The teenage years can be the most difficult ones to go though. Not just for teens, but their parents as well. As a teen, you feel absolutely no one understands what you're going through. Chances are, parents would be the last ones the average teenager would confide in if they experienced a life-changing event.
Teenagers often do things their parents might not approve of. Of course those parents probably did things their parents approve of either. It's part of life and the hope is the teenager will do the right thing and not get in a situation where they'll get hurt.
What happens when those teenage years involved gaining superpowers? For anyone with superpowers, regardless of age, the secret identity is the biggest struggle. No one wants to deal with issues on their own and having someone to confide in is a good thing. For a teenage superhero, there are added considerations in sharing their identity. Despite the raw power and abilities they may possess, should teenage superheroes reveal their powers to their parents?
== TEASER ==Keeping secrets isn't a healthy thing. It can eat you up from the inside. Every parent hopes their children will feel absolutely comfortable confiding in them. Possessing superhuman abilities is a little different than going to a party where people were drinking beer. The dangers are increased and it probably wouldn't be something a parent would approve of.
Having superpowers doesn't make a hero invulnerable...unless their power is invulnerability. The villains in the world are becoming more deadly each day. A teenage hero may have the firepower to go toe-to-toe with them but the lack of experience is all it would take for a villain to find an opening and make a deadly move. No parent wants their children to face unnecessary risks. If the parent forbids the teen in pursuing their superhero career, it's going to cause more tension to an already tense world for the teen.
The teenage hero that has to hide their superhero activities from their parents will have one more problem to be concerned with. They'll already have high school to cope with. Trying to keep up with homework and their social status will become difficult if they also have to try to find time to be a hero. They will need to come up with a way to explain to their parents why they have the sudden urge to be away from home in the evenings. The teen could try to come up with the excuse of a job or study group but those should result in paychecks and good grades. Having a friend to use as an excuse means the hero has to be able to maintain at least one friendship in order to have someone that will cover for them.
Parents are supposed to be there for their children. A teen going through changes should be able to have a conversation with their parents, especially when their life has been turned upside down. The parent can take the news of superpowers either way. They could try to forbid the child in participating in superhero activities but if the teen possesses superhuman abilities, could the parent actually stop them other than telling them they're grounded?
The other case would be the parent would be completely supportive. If they can buy into the "with great power comes great responsibility" angle, they might encourage their children to use their powers to do good and save lives. Of course they'd want to make sure the teen was properly trained and would know not to get in over their head. Whether the parent would be able to provide that training or help the teen find the proper place would be another situation.
Then there's the risk in parents knowing. Heroes often choose not to reveal their identities in order to protect their loved ones and friends. If family members don't know the secret, they can't be abducted and tortured to reveal what they know. If the parent is let in on the secret, what about other siblings? And as powerful as the teen may be, could an average parent actually condone their child putting their life at risk night after night? At least if the parent is aware, they wouldn't be caught off guard should they become the target of a supervillain.
It all comes down to what the relationship between parent and child was like before the powers developed or were acquired. Children shouldn't hide things from their parents but they will be placed in a situation where they'll have to ask what is the right thing to do? While they should tell their mom and dad, there's the risk that the parent will forbid them from continuing to be a hero. For the true hero, they can't simply sit back when innocent lives are at risk. If the lines of communication are open and the teen is honest, it's possible an agreement could be reached. A parent's main priority is the safety of their child but if they can be shown how capable the hero can be, they might be understanding and allow the hero to continue to save lives. Otherwise hiding their powers and activities from their parents will be one more distraction the hero might not be able to afford to have.
63 Comments