Over the course of my lifetime there have been a number of discussions that have been repeatedly brought up. Sometimes I like to share my official position on these issues here. The first time I did this was in regards to the Heart kid from Captain Planet and how he is a giant pussy. Actually that one wasn't so much of a debate, I've never had anyone take the opposite side of that debate. There was one extremely heated debate, which whenever it arose nearly resulted in the deaths of one or more of the participants. That debate revolved around the DC Comic Hero, Batman. The question, is he actually a superhero.
The summary of either sides position can be summarized quite easily. Those who do not think that he is a superhero claim that in order to be a superhero, one must have super powers a la Superman, Spiderman, the X-Men, etc. In essence that person must have some unique unnatural quality that makes him/her super. Batman they claim, does not possess such a super power. His abilities come only from his gadgets and his general cunning, not some sort of unnatural ability. Thus, he should be relegated solely to hero status rather than that of a superhero.
The Batman is a superhero side however argues that the definition of a superhero lies in how that character is treated and their association. Basically this side of the argument relies on the fact that in literature (read comic books) Batman is treated in the same way that superheroes do. They may also argue that the mere fact that Batman HAS a comic book and defeats super villains makes him a superhero. The Justice League/Justice Friends/etc. argument is often brought up. This argument is generally stated that The Justice League is an organization of superheroes and Batman is a member of the Justice League (and one of the founding members at that).
The heart of his problem is really what the definition of superhero is. I would argue that first of all a hero is someone who goes above and beyond the call of duty in order to save lives or otherwise change them in a dramatic way. Also, a hero could be someone that is looked up to or admired. Now, in order to be a superhero, it must be something above and beyond what a regular hero is. Now, here's the thing, in comic books we do have heroes (police officers) pursuing super villains, and they almost inevitably fail at the task of catching super villains, thus creating a need for superheroes. Now, Batman is able to take down those super villains, thus making him something above and beyond a regular hero. He is able to and does accomplish things that regular heroes are unable to do. I think this in essence would make him a superhero. As far as the SUPER powers to Superhero, I think that having super powers makes you super human. I reject the nation that being a superhero requires super powers, on the grounds that Batman is clearly able to accomplish things that regular heroes are unable to do, which would make something above a hero...a superhero.
It isn't the love of a hero, that's why I fear it won't do.
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