Spider-Man is one of Marvel's biggest heroes, an icon whose success rivals that of any fictional character of the last hundred years. Spider-Man has changed a lot over the years, but one thing that has stayed the same is that Spider-Man's life is pretty terrible. Sure, he's a successful superhero but not even very far under the surface is a core of tragedy and pain that truly defines Spider-Man.
Spider-Man is known as a funny guy but that's just a front. The reality of Spider-Man is very different. His life has been full of pain and terror and there are so many reasons for that.
10 He Barely Has Any Memories Of His Parents
Peter Parker was raised by Aunt May and Uncle Ben. His parents, Richard and Mary Parker, were secret S.H.I.E.L.D. agents and died on a mission. While he was lucky to have someone to take care of him unlike many other orphans, he has no actual memories of his parents. The sorrow this has caused him is something that has never left him.
It's something his foes have taken advantage of, including once creating clones of his parents that attacked him. While he had parental figures in his life, the fact that his parents weren't in his life is something that has always affected him.
9 He's Not Even The Best Spider-Man
One of the most popular Spider-Man stories of recent years was that of Superior Spider-Man. Doctor Octopus was able to take over Spider-Man's body, becoming Peter Parker. Inspired by remnants of Parker's mind, Doc Ock became the Superior Spider-Man and proved to be a better Spider-Man than Parker.
In fact, he was even better at being Peter Parker, building an industrial empire, and proving in every way that he was the better Spider-Man. Peter had to deal with the fact that one of his greatest enemies was better at his life than he was.
8 He's Indirectly Responsible For The Existence Of Carnage And All The Horror The Villain Has Caused
Carnage is one of Spider-Man's most terrifying villains and his entire existence is Spider-Man's fault. Carnage's symbiote was birthed by Venom's, which Spider-Man got during the first Secret Wars. While Kletus Casady was already a killer before getting the symbiote, getting the alien life form made it much easier for him to commit new acts of mass murder.
Guilt is Spider-Man's default setting, so every time Carnage has killed someone he blames himself. The symbiote that started the whole thing escaped him and he could have kept it all from happening if he stopped it.
7 As A Teenager, The Daily Bugle Printed Lies About Him To The Entire City
Teenagers on social media have it tough but Spider-Man had it way tougher. One of New York City's biggest newspapers, The Daily Bugle, spent a good chunk of his life as Spider-Man telling the entire city that he's a terrible menace and just as bad, if not worse, than the villains he fights. In fact, they even used the pictures he took to pillory him.
Peter Parker's self-esteem was low when he was young to begin with and this didn't make it any better. Knowing his employer hated him and tried to turn people against him was not good for him at all.
6 He Was Forced To Trade His Marriage For His Aunt's Life
One More Day is one of the most infamous Spider-Man stories of them all. While it has been hated for a lot of reasons, the core of the story is extremely depressing. Spider-Man was so desperate to save his aunt that he was willing to make a deal with a literal devil. The despair he felt over the situation was immeasurable.
None of his superpowered friends could help at all, even with all of their power and technology. Spider-Man was forced to do something he would have usually never even thought of in order to save the life of a woman who was like a mother to him. The whole thing is terrible on more than one level.
5 He's A Failure At Just About Everything Except Being Spider-Man
Spider-Man has a lot of talents that have nothing to do with his powers. He's an intelligent person, a great photographer, and a pretty good teacher. Those talents, though, have never actually helped him find any kind of success in his life. A genius like him, someone who is respected by people like Tony Stark and Reed Richards, should be able to write his own destiny.
Spider-Man has failed constantly in his social life. Every time he gets a taste of success, it is taken from him in some way, often because of his own actions. Spider-Man is a great superhero but Peter Parker is a great failure.
4 His Sense Of Responsibility Will Always Work Against His Own Happiness
Spider-Man's most well-known catchphrase is, "With great power comes great responsibility." That sense of responsibility is one of his greatest assets as a hero and spurs him on. It's made him one of the most respected superheroes on the planet but it's also pretty much wrecked his social life completely.
Spider-Man's sense of responsibility will never let him stop. While this is admirable in a way, it's also disastrous for his personal life. He will go out and put his life in danger because he feels like he needs to, which will always hurt his own happiness.
3 His Worst Enemy Knows His Secret Identity
Spider-Man and Green Goblin have had some epic battles over the years. Green Goblin is widely considered one of Spider-Man's greatest foes, an intelligent, tough, and dangerous man whose actions have done more damage to Peter Parker's life than his other foes. The most dangerous part of their rivalry For Spider-Man is the fact that Green Goblin knows who he is.
Every day, Spider-Man has to deal with the fact that Green Goblin may have paid a visit to his loved ones and killed them. The amount of stress this must put Spider-Man under is immense and something that wears on him.
2 He Was Responsible For The Death Of His Uncle
One of the most important formative events of Spider-Man's life is the death of Uncle Ben. The tragedy of this, of course, is that it was completely Spider-Man's fault. If he had stopped the robber at the wrestling show, Uncle Ben still would have been alive. Spider-Man has had to live with that guilt for years.
Uncle Ben was a father to Peter Parker and through Parker's inaction, he was killed. Peter was fifteen when this happened and the event would change him forever. While it gave the impetus to become better, the sheer mental anguish of it is immeasurable.
1 He Accidentally Killed His First Love
Another of the biggest moments of Spider-Man's life was the death of Gwen Stacy. Taking place during a battle between him and Green Goblin, she was thrown off the George Washington Bridge. Spider-Man caught her with a web line but the whiplash effect of it broke her neck, killing her.
Spider-Man lost his first love because of his life as a superhero and his own actions. Losing one's first love is hard enough but being pretty much directly responsible for it is terrible. It's affected Spider-Man profoundly over the years as yet another source of terrible guilt that made his life that much harder.