Luke Cage (2023)

Martin, J. F. (2023). Harlem’s superhero: Social interaction, heterogeneity of thought, and the superhero mission in Marvel’s Luke Cage. Popular Culture Review, 34(2), 43-89. https://doi.org/10.18278/pcr.34.2.3

• Centers Luke Cage’s relationship to Harlem in the Luke Cage television series. Explores how this relationship can elucidate the conceptual foundations of morally-relevant decision-making and how these concepts may inform varied and complex social interactions.

• Like nations, neighborhoods can be construed as social ecologies, consisting of varied mixtures of individuals attempting to do life together regardless of differences due to race, gender, social class, religious belief, cultural belief, age, political affiliation, etc.

• Between individuals occupying the same public sphere or living in the same community in either a real or fictional Harlem, abstract agreement on certain matters exists alongside contextual disagreement on others.

“Insofar public corruption, crime, and institutional distrust inform many Harlemites’ understanding of Harlem and their place in it, Luke Cage’s superhero mission needs to be understood as coterminous with Harlemites’ experiences, behaviors, and beliefs concerning these matters.”