Throughout our lives, we are both subjected to and witness a lot of hate. When you are by yourself it is a lot harder to stand up for yourself and others. However, when you feel supported by others, it feels much easier to stand up for yourself and others. This is exactly what happened in the comic Superman Smashes the Klan (SSTK) by Gene Luen Yang. We see multiple characters feel helpless to stop discrimination and hate on their own, but when they feel supported and are helped by others, they are able to stop themselves and others from continuing to spread hate. All of this clearly express the theme we are only able to overcome hate by coming together. This theme is displayed through both the characters Superman and Chuck Riggs, along with …show more content…
One example of this is after Lois, Inspector Henderson, and Mr. White are kidnapped by the Klan, Roberta tells Superman that she feels like he is ‘limiting himself’ because he wants to ‘fit in better.’ After this conversation, Superman goes on to use his full power, allowing him to defeat the villain, who is an embodiment of hate. Superman only uses his full power after others come and support him. Before this moment he is full of internalized hate towards who he is, so he suppresses it. He is only able to overcome the hate that is around him when he is supported by other people. Another character that personifies this theme is Chuck Riggs. Throughout the book, Chuck is pressured to do things he does not want to do, especially by his uncle, who is in charge of the Klan. However, during the final fight, he finds the strength to stand up to his uncle and stop him from hurting …show more content…
Throughout the story, we see scenes with a more somber mood that are darker in color, but as others arrive to help, we start to see brighter colors appear in the panels. For example, when Roberta is grabbed by William Jennings we see more dark tones on the page, but as others start fighting to save her, more light tones start to appear. This connects to the theme because we typically see more light colors appear after others show up to help the hero. This represents how as more and more people start to fight against hate, there is more and more hope of defeating the