Good description of Clark's grief.
I thought that, although Clark doesn't remember his parents, a deeper level of his subconscious knows that they were essential to him in every way. They saved his life, took him in, accepted him as their own, loved him, brought him up and instilled his values. Whenever he needed them, they were there. He doesn't remember them, but now that they have been declared dead, it is as if the ground has disappeared under his feet. and right now, he can't fly.
I like your explanation too: he is devastated because he thinks he has a hidden death wish. Why else has he been thinking to himself, "I should have been there"? To die with his parents? But does that mean that his life is so empty in itself, so that he has not been able to make a life for himself at all? Is he nothing without his parents?
Good description, as I said. I was very happy about the way Lois was there to comfort him. He needed it so badly.
Ann
