The Incredibles
Dec. 8th, 2004 02:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
coalescentTom requested a poll on the philosophy of The Incredibles. But, given that I'm me and not him, I'm going to preface his simple enquiry with a whole load of other quotes and questions.
Exhibit A:
Exhibit B:
Exhibit C:
Exhibit D:
And, as mentioned in my earlier post, the Guardian has a roundup of comment here.
[Poll #399598]
Note that if you answer 'other' to question three, you should explain that in the comments, too. Myself, I'm undecided. So, convince me, one way or the other!
Exhibit A:
The superhero was dreamt up by Nietzsche during the 1880s, and has been summoning humanity to transcend itself ever since. Does Mr Incredible's renunciation mean that the superman has finally despaired of the midget, puling race he was meant to lead onwards and upwards?
Exhibit B:
Is Dash, the supersonic third-grader forbidden from racing on the track team, a gifted child held back by the educational philosophy that "everybody is special"? Or is he an overprivileged elitist being forced to take into account the feelings of others?
Is his father, Mr. Incredible, who complains that the schools "keep inventing new ways to celebrate mediocrity," a visionary reformer committed to pushing children to excel? Or is he a reactionary in red tights who's been reading too much Nietzsche and Ayn Rand?
Is Syndrome, the geek villain trying to kill the superheroes, an angry Marxist determined to quash individuality? Or is his plan to give everyone artificial superpowers an uplifting version of "cooperative learning" in an "inclusion classroom"?
Exhibit C:
Who would have thought that an animated film would finally touch a nerve, putting egalitarians on the defensive? That is the achievement of Pixar Studio's new hit, The Incredibles, the story of a family of superheroes who struggle against the reign of mediocrity and finally break free to excel. Along the way it skewers the dumbing down of schools, the mantra that everyone is special, and the laws that give losers special status as victims.
Exhibit D:
The movie does come to some interesting philosophical conclusions, not least among them the way it advocates full-on Nietzschean ethics. The "Supers" -- literal Ubermensch -- are the strong, endowed with special gifts that place them beyond the range of normal men. The Supers also possess unimpeachably noble spirits, just as Nietzsche described. While competing amongst themselves to be the finest hero, they devote themselves and their gifts entirely to protecting the weak from themselves.
And, as mentioned in my earlier post, the Guardian has a roundup of comment here.
[Poll #399598]
Note that if you answer 'other' to question three, you should explain that in the comments, too. Myself, I'm undecided. So, convince me, one way or the other!
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Re: Hmmm...
Date: 2004-12-08 08:27 am (UTC)I think the Nietzschian comparisons have been made by the media in part due to the increasingly right-wing political climate in the UK and the US. Add to that Prince Charles' recent statements and the press will latch onto it.... It would have happened to any superhero film released at the present time (X2 and Spiderman 2 for example both have themes of power, how you use that power and societies rejection of people that are different).
Re: Hmmm...
Date: 2004-12-08 08:29 am (UTC)Good point there, I think. But you have to admit The Incredibles does encourage this sort of response, too. "Everyone's special, Dash" "Which is another way of saying that no-one is," and so forth.
Re: Hmmm...
Date: 2004-12-08 08:33 am (UTC)