What is the god-man archetype? There are a number of examples in fiction, from Son Goku, All-Might, Dr. Manhattan, etc. But the two I want to focus on today is: Superman from DC Comics, and the Doctor from the BBC TV series Doctor Who.
The interesting thing about this pair is that they occupy
two very different takes on the god-man archetype; which is why they fascinate
me, personally. But let’s back up. What characteristics make a character fit
into the “god-man” mold? Here’s what I’ve observed.
1. (1) The character must possess a great amount of
power, at the very least, much greater than regular members of the society that
surrounds that character.
2. (2) The character must possess some qualities of
regular members of society, that is, being human to some degree, whether it be
in physical form, personality, or limitations.
So let’s take Superman, for example, first. We all know his
story. He is the last son of Krypton, sent to Earth by scientist parents to
avoid the coming destruction of their home planet. When Superman, then known as
Kal-El, lands on Earth, he comes into the care of kindly Kansas couple Martha
and Jonathan Kent. They teach him strong, traditional moral values of right and
wrong, and the boy grows up to become Clark Kent in Smallville. Eventually, his
powers emerge – granted to him by the combination of Earth’s yellow sun’s
radiation and his own alien biochemistry. After learning to control his powers,
he moves to Metropolis and takes on the identity of Superman to save people in
need – all the while working at the Daily Planet newspaper as a normal human
reporter.
Superman embodies the first quality of the god-man archetype
quite handily. He is quite possibly the strongest character in the entire DC
universe. There are very few who can match him in a one-on-one fight. Even when
the character famously “died” in the 1990s in his fight against the
supervillain Doomsday, it was later revealed that he had simply gone into a
“healing coma” and was resurrected a few years later – casting doubt as to
whether the do-gooder Kryptonian could actually die at all.
As for the second quality, Clark Kent couldn’t be more
human. He’s shy around his crush and later wife Lois Lane, he’s a country farm
boy from Kansas, he likes going to baseball games, he loves his mom, and he
makes friends with the office dork Jimmy Olsen. He’s good ol’ Clark Kent. He looks like a human, he acts like a human,
and he’s limited by human compassion and emotions.
At first glance, the Doctor from Doctor Who seems quite
similar to the Man of Steel from DC Comics. The Doctor, too, is an alien from
another world – Gallifrey. He too, is away from his home planet (sometimes due
to exile, sometime by choice, and sometimes due to tragedy depending on which
era of the show). He also, has an affinity for planet Earth, and regularly
saves humanity. And like Superman, he is seemingly unable to die. The Doctor’s
species allow for full cellular regeneration when he is close to death,
retaining his memories, but completely rewriting his DNA and personality based
on his subconscious. But that’s where the similarities end.
For the first quality of the god-man archetype – great power
– the Doctor’s power isn’t in his strength, and it’s in his intelligence and
encyclopedic knowledge of various alien worlds and species. He is nearly as
fragile as the humans he looks like (although he would argue that humans look
like his species – the Time Lords). A spray of bullets would put him down as
easy as you or me (and it has). But the Doctor continually gets out of danger
and saves the day through his cleverness and quick thinking, rarely even
depending on his time machine, the TARDIS, to do so. He’s faced armies,
monsters, and the end of the universe itself on numerous occasions only to
emerge victorious with little more than quick talking, knowledge of alien
science, and maybe a futuristic screwdriver. His intelligence, while not as
imposing as Superman’s strength, is quite godlike (at least, in the classical
Greek sense).
As for the second quality – having the qualities of regular
humans – we’ve already mentioned his fragile mortality (in a sense, anyway),
but it’s also his lack of strength. While he is extremely intelligent, he is
not much greater in any other aspect than the multitudes of alien species. In fact,
he would rank quite below average in his own universe. He may be more capable
than a regular human, but he’s usually the underdog anywhere else in the
universe. And that makes him relatable. He’s just as vulnerable out in space as
we are on our own planet. And yet he risks his lives to save worlds and species
anyway. He suffers from similar limitations as us, and yet he attempts to save
everyone anyway.
So what makes the Big Blue Boy Scout and the Madman with a
Box so different, then? Why did I say earlier that they occupy vastly different
takes on the god-man archetype?
It’s simply this: Superman is a regular man with the power
of a god. The Doctor is a god with the power of a human. Allow me to elaborate.
Superman is an aspirational character, someone to look up
to. He’s relatable and human like us, and through his adventures, he shows us
what we as humans should do with power.
The Doctor is a realistic character, in a sense. He’s an
alien with a far-off perspective on humanity, forced to work within our
limitations. He makes mistakes, sometimes horrifying ones. He’s a realistic
look at what someone with that much power trying their best to do the right
thing can look like.
Superman gives us space to make our own decisions, knowing
he could fix everything, but respects
us too much to become a dictator, instead opting to come alongside us and help
us as a man.
The Doctor frequently has
to make tough decisions on how best to save us, because he can’t fix everything. He’s not trying to be a god (most of the
time), but he sometimes makes decisions that he may not have the right to make.
So when you make a character who embodies the god-man
archetype, you have a choice. Does your character resemble a loving, benevolent
god that is relatable to other men, or is he a flawed man with just enough
godlike power to make him dangerous? Either is valid depending on the story you
want to tell, and I am sure there are more variations.
The thing that binds both types of god-man characters,
however, is this: whoever the god-man chooses to be, good or evil or some
attempt in between, it’s going to change the lives of everyone around him.
