The Psychology of Batman
If you like Batman and/or psychology, read on…
The History Channel ran a spot called the Psychology of Batman recently. To distill it very briefly, it suggested that the Batman is a line b/w our moral side and our shadow/dark side. That’s all well and good, but I think they missed a crucial element to another reason why the audience loves Batman: his money.
Our society is enamored with letting rich people do whatever they want, and so it is with Batman (and Ironman for that matter). ok granted, by the end he is being hunted, but NOT by the real-life audience; we still worship him. They make a point in the show that bruce wayne/batman isn’t a superhero b/c he has no superhuman powers, but i submit that his extreme wealth equals superhuman power in a society where purchasing power is just as important, intimidating, and powerful as strength. His money buys his ability to be a crimefighter in the first place. your average joe can’t do that, hence it’s in that sense super-average-human, you know? but anyway, my whole point with that was he’s written that way, in my opinion, not because our communal psyche wants a relate-able Everyman, but rather b/c we definitively want a super-human, someone “better” than us, and money is just as fantastic and mythological and empowering to the masses as any other strengthening mutation.
Discuss.
Comments
Interesting theory. I think the whole Batman thing also speaks to American’s fascination with vigilante justice and the perception that the justice system/police/etc. aren’t protecting us. So it’s interesting to note that within that realm of thinking and in the world of Batman, a rich person is needed to save us all.
they talk about your theory in the show as well, notably how even though bruce wayne has strict morals, he’s forced to be a vigilante b/c the police force is corrupted.
do we have real-life people/a person we look to to save us? I can’t think of any but i’m sure the scrabbleders can, and it’d be interesting to analyze their traits (the hero i mean).
but.. batman always leaves the criminals he catches for the police.
but.. batman always leaves the criminals he catches for the police.we look for rich people to save us every election.
hmm good point.
yeah i was thinking that most politicians are rich but i don’t think that as a rule we have hero worship for any of them. maybe obama.
No, actually I think it’s a perfect analogy. A good chunk of the non-wealthy people in this country continue to look towards and fall for politicians who not only are obscenely wealthy themselves but whose main obligations and allegiances are to other wealthy people (corporations, etc.). And like they do with Batman they go through periods of grumbling and complaining and railing against them but in the end they always come back and look towards the same people to save them.
I look to Warren Buffet and T.Boone Pickens to save us.
alright, i’m picking up what you’re putting down. it’s like we can’t break ourselves out of the routine we’re so used to, which is also, sadly, why we never can be saved…
so a co-worker just brought up the fact that only in the 2 recent films was his money really explored, and in prior films/comics, etc, it was established he was rich but it wasn’t so in your face. i don’t know if that’s the case, but assuming it is, can we say that the writers (and presumably the audience) didn’t have any sort of articulated obsession with the power of his wealth before, but now they do? or does the fact that since his creation in the late 30s, he was always rich suggest that it was always a key point?
i’m full of questions today! this tea must have extra caffeine or something
No way, in the first Batman movie, the first half hour was just Vicky Vale and Arliss-what’s-his-face talking about how Bruce Wayne is some crazy rich fuck. E.g., when they’re at the Wayne party and they wander into the armory and Bruce mentions he’s never been in that room. Or even later in the movie when Bruce is eating with Vicky Vale at the ridiculously long table and he doesn’t think he’s ever eaten in there. You get the distinct impression that he’s got more money than he knows what to do with.
I had completely forgotten most stuff about the Burton movies. I love everything Tim Burton has done except those 2 movies. I just never got why people loved them so much. They seem just as campy to me as the 60’s series did. That’s why I liked Batman Begins so much because it was much darker and less shticky.
Honestly, I just recently rewatched the first Batman and it does not hold up very well, especially with the newer, more amazing Joker to compare Nicholson to.