Do you believe a man can fly? That's the question that every Superman story asks of you, and Lois Lane is the key to making you believe that one can.
The appeal of Superman stories has always been the dual identity of Clark Kent, that's what makes him different from any of the super strong dudes throughout mythology and other stories of really strong dudes throughout history. There are 2 sides to him, Clark Kent, the Earthling he was raised as, and Superman, the alien with superpowers who exists as the last survivor of his people. They are 2 incredibly different identities and people, but Lois Lane is what unites those 2 halves. Superman started as a power fantasy, the belief that you, yes YOU, could be Superman underneath your work clothes, and Lois being a damsel was used to enhance this aspect. She is what sells Clark and Superman being the same person and she keeps the reader anchored in the real world. While Lois is what keeps the reader anchored in Superman's adventures, she is also what keeps Clark anchored in the real world. The conflicts between his 2 identities and his place within the universe are universal, and the way we look up to him and see ourselves in those conflicts is why we keep coming back to these stories in the first place. She is what unites his 2 identities, she keeps him from giving into despair over those conflicts because she's the one that keeps him connected to his life on Earth and she's what reminds him that goodness exists in everyone, Clark looks up to her in the same way that we look up to him. She makes him feel okay about his insane emotional journey across the universe and his role as the last survivor of Krypton. Superman does the impossible so we don't have to, and Lois is what lets him do that
Superman stories ask us to believe the impossible, that a perfect man who lives in the sky and solves all our problems for us is also just a regular person like you and I. Superman and Lois are 2 halves of a whole, and the appeal of Superman, the character, is the unification between the Earthling and the alien. The appeal of Superman, the comic book series, is how the connections we make and people we meet are what unite those 2 halves. Lois is what unites Clark Kent and Superman, and when we believe that we could be super like them, it gives us hope.
Lois thinks Clark is a weird loser but needs to be rescued by Superman thanks to her dismissiveness of Clark, and her lack of knowledge on his secret identity is played for laughs for the benefit of letting the audience live through that fantasy. She is what keeps the audience anchored in
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