An Ode to Captain America

 

Last Saturday, I finally watched Captain America: The Winter Soldier. Considering how much the good reviews had hyped it up for me, the film turned out to be everything I'd hoped it would be. Cap's interactions with Black Widow and Falcon were great--I love seeing that sort of camaraderie in movie friendships. The spy thriller plot kept me on edge all the way until the end, and there's that one scene where the Winter Soldier vaguely begins to remember his past, and oh man--Sebastian Stan was brilliant in acting that part. Also, Hayley Atwell! That scene was so bittersweet.

More than anything, this movie affirmed why Captain America is my favorite Avenger. I know I've mentioned before that people usually give me the side-eye when I say he's my favorite, since he's always been accused of being "boring" or "useless." I think more people are drawn to the flashy types like Iron Man, who I can't deny has his charms. But to me, Captain America is symbolic of the type of person I want to strive to be. In an interview with the writers of CA:TWS, they described his character as such:

McFeely: The temptation is to give him a dark night of the soul, have him tortured over whether he's doing things right.
Marcus: 'Should I become Dark Captain America?'
McFeely: But the world doesn’t change him, he changes the world. His A-plot was 'Do I belong here, is there a place in the world for me?' He doesn't doubt himself, he doubts where he's woken up. To marry that character story with a political story that demands it--that's where the conspiracy thriller comes in, making him not sure who to trust.

To me, this is key: The world doesn't change him. He changes the world. Even before he became a superhero, his actions have always stemmed from a place of sincerity in that he just wants to do the right thing. No ulterior motives or secondary agenda. And I don't know about you, but I admire that quality about him. To me, his character is the purest example of selfless heroism and inspires me to be better.

And another thing: in my teenage years, my family would joke about how my brother was the eternal optimist and I the eternal pessimist, to which I would counter that I was a realist. Now in my early twenties, despite my occasional unexplained bouts of gloom I would generally call myself a converted optimist who has learned to accept things as they come. Consequently, I've developed an allergy for people who are perpetually pessimistic. Just as happiness can be infectious, so can grumpiness--and I don't particularly enjoy being around people who put me in a worse mood.

Captain America's backstory carries a vein of tragedy, in that he wakes up in the 21st century to find that the world he knew has completely changed. Many of his friends have died since 1945. He has missed more than half a century's worth of time. But does he brood about this and throw tantrums about the unfairness of his fate? No, he makes a list of modern things to check out (e.g. Thai food, Marvin Gaye) and even cracks a joke about how it's nice that there's no polio. I would say he's more than entitled to some angst, but all the scenes we see in the films show him being almost absurdly optimistic about his situation.

YY and I had a conversation about this after watching the movie, and we touched on the fact that young women our age tend to go for types like Tony Stark/Iron Man--because these charming guys are wicked fun. But the truth is that I've never been compelled to romp around in hedonistic abandon. Given that I was Greek-affiliated in college, it's almost shocking how tame I have been. If I had wanted to rectify this, I could have done it easily, since I basically lived with a fraternity last year. But the young adult "crazy phase" seems to have bypassed me completely. So yeah, maybe I'm just as boring as Captain America and have the personality of someone from the 1940s. That's not to say that I snub my nose at people who do enjoy these things. Hello, I was a part of a sorority--if anything, the dramatist in me thoroughly enjoys poking her nose around the excitement, even if I personally don't want to participate. But ultimately, I appreciate someone who not only motivates me to be a better person but keeps me from relapsing to my pessimistic tendencies. And that, my friends, is why I love Captain America.