Benjamin Ray Parker's childhood was nothing the history books would write about. He had a mother and a father, a large extended family, and lived a very basic and smiple white picket fence with a dog life. He was an only child, often left to his own thoughts and imagination when it came to entertaining himself throughout his childhood. his favorite toys were the various science "experiments" and kits his aunt and uncle would provide him for birthdays and holidays. When not piecing those together, Ben busied himself with comics and science fiction, neither subject he was particularly picky about. He was, however, knowledgeable and found it easy to retain useless facts and stats in regards to them. Ben spent much of his time indoors and wasn't particularly social throught his young life. He was awkward, mostly, and found it difficult to relate to a lot of children his age. It was a little bit of shyness, a little bit dorkiness, a lot of just not being good at not putting his foot into his mouth.
As he grew older, it became apparent to his parents that his mind was beyond his years. Any "trouble" Ben found himself in in school, any notes sent home to his parents, were a result of a certain type of restlessness and his young brain not being challenged enough by his classes. A handful of tests were done over the span of a few weeks and Ben was pushed up a few grades -- his awkwardness grew even worse without being socialized around his peers while not relating to older students, either. Ben, as a result, seemed to isolate and keep to himself even more when given a chance, though he did have some friends he retained before he was acclerated forward. What he lacked in social graces or abilities, Ben made up for with a fairly brilliant mind and ways of applying himself.
All in all, Ben was isolated in his youth. Probably a little bit of choice, a little bit forced on him, but he adjusted to life as best as he could and handled it to the best of his young abilities. His family was, overall, very encouraging towards him and showed a great deal of belief in his capabiltiies. That wasn't the biggest concern as he navigated through teenagerdom, hormones, and all that came with it. What was the problem was being a "child" surrounded by adults -- thanks to skipping a few grades, Ben entered college when he was barely old enough to be able to drive on his own, let alone drink or smoke or do anything that was a "rite of passage" for somone entering college. Crushing from afar was his norm; approaching and dating? Notsomuch. So, Ben continued to bury himself in his work and special interests, making his social skills -- or lack thereof -- suffer even further. But he tried and he was well-liked enough by at least some of his peers, so he did manage to make some (casual) friends. Anything beyond that, notsomuch.
He was eventually able to overcome his shyness, at the very least, even if he was very much aware of his foot-in-mouth syndrome and rather spectacular way of making a situation awkward by saying what was on his mind. Which was usually one of the worst possible things to say. Sometimes, it was a good thing, others he wanted to yell at himself for even speaking before he cleared his throat to clarify just what he meant; or try to do that, at any rate. A brilliant mind didn't always mean he was good at articulating his words, but as Ben grew older, he was lucky enough that people began to brush it off most times, albeit with weird/off looks at first.
Ben eventually found himself pursing biochemical engineering in terms of rounding out and finishing his education, deciding that putting his mind to use to help people is what he wanted to do with his life and being able to use his interests to do that was a major bonus. Sure, he spent most of his time indoors and in labs, tucked away from people and sunlight, but he found himself greatly enjoying what he did and being given chances to grow within his field. He wasn't always taken the most seriously, being a fair bit younger than this peers, but he managed to prove himself as best as he could in order to earn their respect. Working on his doctorate is a thing he's considered going towards, but he's taken time off of school to intern, gain experience, and give himself some room to learn in the "real world".
As he grew older, it became apparent to his parents that his mind was beyond his years. Any "trouble" Ben found himself in in school, any notes sent home to his parents, were a result of a certain type of restlessness and his young brain not being challenged enough by his classes. A handful of tests were done over the span of a few weeks and Ben was pushed up a few grades -- his awkwardness grew even worse without being socialized around his peers while not relating to older students, either. Ben, as a result, seemed to isolate and keep to himself even more when given a chance, though he did have some friends he retained before he was acclerated forward. What he lacked in social graces or abilities, Ben made up for with a fairly brilliant mind and ways of applying himself.
