I recently was watching the movie Kill Bill on Netflix. I saw it when it was new and was enjoying revisiting it. There was a scene that jumped out at me with new gravitas. It was a scene between “Bill” (played by David Carradine) and “The Bride” (played by Uma Thurman).
This is a transcript of the monologue from that scene.
Bill
As you know, l’m quite keen on comic books. Especially the ones about superheroes. I find the whole mythology surrounding superheroes fascinating. Take my favorite superhero, Superman. Not a great comic book, not particularly well-drawn, but the mythology. The mythology is not only great, it’s unique.
Now, a staple of the superhero mythology is, there’s the superhero and there’s the alter ego. Batman is actually Bruce Wayne, Spider-Man is actually Peter Parker. When that character wakes up in the morning, he’s Peter Parker. He has to put on a costume to become Spider-Man. And it is in that characteristic Superman stands alone. Superman didn’t become Superman. Superman was born Superman.
When Superman wakes up in the morning, he’s Superman. His alter ego is Clark Kent. His outfit with the big red “S”, that’s the blanket he was wrapped in as a baby when the Kents found him. Those are his clothes. What Kent wears – the glasses, the business suit – that’s the costume. That’s the costume Superman wears to blend in with us. Clark Kent is how Superman views us. And what are the characteristics of Clark Kent? He’s weak, he’s unsure of himself, he’s a coward. Clark Kent is Superman’s critique on the whole human race.
I started to ponder that quote through my lens as someone recovered from imposter syndrome. What if Superman forgot he was Superman, and adopted Clark Kent as his full-time identity?
He was still Superman, because he could never not be Superman, but the costume of Clark Kent became overwhelming.
When I thought I was a faker, the biggest crime was I was living as a fake to myself.
I was not acknowledging the amazing things I had done, that could only have been done by me. I saw them as luck or good timing.
I embodied those Clark Kent traits of weakness and being unsure of myself. I was a coward.
And I suffered because of it.
And then something happened. I remembered who I actually was. I am Superman. I threw away the Clark Kent clothing. I don’t need them any more. I refuse to wear them.
That’s the person you are experiencing now and my greatest pleasure is when I create experiences where I create awe in people, for being nothing more than being myself.
And here’s a truth I have learned – I am not special. We are all Superman. All of us are walking around in Clark Kent clothing, thinking that’s what we’re supposed to be doing.
What if you didn’t need to do that? What if that was actually the worst thing you could be doing?
What changes for you when you realize you are walking around in your own Clark Kent clothing? What can you do show your true, most powerful self to the world? Who benefits from that?
