Marvel

The hero is a fictitious character who has evolved over time. He is a reflection of the society in which he was born. We will focus on the American heroes of the 1940s and 1960s. And observe how American society influenced their creation. So the issue is, “Do heroes have different impacts on American society in 1940-60?” We will define the concept of heroes before we begin. The term heroes appears in antiquity, it comes from the Greek. It means half-god, warlord. This is often referred to as a “half-god” because it is a person who is both human and both a god. He is then a superhuman character who is distinguished by exceptional abilities.The word is passed in Latin then in French to gradually lose the meaning of warrior and half-god. The hero stands out for his exceptional courage and exploits. He then became the main character in films and novels but the first super-hero of comics appeared in a comic book launched by the American publisher Famous Funnies in February 1934. Superheroes are the gods of the united states, their mythology is the embodiment of what we believe to be.

 In 1935, there were 130 agencies offering comic books to millions of readers. At the end of 1939 more than seven publishing houses publish magazines. Then in 1940 they are a few and come out 150 titles, most of which stage superheroes with secret identity. Each publishing house had its own style and target audience .We will focus on the two famous comic book publishing houses: Marvel and DC Comics.

 The name «Marvel Comics» has been used since the 1930s with the release of their comic book. Marvel Comics presents strange, morally ambivalent characters. The first real comic Marvel, is published in October 1939. At the end of World War II Marvel produces about 80 titles per month. In 1953 Stan Lee totally changed the superheroes and tasted them. However the publisher Atlas knows some sales problems is must and then close. Stan Lee, who became a publisher thanks to his new superheroes managed to maintain some comic book sellers, and assisted someone with an incomparable talent in the world of comic book Jack Kirby and Steve Ditko. The basics of the Marvel Universe are here.

The name DC comics comes from their first comic book named Detective Comic. DC Comics is one of the leading American comic book publishers. It is part of the large company of TimeWarner, which includes Warner Bros.Pictures, DC Comics. The company has several subsidiaries including Vertigo dedicated to fantasy and Wildstorm. DC Comics was created by Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, a former Major of the American Army, in 1934.

The history of American comics began in the 1840s, thanks to the development of the daily press. Since the end of the nineteenth century, comic books in the United States have appeared in the daily press. On weekdays, they consist of a single band, in black and white (daily strip), while on Sundays they enjoy a larger space, in colour (Sunday strip). We can also distinguish strips telling stories to follow (Continuity strip) and those offering each day an independent gag (stop comic or gag-a-day strip). 

In 1933, the American comic book was published as a comic book invented by Max Gaines. The first comic book format is called Famous Funnies. Then in 1938, superheroes are invented with the comic book format, they have a huge success. Wonder Woman is invented by William Moulton Marston for All American. In 1940, Captain America of Joe Simon and Jack Kirby is invented, the predominant theme will then be the fight against Germany and Japan. Comics are also available as a magazine (EC Comic which published Mad). 

This vital influence of the authors of American Comic Books has since been widely demonstrated, extended, both in the United States and the rest of the world, to creators belonging to the most varied artistic disciplines. In cinema, talents as well-known as Steven Spielberg, Tim Burton or George Lucas, claim to be from this culture, and the advancement of new technologies, in the field of special effects, put in their hands the means to revisit the genre and to write a new page of its history. Since its beginnings in the famous "Comic Books", the universe of Super Heroes has grown, adapted and seduced several generations who have found there a direct access to the dream, to the wonderful, to the imaginary. Federating audiences of radically different ages, social conditions and educational levels, American artists have succeeded in moving beyond entertainment and creating a coherent world, parallel to our real world, with its own laws, whose apparent naivety cannot overshadow the privileged gaze that it offers on America of the twentieth century. 

Finally, the international dimension of this phenomenon cannot be ignored: comic books are translated into more than 25 languages. Officially the comics do not transmit ideology or propaganda, they are essentially present to entertain, amuse and give pleasure to a targeted audience.According to some American critics, entertainment makes the transmission of information (here of an ideology) more natural. The public is not aware of the spread of American ideology.

Stan Lee is a young Jew from New York, from his early age he is passionate about comics.When he was still a child, he invented Captain America. Then he joined the army during the Second World War, he worked in communication services but continued to draw. At last he departed body and soul in writing at the end of the war. Stan Lee was the first to include to the hero feelings, doubts. A Nnd this makes the hero all the more touching and identifiable in the eyes of the reader because he feels the same sentimental problems as he does. Finally in the early 1960s, he created many superheroes like Hulk, the 4 fantastic. Spider Man .. With all his heroes who are models he becomes one of the best comic book authors. With this notoriety, he makes Marvel the symbol of comics.