So! As you have probably figured out, I am a huge Captain America fan! And, you may have also gathered from various set photos, raging fangirls (me), and internet articles, THE NEXT AVENGERS MOVIE IS COMING OUT!!! Yes, Avengers Infinity War will be coming out in May of 2018! I am very excited! .... except for one thing... In the comics, Steve Rogers DIES. Yes, you heard me right, Captain America, the Star Spangled Man, the First Avenger, DIES. This means that it is more than likely that Cap will die by the end of the new movie. And, to be completely honest with you all, I'm not emotionally ready for that.
I've barely even been in the whole Marvel fandom for a year and I'm already being threatened with the death of one of my favorite characters! But this over dramatic crisis got me thinking, 'why am I so riled up by the death of someone- who doesn't even exist?'. I'm a writer (obviously) and I can understand someone being upset over the death or misfortune of a character they relate to, but an all-out existential crisis? That seems a bit much.
Characters are created with the intention of getting the reader/ viewer to root for them, want them to win, and/ or be happy, and often times writers do this by making their characters relatable. In order to do this, characters are given flaws. Those flaws may be physical, mental, or a part of their personality. For example, Steve Rogers. He is a WWII veteran so he suffers depression, anxiety, and PTSD. These are all mental flaws. He also deals with vices such as pride and stubbornness. Those are personality flaws. And, pre-serum Steve was short and bony; physical flaws. Now, even with all of these flaws millions of people still adore Captain America! Why is that? Because they can relate to him! They might also like him because they feel they can relate to his situation; feeling out of place, battling with old vs. new morals, losing loved ones, etc. So really, when we like a character, we like them because they are like us.
From this, we may conclude that our emotional disturbance when a character suffers is caused by our emotional relation to them. Taking a much deeper and philosophical look into this, does this mean when we see something happen to a character we love, that we fear we will suffer the same fate? What I'm trying to get at is that we might not be overreacting to the death or misfortune of a beloved character, we could just be subconsciously fearing for our own lives and futures. Think about it, doesn't it make sense? So, when I'm scared to say, 'R.I.P Steve Rogers', maybe, in deep down, I'm just scared to say, 'R.I.P Ary'...
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