Batman and Psychology: A Dark and Stormy Knight - Softcover

Does the Dark Knight have bats in his belfry?

Why does Batman really wear a costume to fight crime?

Why are his most intimate relationships with "bad girls" he ought to lock up?

And why won't he kill that homicidal clown?

Batman is one of the most compelling and enduring characters to come from the Golden Age of Comics, and interest in his story has only increased through countless incarnations since his first appearance in 1939's Detective Comics #27. Why does this superhero without superpowers fascinate us so much? Batman and Psychology examines the complex inner world of Batman and Bruce Wayne and the life and characters of Gotham City. What would Freud, Jung, and other professionals say about how childhood trauma spawned his life's mission? Is Batman neurotic? Psychotic? Does he have PTSD, OCD, or any other mental illness? Why the mask, the bat, and the underage partner, Robin? What psychopathologies lurk in the minds of supervillains like the Joker, the Riddler, Two-Face, and Catwoman? Are they really rogues and villains, or simply misunderstood victims of a heartless society? Do Batman and his foes depend on each other?

Combining psychological theory with the latest in psychological research, Batman and Psychology takes you on an unprecedented journey behind the mask and into the dark mind of your favorite Caped Crusader and his never-ending war on crime.