Batman and philosophy : the dark knight of the soul
Print Book 2008 |
Available at 2 Libraries 2 of 2 copies |
Summary
Why doesn't Batman just kill the Joker and end everyone's misery?
Can we hold the Joker morally responsible for his actions?
Is Batman better than Superman?
If everyone followed Batman's example,
would Gotham be a better place?
What is the Tao of the Bat?
Batman is one of the most complex characters ever to appear in comic books, graphic novels, and on the big screen. What philosophical trials does this superhero confront in order to keep Gotham safe? Combing through seventy years of comic books, television shows, and movies, Batman and Philosophy explores how the Dark Knight grapples with ethical conundrums, moral responsibility, his identity crisis, the moral weight he carries to avenge his murdered parents, and much more. How does this caped crusader measure up against the teachings of Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Kierkegaard, and Lao Tzu?
Can we hold the Joker morally responsible for his actions?
Is Batman better than Superman?
If everyone followed Batman's example,
would Gotham be a better place?
What is the Tao of the Bat?
Batman is one of the most complex characters ever to appear in comic books, graphic novels, and on the big screen. What philosophical trials does this superhero confront in order to keep Gotham safe? Combing through seventy years of comic books, television shows, and movies, Batman and Philosophy explores how the Dark Knight grapples with ethical conundrums, moral responsibility, his identity crisis, the moral weight he carries to avenge his murdered parents, and much more. How does this caped crusader measure up against the teachings of Plato, Aristotle, Kant, Kierkegaard, and Lao Tzu?
Contents
Introduction: Riddle me thisDoes the Dark Knight always do right?
Why doesn't Batman kill the joker? / Mark D. White
Is it right to make a Robin? / James DiGiovanna
Batman's virtuous hatred / Stephen Kershnar
Law, justice, and the social order : where does Batman fit in?
No man's land : social order in Gotham City and New Orleans / Brett Chandler Patterson
Governing Gotham / Tony Spanakos
The Joker's wild : can we hold the Clown Prince morally responsible? / Christopher Robichaud
Origins and ethics : becoming the Caped Crusader
Batman's promise / Randall M. Jensen
Should Bruce Wayne have become Batman? / Mahesh Ananth and Ben Dixon
What would Batman do? : Bruce Wayne as moral exemplar / Ryan Indy Rhodes and David Kyle Johnson
Who is the Batman? (Is that a trick question?)
Under the mask : how any person can become Batman / Sarah K. Donovan and Nicholas P. Richardson
Could Batman have been the Joker? / Sam Cowling and Chris Ragg
Batman's identity crisis and Wittgenstein's family resemblance / Jason Southworth
What is it like to be a Batman? / Ron Novy
Being the Bat : insights from existentialism and taoism
Alfred, the Dark Knight of faith : Batman and Kierkegaard / Christopher M. Drohan
Dark nights and the call of conscience / Jason J. Howard
Batman's confrontation with death, angst, and freedom / David M. Hart
Friend, father
rival? : the many roles of the Bat
Why Batman is better than Superman / Galen Foresman
World's finest
friends? : Batman, Superman, and the nature of friendship / Daniel P. Malloy
Leaving the shadow of the Bat : Aristotle, Kant, and Dick Grayson on moral education / Carsten Fogh Nielsen
The tao of the Bat / Bat-Tzu.
Published Reviews
Publisher's Weekly Review: "Additional Information
Series | Blackwell philosophy and popculture series. |
Subjects |
Batman
-- (Fictitious character)
|
Publisher | Hoboken, N.J. :John Wiley & Sons,2008 |
Contributors |
White, Mark D.,
1971- editor. Arp, Robert, editor. |
Language |
English |
Description |
ix, 294 pages ; 23 cm. |
Bibliography Notes |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
ISBN | 9780470270301 0470270306 |
Other | Classic View |