Death of a Superhero- The fountain pen

The fountain pen is on of stricking elements in the book “death of a superhero”.

It is firstly shown on page 60 in Adrian’s office when he and Donald's parents were discussing about an Art therapy for their son.

The pen occurs to be very striking, as it is noticed by both Donald and his parents. Taking a closer look to its high branded origin (“Montblanc”), it serves Adrian as a status symbol to be acknolegdes as a good psychologist in front of his clients. Moreover, its appearance represents a phallic symbol, which Adrian identifies as the spirit of manhood. Hence Donald tries to take him away this manhood by stealing the pen. When realizing that manhood can neither be taken nor gained from stealing it from others, Donald decides to bring it back. From that moment on the two men seem to become friends. This can be proven by the fact that Adrian endowes him a “Pieta” .

Coming back to the original function of pens, they help us to write down what we actually would have forgotten. When appearing in dreams, Freud claims that they serve us as reminders. Consequently, this pen is a constant reminder of death. It reminds Donald of “memento mori”, that his time is fading

After bringing the pen back, Donald develops to a man. He is now able to talk about his fear of death and trusts Adrian. In the following, the pen appears shortly before Donald's death. Adrian endowes it to Donald, who feels acknowledged in his manhood. However, the pen once again reminds Donald of his precious time, which is about to fade.