Colouring Psychology:
The Superhero Genre and The Colour Theory
Aims
The main concern of this project is to investigate the concept that superheroes and villains are two sides of the same coin, that combining them would create a highly functional, maybe even greater version of the same thing – the human being. The theory I base this hypothesis on claims that we should always look inward and face our darkness in order for us to reach our true potential. Jung explains the idea of the shadow as something that exists in all of us - something that, if denied, keeps us stuck in the present, never capable of evolving. Applying the theory to the superhero genre is fairly straight forward. Superheroes and their villain counterparts are two extremes of the human emotions, but, at the same time, they are created in perfect balance – they are mirrors of each other. In a way, each villain can be seen as the shadow of the hero, the part that needs accepting in order for them to become better. Recent films such as Thor: Ragnarok (dir. By Taika Waititi, 2017) or Captain America: The Winter Soldier (dir. by the Russo Brothers, 2014) appear to entertain this idea, and their protagonists seem more fully developed because of it.
I, as the practitioner, do not claim to have a fully cohesive knowledge of either psychology or psychoanalysis, therefore, I use already existing theories and analyses – I re-examine and reinterpret each of them through my own method and with my own case studies in order to try to answer my main question. Whatever answers I manage to find will be transformed again, taking the more academic result I get and showcasing it with the use of colour practice and colour theory.
