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Superman IV link: "Superman, Man of Schlemiel?"
Superman, the invention of two U.S. Jews, is a profoundly Jewish character whose film history is entwined with that of American Jewry.
Jun 16, 2013
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From Krypton to Memphis: Superman's Jewish roots explored at a shul
It’s hard to imagine anyone less Jewish — or more goyish — than Superman. One could point to his white-bread name, his Midwestern origins, his hypermasculine physique, his feats of strength and his overall Man of Steel status. Yet Superman was the creation of two American Jews, Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, who envisioned him as a conceptually Jewish character.
Clark Kent is just a cover name hiding a deep, subsurface Jewishness. As the Jewish novelist Michael Chabon wrote, “only a Jew would pick a name like that for himself.” Clark Kent is a kind of empty vessel to hide his birth name: Kal-El, which could translate as either “vessel of God” or “voice of God.” He is the son of Jor-El of the House of El.
To fit into the Jew-free Kansas farm surroundings where he was raised Kal-El changed his name, as so many Jewish immigrants did before and after him. Yet any name that ends with “man,” such as Beckman, Kaufman or Silverman, surely displays some Jewishness. Perhaps that is why the latest film of the franchise is the first one without “Superman” in the title. Some have even argued that in the early 20th century "Kent" was a common Americanization of "Cohen." This would make Superman a member of the Jewish priestly caste. It is even tempting to suggest that his last name derives from the cigarette brand so beloved in Israel.
Outwardly, as Clark Kent, Superman is the classic Yiddish nebbish or schlemiel. He is a refugee alien from a foreign planet. A nerdy, wimpy, bumbling and geeky Jew, he hides behind a pair of oversized glasses of the type so beloved of Jews on screen and of Haredi Jews, a clear signifier of Jewishness if ever there was one. He is unmarried and is awkward with women. His chosen human job – journalist – is clearly a Jewish profession, requiring intellect and Yiddishe kopf, or Jewish brains, rather than relying on physical attributes. Even his goyish first name suggests a desk-bound, Kafkaesque bureaucrat, banging away at his typewriter or stamping documents. He is a city slicker, living in the fictional Metropolis. And his father, Jor-El, is a scientist, no less. If Superman had a brother, no doubt he would be a doctor.
Superman is also a retelling of the Moses story - sent away as an infant from the dying planet Krypton, he is born anew and given superhuman powers because of his exile to earth. Discovered and adopted by a non-Jewish Kansas farmer and his wife, he is raised with a strong ethical and moral compass that he uses for the benefit of humanity as a whole. As Superman he is devoted to tikkun olam, or saving and healing the world. His motto could be that of Deuteronomy 16:20: “Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may live, and inherit the land which the Lord your God gives you.”
The letter S on his chest, when transliterated into Hebrew, becomes a shin, perhaps signifying one of God’s names. In essence, then, Superman is a human mezuzah. The S may also invoke that Biblical strongman, Samson. Alternatively he is a living golem, substituting A (or Aleph – Captain America got that honor) for S (or Shin).
read more: www.haaretz.com/jewish/features/.premium-1.530193