MERVI MIETTINEN Truth, Justice, and the American Way? The Popular Geopolitics of American Identity in Contemporary Superhero Comics ACADEMIC DISSERTATION To be presented, with the permission of the board of the School of Language, Translation and Literary Studies of the University of Tampere, for public discussion in the Auditorium Pinni B 1096, Kanslerinrinne 1, Tampere, on December 15th, 2012, at 12 o’clock. UNIVERSITY OF TAMPERE ACADEMIC DISSERTATION University of Tampere School of Language, Translation and Literary Studies Finland Copyright ©2012 Tampere University Press and the author Distribution Tel. +358 40 190 9800 Bookshop TAJU
[email protected] P.O. Box 617 www.uta.fi/taju 33014 University of Tampere http://granum.uta.fi Finland Cover design by Mikko Reinikka Acta Universitatis Tamperensis 1790 Acta Electronica Universitatis Tamperensis 1266 ISBN 978-951-44-8995-2 (print) ISBN 978-951-44-8996-9 (pdf) ISSN-L 1455-1616 ISSN 1456-954X ISSN 1455-1616 http://acta.uta.fi Tampereen Yliopistopaino Oy – Juvenes Print Tampere 2012 Acknowledgements This work has been years in the making, and, accordingly, the list of people who have made it possible is equally long. The commitment and support of my supervisors, Maarit Piipponen and Markku Salmela, made the completion of this work a reality. Maarit’s critical insight and ability to identify discontinuities in my writing have continuously forced me to challenge my thinking, while Markku’s constant support and encouragement have made all the difference during times of self-doubt. I cannot thank you both enough. I also wish to thank Päivi Pahta, Pekka Tammi, Nigel Mapp, Matti Hyvärinen, Arja Rosenholm, and everyone else at the University of Tampere who has (knowingly or unknowingly) contributed to the completion of this study during its various stages.