black Men dubbed as “New” by critic Mark Anthony Neal.