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Gladiator Philip Wylie 9781434452061 Books

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Gladiator Philip Wylie 9781434452061 Books

This is the book that inspired either Seibert or Shuster, or perhaps both of them, to write Superman. Gladiator was the first superhero story. That being the case, it's surprising that it is not more well known than it is. I do not know what I was expecting, but it was better than I expected. Hugo Danner does not devote his life to fighting crime, though he does briefly consider that idea. He is a super-powered human with a great moral conscience who devotes his life trying to make his power useful. Ordinarily, I only give a book five stars if the story is exceptionally good. This one was good, but not exceptionally so. I gave it five stars because of the exceptional influence it's had on popular culture. But the story is worth reading for its own sake, as well as the historical interest.


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Gladiator Philip Wylie 9781434452061 Books Reviews

Imagine for just a moment that you have strength beyond anything human. Stronger than steel. What would your life really be like?

Would you hide your abilities? Fight crime? Turn to crime? Become famous?
How would real people react to seing you display godlike strength?
The fantasy is that you would be admired, women would love you, men would want to be your friend.

But that isn't what would happen. People would be frightened to death. You would have to hide your strength or be rejected as a menace, weapon, or something worse.
Remember, they burned witches.

Gladiator tells the story of such a man. It was written in 1930, but reads like a more modern story. It is a story filled with tragedy because of the realities such physical power would bring. I dare you to put it down before you're finished reading it. I couldn't.
After reading the preface that this was the inspiration for the Doc Savage and Superman stories I was curious as I loved both series growing up. I was hooked from the first paragraph until the end. I was disappointed that unlike the later Doc. Savage and Superman, Hugo never found his purpose. I expected through the whole story for him to find a purpose and thought he had when he met Dan. The ending was unexpected in the way it came about but I should have seen it coming.
I recently read Wylie's Triump which was published in the early 1960's. It was from that book's flap that I was made aware of Gladiator published in 1930 prior to the famous comics his book may have inspired. It quite amazing to see the range of his material and the length of his writing career. Though no official confirmation exists that Gladiator was an influence on Superman, one can certainly draw some conclusions to that end. Also the angst and discomfort felt and experienced by the main character may have impacted Peter Parker and Spiderman.

Without giving the book away or re-treading the ground of fellow reviewers (who have done a great job), I only wish to add how fascinating the parts were covering Hugo Danner's experience in fighting World War One. Basically, how he fought a tactical war rather than a strategic one that could have changed history. The author does a laudable job overall of balancing the "wouldn't it be great" sentiment of having super powers with the fact that differences in people, more often than not, alienate rather than celebrate. And just one more short observation. I enjoyed Wylie's use of New York as a location for parts of the story and how he brought the people and setting to life. An incredibly interesting work and not a comic book at all.
Here is an excellent novel by a writer who is at once a skillful teller of tales and a philosopher whose discourse is enlightened and woven into the story. The irony is that Hugo Danner faces a dilemma that even his superhuman strength cannot resolve. One might easily see that dilemma as that of "Everyman"...thrown into relief by the possibilities open to the protagonist. A great book.
"Gladiator", by Philip Wylie, is a good, old-fashioned pulp story of the 1920s, which, according to some sources, helped inspire the creation of Superman in the 1930s. I can see that, since Hugo Danner, the main character, has abilities similar to those of the very early Superman. He is very fast and strong, has great stamina, is impervious to bullets and knives, although not as invulnerable as Superman would later become.
I particularly loved Hugo Danner's plan, as a soldier, to end the First World War (aka "The Great War") by running past enemy lines, across the country, to deal personally with the Kaiser. This plan was thwarted by the Armistice, though. More than mindless pulp fiction, though, we see Hugo's struggles with what sort of man he should be, and how he should live his life. It's not as easy being a Superman as one might think. If you're a fan of the early pulp fiction of, say, Edgar Rice Burroughs or H. Rider Haggard, I think you'll enjoy this book, as well.
This is the book that inspired either Seibert or Shuster, or perhaps both of them, to write Superman. Gladiator was the first superhero story. That being the case, it's surprising that it is not more well known than it is. I do not know what I was expecting, but it was better than I expected. Hugo Danner does not devote his life to fighting crime, though he does briefly consider that idea. He is a super-powered human with a great moral conscience who devotes his life trying to make his power useful. Ordinarily, I only give a book five stars if the story is exceptionally good. This one was good, but not exceptionally so. I gave it five stars because of the exceptional influence it's had on popular culture. But the story is worth reading for its own sake, as well as the historical interest.