It's even sadder and scarier to see a guy in his 20s fall into a pattern of repetition.
A valid and fair observation. However...I would agree to the point that most costumed vigilantes have a slightly self-destructive streak.
Slott is saying that Peter Parker is more self-destructive than other heroes. He explicitly said that, in comparison to the likes of Superman, Batman, Iron Man, Thor.Especially ones like Peter or Matt Murdock who really put every part of their lives in peril on a regular basis.
That cannot help but become a statement about class, i.e. making out that poor people make for self-destructive superheroes.
I am highlighting the subtext of what he says in that context. He explicitly defines Peter's main trait as being exceptionally self-destructive compared to other heroes.No, that's not what he's saying. You're so eager to jump on Slott that you're making his statements into something else entirely.
Slott is saying that Peter is self-destructive and defines that as someone who "trips and fails" and even says that Spider-Man represents the self-destructive traits of people in your life, and your friends' life.Slott is not saying that Peter is wrong or a horrible person.
Slott explicitly says that being self-destructive is more defining for Peter than being responsible.He's saying that Peter's sense of responsibility and his concern for others is so great that he is willing to continually put himself in harm's way in order to do good.
Slott: "But, to me, the fun of it is, at his basic core, even if you strip away "with great power must come great responsibility," what makes Peter Parker this character that resonates with all of us is that he's really the first character who's you. He's the guy you know. He's not a wealthy billionaire playboy, he's not an alien from another planet, he's not a god from a pantheon. He's the guy down the block who trips and falls, who screws up in every way that you screw up. All the self-destructive traits that you have, and your friends have, he has."
Slott says that Peter's basic core is being self-destructive. That's exactly what he is saying here.
To bring this back to Brevoort...if you read his manifesto, he actually said at one point that Peter being about youth is more his core than him being responsible...even saying that the stuff about responsibility was introduced to justify his marriage and make him an older character. Which is again absolutely untrue and inaccurate and easily refutable. Both Brevoort and Slott overwrite the actual core of the character underlined in the founding story by claiming that Peter Parker is about youth or being self-destructive (which is palatable because of his youth). When the original story is about responsibility and the actual stories that followed from Ditko through Romita through Conway, and even Stern...is about class.