Introduction: A Rorschach test -- The politics of power : who watches the watchmen? -- The superman exists, and he's American : morality in the face of absolute power / Christopher Obichaud -- Can we steer this rudderless world? : Kant, Rorschach, retributivism, and honor / Jacob M. Held -- Super vigilantes and the Keene Act / Tony Spanakos -- Superheroes and supermen : finding Nietzsche's Bermensch in Watchmen / Joseph Keeping -- The Veidt plan : Watchmen and ethics -- Means, ends, and the critique of pure superheroes / J. Robert Loftis -- The virtues of nite owl's potbelly / Mark D. White -- Rorschach : when telling the truth is wrong / Alex Nuttall -- The metaphysics of Dr. Manhattan -- Dr. Manhattan, I presume? / James DiGiovanna -- Dr. Manhattan and Bergson's theory of simultaneous time / Chris Drohan -- Free will and foreknowledge : does Jon really know what Laurie will do next and can she do otherwise? / Arthur Ward -- I'm just a puppet who can see the strings : Dr. Manhattan as a stoic sage / Andrew Terjesen -- This is not your father's comic book -- Why don't you go read a book or something? : watchmen as literature / Aaron Meskin -- Watchwomen / Sarah Donovan and Nick Richardson -- Hooded justice and Captain Metropolis : the ambiguously gay duo / Robert Arp -- What's so goddamned funny? : the comedian and Rorschach on life's way / Taneli Kukkonen.;"Watchmen is the most critically acclaimed graphic novel ever published and turned the world of comic superheroes on its head. This masterpiece of realistic storytelling, dialogue, and artwork, courtesy of Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons, raises a host of compelling philosophical questions. How do Ozymandias and Rorschach justify their actions? What are the political ramifications of the Comedian's work for the government? How do we explain the nature of Dr. Manhattan? And can a graphic novel be considered literature? Whether you're reading Watchmen for the first time or have been a fan for more than twenty years, Watchmen and Philosophy will help you read deeper into the philosophical questions and the revolutionary story that changed comic fiction forever."--Jacket.