The use of dichotomy is instantly the first recognisable survivor of the Alan Scott Mantra that has found its way to the heart and soul of the Hal Jordan Green Lantern Mantra, and the slew of other Lantern Oaths. The Green Lantern Oath read slightly differently when Alan Scott, the first ever Green Lantern to appear on the spread of All-American Comics #16 in July 1940, uttered our first taste of the infamous mantra:Īnd I shall shed my light over dark evil,įor the dark things cannot stand the light Now the Green Lantern mantra was not born as we first witnessed it exiting the lips of the legendary GL Hal Jordan, who came during the Silver Age of the comic book. That means any one of us – man or woman – could potentially dig deep enough to embody the spirit of what it means to be part of the Green Lantern Corp. Rainbow and colour-coding affinities aside, there is something quite compelling to know a superheroes’ main gift stems from being able to harness energy through sheer force of will. Red is harnessed and fuelled by rage, White by life, Black by death, Violet by Love, Orange by Greed and Avarice, Blue by hope. Yellow symbolising fear (Sinestro), ergo Green Lantern’s greatest nemesis, and the colour ‘yellow’ being a weakness. There are other colours in this spectrum and require different forms of emotion to tap into them. So essentially thing like the Force in Star Wars. The Green Lantern Corp are galactic guardians that tap into a particular energy source of the Emotional Electromagnetic Spectrum that is accessed through ones the willpower, channelled throw power rings.

The sacred mantra that gave rise to sheer greatness birthed by the unbreakable power and triumph of will.

Few of these, arguably, have ever reached the pinnacle of literary expression, aside from that of the Green Lantern’s Oath. For comic fans, avid and casual alike, there are a few quotes that resonate and stand the test of time.

Green lantern oath rhyme scheme