All in all, Ben was isolated in his youth. Probably a little bit of choice, a little bit forced on him, but he adjusted to life as best as he could and handled it to the best of his young abilities. His family was, overall, very encouraging towards him and showed a great deal of belief in his capabiltiies. That wasn't the biggest concern as he navigated through teenagerdom, hormones, and all that came with it. What was the problem was being a "child" surrounded by adults -- thanks to skipping a few grades, Ben entered college when he was barely old enough to be able to drive on his own, let alone drink or smoke or do anything that was a "rite of passage" for somone entering college. Crushing from afar was his norm; approaching and dating? Notsomuch. So, Ben continued to bury himself in his work and special interests, making his social skills -- or lack thereof -- suffer even further. But he tried and he was well-liked enough by at least some of his peers, so he did manage to make some (casual) friends. Anything beyond that, notsomuch.
He was eventually able to overcome his shyness, at the very least, even if he was very much aware of his foot-in-mouth syndrome and rather spectacular way of making a situation awkward by saying what was on his mind. Which was usually one of the worst possible things to say. Sometimes, it was a good thing, others he wanted to yell at himself for even speaking before he cleared his throat to clarify just what he meant; or try to do that, at any rate. A brilliant mind didn't always mean he was good at articulating his words, but as Ben grew older, he was lucky enough that people began to brush it off most times, albeit with weird/off looks at first.
Ben eventually found himself pursing biochemical engineering in terms of rounding out and finishing his education, deciding that putting his mind to use to help people is what he wanted to do with his life and being able to use his interests to do that was a major bonus. Sure, he spent most of his time indoors and in labs, tucked away from people and sunlight, but he found himself greatly enjoying what he did and being given chances to grow within his field. He wasn't always taken the most seriously, being a fair bit younger than this peers, but he managed to prove himself as best as he could in order to earn their respect. Working on his doctorate is a thing he's considered going towards, but he's taken time off of school to intern, gain experience, and give himself some room to learn in the "real world".
Peter Parker is one of the few people in the universe who can say that for most of their life, they've been a superhero in one form or another and this fact defined their adolesence and how they developed into their adult lives. A spiderbite in high school that just so happened to be radiaoctive changed and defined the young man's life. He went from an outcast student to... being an outcast student who headlined as a hero in his spare time. Combine that with the death of his uncle -- a death Peter's inaction had led to -- and you have the two thinks that most define Peter and the human being he turned into. Underneath the snark and the dork and the playfulness, Peter's always wrestled with feelings that boiled underneath and how to handle the sadness in his life alongside his deisre to be positive and filled with hope.
Because of becoming a hero so young, Peter never developed much of a chance to know life without having them and he relies on them more than he should, probably, and they're literally ingrained in his DNA and who he is as a person. As he grew older and more into his powers, growing more confident, Peter used his unique experiences and first-hand knowledge of what was like to be a young superhero to take other young superheroes under his wing. It allowed him perspective other Avengers and X-Men didn't have and let him relate to those who were the same kid he was, just wanting to help and make a difference; to understand their powers and how to grow with them. As he matured, he became a mentor to a new generation of superheroes, hoping to give them a chance to both be a child as well as learn how to manage their need to help, just as he did.
As a result of bad luck seeming to follow him and having been the "outsider" growing up, Peter developed more and more into wanting to help and save others and to put his brain and skills to use. At times, it led to him making bad decsions on accident, but the majority of the time Peter's heart is in the right place and he's at least trying. He's made mistakes, a lot of them, but he really wants to do the right thing. His stubborn nature often means Peter doesn't give up on that or helping others and, more than once, he has proven himself a force to be reckoned with amongst even the best of superheroes (mostly due to his spider-sense giving him a major advantage in a lot of cases).
→regenerative healing factor
→enhanced physiology
→enhanced senses
→spider-sense
→superhuman strength
→superhuman speed
→superhuman balance
→superhuman stamina
→superhuman agility/reflexes
→superhuman durability
→superhuman equilibrium
→superhuman jumping
→utility belt
→avengers identi-card
→wrist stingers
→spider tracers
→spider-mobile
→spider-signal
→spider-glider
→spider suit
→symbiote suit
→stealth costume