The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) is the most expansive and widely viewed fictional narrative in the history of cinema. In 2009, Disney purchased Marvel Entertainment for $4 billion, including its subsidiary film production company, Marvel Studios. Since then, the MCU—the collection of multimedia Marvel Studios products that share a single fictional storyline—has grown from two feature films to thirty interconnected movies, nine streaming Disney+ series, a half dozen short films, and more than thirty print titles. By 2022, eight of the twenty-five highest grossing films of all time are MCU movies.

The MCU is a deeply political universe. Intentionally or not, the MCU sends fans scores of messages about a wide range of subjects related to government, public policy, and society. Some are overt, like the contentious debate about government and accountability at the heart of Captain America: Civil War. More often, however, the politics of the MCU are subtle, like the changing role of women from supporting characters (like Black Widow in Iron Man 2) to leading heroes (like Black Widow in Black Widow). The MCU is not only a product of contemporary politics, but many of its stories seem to be direct responses to the problems of the day. Racial injustice, environmental catastrophe, and political misinformation are not just contemporary social ills; they are also key thematic elements of recent MCU blockbusters.

In The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, more than twenty-five leading scholars examine these complex themes. Part one explores how political issues are depicted in the origin stories; part two examines how the MCU depicts classic political themes like government and power; and part three explores questions of diversity and representation in the MCU. The volume’s various chapters examine a wide range of topics: Black Panther and the “racial contract,” Captain America and the political philosophy of James Madison, Dr. Strange and colonial imperialism, S.H.I.E.L.D. and civil-military relations, Spider-Man and environmentalism, and Captain Marvel and second-wave feminism.

The Politics of the Marvel Cinematic Universe is the first book to look expansively at politics in the MCU and ask the question, “What lessons are this entertainment juggernaut teaching audiences about politics, society, power, gender, and inequality?”

Foreword, Steve Rogers

Acknowledgments

1. An Introduction to the Politics of the Marvel Cinematic University, Nicholas Carnes and Lilly J. Goren

Part One Origin Stories

2. Building Worlds: Three Paths toward Racial Justice in Black Panther, Allison Rank and Heather Pool

3. Tony Stark and the Classical Heroism of the Marvel Cinema Universe, Ari Kohen

4. Endurance in Marvel Cinema: Letting Go of Compulsory Overcoming in Superhero Stories, Anna Daily

5. Captain America vs. James Madison, Christopher J. Galdieri

6. “Operation: Rebirth” and the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Origin Stories as Founding Narratives, Ronald J. Schmidt, Jr.

7. Nostalgia, Nationalism, and Marvel Superheroics, Lilly J. Goren

8. Government as the Bad Guy?, Nicholas Carnes

9. Democratic Monstrosity: Marvel’s Avengers and Extraordinary Politics, Elizabeth Barringer

10. Strange Sovereignty: Fantasies of Supremacy and Coloniality in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Matthew Longo

11. Civilian Control of Superheroes: Applying What We Know from Civil-Military Relations, Stephen M. Saideman

12. Environmentalism and the Marvel Cinematic Universe: Spider-Man: Far from Home as a Cautionary Tale, Nancy J. Hirschmann

13. Marvel Cinematic Universe Villains and Social Anxieties, Haoyang Wang and Christina Zhang

Part Three An Expanding Universe

14. Wrestling with Power and Pleasure: Black Widow and the Warrior Women of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Linda Beail

15. From “Grrrl Power” to “She’s Got Help”:: Captain Marvel as the Superhero of Second-Wave Feminism, Kristin Kanthank

16. Vulnerable Heroines: Gendering Violence in Jessica Jones, Menaka Philips

17. “I Know My Value”: Agency in the Prime-Time Network Portrayan of Peggy Carter, Christina Fattore

18. Men and Supermen: Gender and (Over)Compensation in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Dan Cassino

19. Deep in Marvel’s Closet: Heteronormativity and Hidden LGBTQ+ Narratives in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Patricia C. Rodda

20. Avengers, Assemblage, Danielle Hanley

21. Female Combatants in the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Ora Szekely

22. Who Watches the Marvel Cinematic Universe? Race, Sex, and the Audience for Onscreen Diversity, Bethany Lacina

23. Geopolitical Representations of Africa through the Marvel Cinematic Lens, Meghan S. Sanders

Part Four Conclusion

24. “You’ve Become Part of a Bigger Universe” Plurality, Public Things, and the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Jennifer Forestal

Afterwords

Afterword One: How Marvel Studios Makes a Universe, Carlee Goldberg

Afterword Two: Classical Dramatic Structure: A Primer on the Marvel Cinematic Universe, Matthew L. Free

Film List

List of Contributors

References

Index