Behind the Cowl: A small glimpse into the psyche of the Dark Knight

 Lang, Robert. “Batman and Robin: A Family Romance.” American Imago, vol. 47, no. Fall/Winter 1990, 1990, pp. 293-319. Jstor, https://www-jstor-org.ezproxynsc.helmlib.org/stable/26303934?searchText=batman&searchUri=%2Faction%2FdoBasicSearch%3FQuery%3Dbatman%2B%26so%3Drel%26efqs%3DeyJjdHkiOlsiYW05MWNtNWhiQT09Il19&ab_segments=0%2Fbasic_search_gsv2%2Fcontrol&refreqid=fastly-default%. Accessed 18 July 2022.

This article by Robert Lang takes a critical look at both Bruce Wayne and Batman and how he is an example of “Freud’s notion of the family romance, which is the fantasy of the child, who imagines that he is not born of his real parents; rather a noble one” (Lang 294). This theory is a really interesting look at the psyche of the beloved character of Bruce Wayne and Batman and how maybe in reality Thomas and Martha Wayne were not the only ones who died that night in the alley. Lang brings forth the idea that perhaps, after his parents death, Batman is the one who became the father to young Bruce Wayne, who lives in Batman’s psyche as an image of happy innocence. We can see this type of “family romance” ideology from how Bruce views his father as a proud noble of Gotham who was a shining example of good and charity in a city that was the opposite. Despite this being Bruce’s view of his father, there are numerous stories that illustrate how Thomas Wayne also did some dealings with the mob boss Carmine Falcone and is not this all good perfect example of a man the Bruce believed him to be. 

This is a great article and a great look into the psyche of a character that is a fascinating psychological study. This is just one of the many psychological theories that can be looked into about Batman and Bruce Wayne, but the “family romance” in which he idolizes his father and putting him on the golden pedestal of can do no wrong, with the idea that the Batman is his true father is not just an interesting concept but one we can kind of grasp and understand from some of the different storylines in the comics about the character and from the recent The Batman movie by Matt Reeves, which very much revolves around Bruce coming out of his perceived reality about his father and the pedestal he places him on and seeing the reality of the mistakes and sins that his father had made with partnering with Carmine Falcone and through the movie we see the impact that takes on Bruce’s psyche as he overcomes that. 

This article has enhanced my fandom and understanding of my favorite hero Batman by exploring the different psychological elements of the character. Like I stated earlier this is just one psychological theory about the character as there are definitely plenty more that we can look into about him. What makes Batman such a popular character is that unlike the majority of his hero counterparts, he has no powers. He is just a man in a bat costume and that is what makes him so appealing to mass audiences and the study of his psyche the most interesting of all the heroes.