Analysis Of Superman Smashes The Klan By Gene Luen Yang

Not being afraid to be yourself: How Superman Smashes the Klan shows that

Brody Dai

Ms. Collins

ELA 8

15 March 2023

Don’t be afraid to be yourself! That’s the main message that the famous novel Superman Smashes the Klan, written by Gene Luen Yang, shows progressively. The theme of SSTK (Superman Smashes the Klan) is shown through the perspective of Roberta Lee when she theorizes why Superman doesn’t fly, and the perspective of Tommy Lee when he goes on to Roberta about how she needs to stop sticking up about being different. It can also be shown through the development of the feelings of characters throughout the novel, and also the character development of Superman from when he was young up to the end of the story.

One way the theme is shown in SSTK is from the perspective of Roberta Lee. On pages 182-183, she talked to Superman about her theory on why Superman doesn’t fly. She theorizes that Superman wants to fit in better. She thinks that Superman wants everyone to see that Superman is a better version of a normal human, but in reality, he’s completely

A good example is shown at the beginning (especially around ~page 48), where Roberta feels like she doesn’t fit in, and she struggles to make new friends. Also for Superman, on page 161, Superman said that “I’ve always been afraid that if people saw what I could do…I’d scare them.” In the end, (specifically on page 112), Roberta finally feels like she fits in, and she even said that “For the first time since we moved, I don’t feel like such a weirdo.” And on page 214, Superman starts being entirely himself and shows everyone what he can do. This example shows that throughout the novel, their feelings start to change, as Superman doesn’t feel afraid to show people what he can do, and starts being himself. And Roberta doesn’t feel like a weirdo anymore, and actually feels like she fits