Miles Morales: Spider-Man

Miles Morales: Spider-Man begins with the use of imagery to depict the “good china” that Miles and his family eat off of on special occasions (1). The “good china” is symbolic, as it is the reader’s first introduction to the concept of passing down things denoted as good or bad. This idea of inheritance is part of a larger theme in the novel about Legacy and the Predisposition to Evil. The image of “good china” occurs several times throughout the novel and is a tool used by Miles to evaluate the differences between his family and those with socioeconomic power.

Miles is overwhelmed by his two dueling identities. As Spider-Man, Miles takes on major threats and is constantly on edge. When Miles’s spidey-sense begins to act up in Mr. Chamberlain’s classroom, an act of foreshadowing cluing the reader into his role as an antagonist, Miles begins to doubt himself. He states, “Perhaps, for a kid like him, being a Super Hero had an expiration date. And it wasn’t worth being punished by his folks—it wasn’t worth failing a class, or being expelled—if he couldn’t even guarantee he’d be Spider-Man by graduation” (3), which shows Miles’s insecurity about where his family comes from, their legacy, and that he feels he no longer has the space to be both Miles Morales and Spider-Man. Miles feels pressure from his parents, and ultimately his community, to succeed academically, and is forced to contemplate whether being a superhero is worth risking disappointing them. Ultimately, this conflict separates Miles from Spider-Man and creates a complicated relationship between the two identities.

Miles’s father, Jeff Davis, knows about his role as Spider-Man. While taking Miles around to complete jobs for the neighborhood as punishment for Miles’s suspension, he asks an important question: “Who’s gonna save you?” (7). The concept of saving and what it means to be saved is a motif that recurs throughout the novel. The motif works to develop both Miles’s sense of community and sense of self, as by the end of the novel, he fights to save both. It becomes clear that “saving” someone is more complex than Miles originally thought.

Throughout the novel, Miles is haunted by the dying words of Uncle Aaron: “You’re just like me.” Having been constantly warned by his father not to make the same choices as his uncle, Miles feels afraid that he will end up on the same path. The repetition of the quote during Miles’s moments of self-doubt and anger allows the reader to understand the immense pressure Miles feels as part of a family whose legacy is one of crime. One of the major themes of the novel, the concept of Legacy and the Predisposition to Evil, is best illustrated by Miles taking advantage of the young men on the basketball court in Chapter 2, leading him to consider his own goodness.

As Miles prepares to leave home and return to his dorm, he spends time in the bathroom evaluating his reflection. In a moment of vulnerability, the reader watches as “Miles rolled the mask down over his forehead, over his eyes. For a split second, darkness. […] He looked at himself in the mirror. Spider-Man” (13). Miles has separated his identity as Spider-Man from his identity as Miles Morales; as of now, the two are in conflict with each other. According to common color symbolism, darkness is meant to represent fear or evil. In Miles’s case, the darkness that surrounds him as he transitions between identities represents his fear and unease. The moment of darkness when Miles is somewhere between his two identities is meant to signify how isolated they have become in his mind.

Miles often wonders if it is possible for him to break the legacy of crime in his family. He uses an analogy to help roommate Ganke, and ultimately the reader, understand his fears, comparing the supposed inevitability of his fall to “how really tall people usually have really tall parents. Or how you can be predisposed to be an alcoholic if one of your parents is. Miles had what he always had considered complicated genetics: bad blood” (22). Miles makes two comparisons to genetic traits: height and addiction; in doing so, he equates the likelihood of his own predisposition to evil to something hereditary rather than learned. This showcases how helpless Miles feels in the face of his family’s legacy and helps the reader understand his decision to quit being Spider-Man to focus on school.

After seeing a group of young men performing dances and tricks for money, Miles sees a street sign that says “IF YOU SEE SOMETHING, SAY SOMETHING” (35-36). This is Miles’s first encounter with advocacy and standing up to injustice (despite being a superhero who stops crime), a theme that helps him grow throughout the novel. The sign alludes to the campaign started by the New York Metropolitan Transportation Authority in 2001 after the events of September 11, 2001. The goal of the campaign was to encourage people to speak up if they saw something suspicious or wrong (“About the Campaign,” If You See Something, Say Something, Department of Homeland Security, 21 Mar. 2023)—which, in itself, led to complicated feelings regarding those perceived as “terrorists.” In Miles’s case, the sign has a less literal meaning. The “something” Miles sees is the socioeconomic inequality within his neighborhood, with “saying something” referring to advocating on the neighborhood’s behalf. Miles reads the words on the sign several times in an act of repetition, showing just how unsettled he is by the boys having to perform tricks for money. This time, Miles decides to remain a bystander and leaves the crowd feeling guilty.

At the end of Chapter 3, Miles tries to explain to Ganke why he has decided to stop being Spider-Man. This scene focuses heavily on the idea of legacy and the predisposition to do both good and evil. Ganke, excited by his affinity for the Korean poetic form, the sijo, exclaims to Miles, “This is the poetry of my people! This is my birthright! That’s why I’m so good at it!” (47). Ganke’s statement contrasts with what he previously said about not believing in being predisposed to one’s parents’ traits—which reaffirms Miles’s choice to quit being Spider-Man, as he fears being predisposed to evil. Miles is afraid of ending up like Uncle Aaron in particular, and is willing to do anything to prevent this from happening, even give up his life as a hero.