Great comic art is never otherwordly, it does not
seek to mystify us, and it does not deny ambiguity by
branding as evil whatever differs from good. Great
comic artists assume that truth may bear all lights,
and thus they seek to accentuate contradictions in
social action, not gloss over or transcend them by
appeals to extrasocial symbols of divine ends, cosmic
purpose, or laws of nature. The moment of
transcendence in great comic art is a social moment,
born out of the conviction that we are human, even
though we try to be gods. The comic community to
which artists address themselves is a community of
reasoning, loving, joyful, compassionate beings, who
are willing to assume the human risks of acting
rationally. Without invoking gods or demons, great
comic art arouses courage in reason, courage which
grows out of trust in what human beings can do as
humans.