Spider-Man and Philosophy

Jonathan J. Sanford is a professor of philosophy and Chair of the Department of Philosophy at Franciscan University of Steubenville.William Irwin is a professor of philosophy at King's College in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania. He originated the philosophy and popular culture genre of books as coeditor of the bestselling The Simpsons and Philosophy and has overseen recent titles including Batman and Philosophy, Alice in Wonderland and Philosophy, and Watchmen and Philosophy.

• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS xiINTRODUCTION 1PART ONE THE SPECTACULAR LIFE OF SPIDER-MAN?1 Does Peter Parker Have a Good Life? 7Neil Mussett2 What Price Atonement? Peter Parker and the Infinite Debt 22Taneli Kukkonen3 “My Name is Peter Parker”: Unmasking the Right and the Good 37Mark D. WhitePART TWO RESPONSIBILITY-MAN4 “With Great Power Comes Great Responsibility”: Spider-Man, Christian Ethics, and the Problem of Evil 55Adam Barkman5 Does Great Power Bring Great Responsibility? Spider-Man and the Good Samaritan 70J. Keeping6 With Great Power Comes Great Culpability: How Blameworthy Is Spider-Man for Uncle Ben’s Death? 86Philip TallonPART THREE SPIDER-SENSE AND THE SELF7 Why Is My Spider-Sense Tingling? 103Andrew Terjesen8 Red or Black: Perception, Identity, and Self 119Meaghan P. Godwin9 With Great Power: Heroism, Villainy, and Bodily Transformation 131Mark K. SpencerPART FOUR ARACHNIDS “R” US: TECHNOLOGY AND THE HUMAN, ALL TOO HUMAN10 Transhumanism: Or, Is It Right to Make a Spider-Man? 145Ron Novy11 Maximum Clonage: What the Clone Saga Can Teach Us about Human Cloning 159Jason Southworth and John TimmPART FIVE YOUR FRIENDLY NEIGHBORHOOD SPIDER-MAN12 Justice versus Romantic Love: Can Spider-Man Champion Justice and Be with Mary Jane at the Same Time? 177Charles Taliaferro and Tricia Little13 Love, Friendship, and Being Spider-Man 188Tony Spanakos14 Spidey’s Tangled Web of Obligations: Fighting Friends and Dependents Gone Bad 200Christopher Robichaud PART SIX THE AMAZING SPEAKING SPIDER: JOKES, STORIES, AND THE CHOICES WE MAKE15 The Quipslinger: The Morality of Spider-Man’s Jokes 217Daniel P. Malloy16 The Sound and the Fury behind “One More Day” 231Mark D. White17 Spider-Man and the Importance of Getting Your Story Straight 243Jonathan J. SanfordCONTRIBUTORS 257INDEX 263

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