Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores

Campus Edo. De México

Literatura y Narrativa en los nuevos medios
Jochen Siess
Lía Tinajero Cueto
A01164722
5/02/10

Archtypical Characters in Batman: The Dark Knight

Bruce Wayne

The LOST SOUL: a sensitive being, he understands. Tortured, secretive,

brooding, and unforgiving. That’s this man. But he's also vulnerable. He
might be a wanderer or an outcast. In work he's creative, but probably
also a loner.

For the conflicted Bruce Wayne, Batman is his Shadow, his personal
subconscious, his alter ego. Bruce Wayne is a Lost Soul because he
tries to understand himself and human nature. He appreciates solitude
but quietly exert his influence. He desires harmony with others. But he
has his own demons, and that’s the point of Batman. Batman can do
things he can’t afford to do.

Batman

The WARRIOR: a noble champion, he acts with

honor. This man is the reluctant rescuer or the knight
in shining armor. He's noble, tenacious, relentless,
and he always sticks up for the underdog. If you need
a protector, he’s your guy. He doesn’t buckle under to
rules, or and he doesn’t go along just to get along.

The TERRORIST: the dark knight, he serves a

warped code of honor. Self-righteous, he believes in
his own virtue, and judges all around him by a strict
set of laws. The end will always justify his nefarious
means, and no conventional morality will give him
pause. Don’t try to appeal to his sense of justice – his does not resemble yours.

In The Dark knight I considered Batman as a Warrior and a Terrorist, a hero and
an anti-hero. As Batman he stands up against criminal and fight for justice but his
methods sometimes can be consider dark. He is a warrior because he is a
protector, the reluctant rescuer. He wants to save Gotham from criminals and
 evils, but in the way he
let people die because
of him. That’s why he
can be somehow a
Terrorist. He is self-
righteous and has his own rules and code of honor.
And in order to achieve his goals, he can sometimes
act above the law and without morality, but he has
his limits.

The Joker

The EVIL GENIUS: the malevolent mastermind, he

loves to show off his superior intelligence. Intellectual
inferiors are contemptible to him and that includes
just about everyone. Elaborate puzzles and
experiments are his trademark. Don’t let him pull your strings – the game is
always rigged in his favor.

Clearly his is an evil genius. He’s always a step ahead of Batman, Harvey Dent
and Commissioner Gordon. He loves to show his face and his superiority. In The
Dark Knight, he’s always testing Batman and Gotham city, pushing them to break
the rules. With his evil genius he wants to make Gotham a total chaos with no
rules. He laughs at the poor attempts Batman tries to make in order to get to him.
He loves to mess up with Batman and tries to make him just as “crazy” as he is.
He even brought down Harvey Dent to his level. I think he is one of the best
villains of all times.

Harvey Dent

The CHIEF: a dynamic leader, he has time for nothing but work. He might have
been born to lead, or perhaps he conquered his way to the top, but either way,
he’s tough, decisive, goal-oriented. That means he is also a bit overbearing and
inflexible.
As Harvey Dent, his only goal is to make Gotham a safe place and get rid of the
criminals and the mob. As the DA he tries his best to end the corruption and
injustice that drowns Gotham. He is tough, decisive and a bit inflexible,
considering he tried to get info of the joker, by mentally torturing a Joker’s stunt.

Two-face

The BASTARD: the dispossessed son, he burns with resentment. He can’t have
what he wants, so he lashes out to hurt those around him. His deeds are often
for effect – he wants to provoke action in others. He proudly announces his
rebellious dealings. Don’t be fooled by his boyish demeanor – he’s a bundle of
hate.

As two faces he is full with anger and resentment. He lost the women he loved
and became physically deformed. He feels it was unfair to him to lose everything
because of the others. He can’t have what he wants, in this case Rachel and
justice for what was done to her, so he wants to make “justice” on his own and
hurt the ones responsible for it. He wants to make them suffer as he suffered.

Rachel Dawes

The WAIF: a distressed damsel, she bends with the

wind. She’s the original damsel in distress. Her child-
like innocence evokes a protective urge in the
beastliest of heroes. But don’t be fooled, because the
WAIF has tremendous strength of will. She won’t fight
back; she’ll endure.

She was kind of difficult to place her in an archtypical

character but I think she is the Waif because she
seems fragile and vulnerable, but she is smart and
tries her best to change Gotham and lock up the
criminals and the mob, she never gives up. She
endures the threats of the mob and the Joker instead
of fighting back. But she needs Batman to rescue her
when she is in danger. He tries to protect her but at the end he fails.
 Alfred

The PROFESSOR: coolly analytical, he knows

every answer. He’s logical, introverted, and
inflexible, but genuine about his feelings. At work,
he likes cold, hard facts, thank you very much, but
he's also honest and faithful, and won’t let you
down. Think Leonard Nimoy in Star Trek, Robin
Williams in Flubber, Kelsey Gramner in Frasier,
Russell Crowe in A Beautiful Mind.

He is always giving advice to Bruce Wayne. He is very intelligent and logical,

explaining things with metaphors. He cares deeply for Bruce and that’s why he
always tells him the truth even if it’s cold and harsh. He will always support him
and will never let him down. Alfred warns him that Batman must know his own
limits or there will be consequences. Alfred helps both Batman and Bruce
Wayne.