#  English 90su. Superheroes: Stories, Characters, Comics, Art and Society 

 



Instructor: [Stephanie Burt](https://english.fas.harvard.edu/people/stephanie-burt)  
Wednesday, 12:00-2:45pm | Location: TBD  
*Enrollment: Limited to 15 students*  
  
What's a superhero and why do people care? Where do they come from, what do they do, and why would anyone ever choose to be one? We will follow those questions through DC and Marvel continuity, with attention to super-famous figures, national myths, and groups of young people and outcasts: Superman, Supergirl, the X-Men, Captain America (and Bucky), Wakanda. We will think about sexuality, and (respectfully!) about the military. We will look at comics as an art form and as a visual medium. We will consider these larger-than-life figures in older narrative works (probably by John Milton), in fiction, in new poems, and in games. And-- with the help of a tabletop role-playing game-- we may create heroes and heroic plots of our own.  
  
This course satisfies the “1900-2000 Guided Elective" requirement for English concentrators and Secondary Field students.



 



 

 See also:- [ 2025-26 ](/academic-year/2025-26)
- [ Undergraduate Seminars ](/course-type/3-undergraduate-seminars)
- [ Guided Elective: 1900-Present ](/meets-requirements/guided-elective-1900-2000)
- [ Course ](/page-type/course)
- [ Spring 2026 ](/term/spring-2026)