When ordinary individuals in the TV show Heroes inexplicably develop superhuman abilities, they question who they are, struggle to cope with new responsibilities and decide whether to use their new power for good or for evil. Every episode is a philosophical quandary and Heroes and Philosophy is the first book to analyse what's going on.

Acknowledgments: Godsends ix Introduction: The Wonder of Heroes 1 Part One Heroic Obligations 1 Above the Social Contract? How Superheroes Break Society 6 Robert Sharp 2 Heroes, Obligations, and the Ethics of Saving the World 22 J. K. Miles 3 Corporate Capers: The Moral Dimensions of Working for the Company 35 Christopher Robichaud 4 With Great Creativity Comes Great Imitation: Problems of Plagiarism and Knowledge 49 Jason Southworth Copyrighted Material Part Two Supermen, Samurai, and Invisible Men 5 Time and the Meaning of Life in Heroes and Nietzsche 66 Tyler Shores 6 Hiro Nakamura, Bushido, and Hero Archetypes 79 Erik Daniel Baldwin 7 Plato on Gyges’ Ring of Invisibility: The Power of Heroes and the Value of Virtue 93 Don Adams Part Three Metaphysics, Regular Physics, And Heroic Time Travel 8 The Foreknowledge of a Painter, the Fate of a Hiro 110 David Kyle Johnson 9 Time to Be a Hero: Branching Time and Changing the Future 123 Morgan Luck 10 Heroes and the Ethics of Time Travel: Does the Present Matter? 140 David Faraci 11 The Science of Heroes: Flying Men, Immortal Samurai, and Destroying the Space-Time Continuum 155 Andrew Zimmerman Jones 12 Pseudoscience, Scientific Revolutions, and Dr. Chandra Suresh 174 David Kyle Johnson and Andrew Zimmerman Jones Part Four The Minds of Heroes 13 Peter Petrelli, the Haitian, and the Philosophical Implications of Memory Loss 184 Peter Kirwan 14 Understanding Other Minds: Philosophical Foundations of Heroes ’ Mind-Reading Powers 200 Fabio Paglieri 15 Peter Petrelli: The Power of Empathy 222 Andrew Terjesen Part Five Villains, Family, and Lying 16 Are the Heroes Really Good? 240 Peter S. Fosl 17 Heroes and Family Obligations 254 Ruth Tallman and Jason Southworth 18 Concealment and Lying: Is That Any Way for a Hero to Act? 268 Michael R. Berry Contributors: Our Heroes 281 Chandra Suresh’s List: A Catalogue Of Powers, Both Natural And Synthetic 287 Index: The Power Of Omniscience 301

Would the emergence of "heroes" save society or break it? Is it okay for the Company to lie, kidnap, and kill to secretly protect the public? Does Hiro really have a destiny? Do we? Is time travel actually possible? E very episode of Tim Kring's hit TV show Heroes presents a philosophical quandary. When ordinary individuals from around the world inexplicably develop superhuman abilities, they question who they are, struggle to cope with new responsibilities, and decide whether to use their new powers for good or for evil. This book analyzes some of the many questions and issues that make the series so compelling. With the help of some of history's heaviest-hitting philosophical "heroes" such as Plato and Nietzsche, you'll explore everything from the role that memory plays in personal identity to whether the rise of superpowers could break down society. Whether you're new to Heroes or have been a fan since the beginning, this book will take your enjoyment of the series to the next level.