Wow! Thanks for the link. That's a great discussion, and gave me lots of food for thought.
I don't think SV Clark is such a dick, just that he's heading in that direction... and, oops! What a Freudian slip. Heading in the direction of dick?! :-)))
(I don't think xparrot will mind if we discuss the issues involved in the story for now, since chapter 2 has yet to be posted.)
Lex can't hide who he is. He's Lionel Luthor's son, and everyone knows it. He's instantly recognizable. People keep turning up in Smallville, with stories about his shady past. (Though most of those stories aren't all that evil.) He's definitely out of the closet.
Clark isn't alone in his differences. There are all those mutants around. But Clark keeps denying he's really one of them. And of course he isn't a mutant -- he was born that way. Is that why he feels he can't come out even to the extent of pretending he's a mutant? He's too honest to take such an obvious out, by claiming to be a mutant. He just clings to the lie offered by his parents: Move along, move along, nothing to see here, folks!
I was struck by the discussion in that link, about how Jonathan and Martha want to keep their power over Clark, and how Lex threatens that. Yes! It's horrible, but true. There isn't really much difference between the Kent parents and Lionel, when it comes right down to it. No wonder Lionel eventually worms his way into Martha's affections.
I remember discussions on TWOP, back during the early seasons, about this issue. Some people defended Martha and Jonathan by saying Clark was like a special needs child, who must be protected at all costs, and that M & J only did what they did out of love. But how loving is it, to teach your child that his or her secrets are more important than anything else, even the life and health of their friends? I can't see a self-sacrificing Superman coming out of this environment, so I'm not sure how it's going to happen. I'm trying to figure it out, to come up with a scenario.
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winterfish
Re: I've been thinking about how maintaining a secret identity...
Date: 2007-06-16 05:36 pm (UTC)I don't think SV Clark is such a dick, just that he's heading in that direction... and, oops! What a Freudian slip. Heading in the direction of dick?! :-)))
(I don't think xparrot will mind if we discuss the issues involved in the story for now, since chapter 2 has yet to be posted.)
Lex can't hide who he is. He's Lionel Luthor's son, and everyone knows it. He's instantly recognizable. People keep turning up in Smallville, with stories about his shady past. (Though most of those stories aren't all that evil.) He's definitely out of the closet.
Clark isn't alone in his differences. There are all those mutants around. But Clark keeps denying he's really one of them. And of course he isn't a mutant -- he was born that way. Is that why he feels he can't come out even to the extent of pretending he's a mutant? He's too honest to take such an obvious out, by claiming to be a mutant. He just clings to the lie offered by his parents: Move along, move along, nothing to see here, folks!
I was struck by the discussion in that link, about how Jonathan and Martha want to keep their power over Clark, and how Lex threatens that. Yes! It's horrible, but true. There isn't really much difference between the Kent parents and Lionel, when it comes right down to it. No wonder Lionel eventually worms his way into Martha's affections.
I remember discussions on TWOP, back during the early seasons, about this issue. Some people defended Martha and Jonathan by saying Clark was like a special needs child, who must be protected at all costs, and that M & J only did what they did out of love. But how loving is it, to teach your child that his or her secrets are more important than anything else, even the life and health of their friends? I can't see a self-sacrificing Superman coming out of this environment, so I'm not sure how it's going to happen. I'm trying to figure it out, to come up with a scenario.
(Ponders.)