The Secret behind the Dark Knight

Day in and day out individuals are consumed and drawn into the world of multimedia. It is everywhere, surrounding and influencing the moves and actions of many. Multimedia is ubiquitous, to the point where it becomes difficult to distinguish reality from fantasy. Directors and producers have mastered the art of taking every day struggles, fears, and undertakings and turning them into movies and shows. Since most of these situations are relatable to the daily lives of many, viewers find them interesting and easy to connect with. Christopher Nolan’s blockbuster smash hit, The Dark Knight, is no exception. In the Dark Knight, the Joker demonstrates that fear of terrorism is conquered by comic book heroes. During the movie the Joker is portrayed as psychopathic criminal. He is seen terrorizing the streets of Gotham City and simply feeding off the fear of its citizens. With no observable goal in mind, the Joker finds that what he enjoys most is watching people dismiss their morals just to survive. The Joker created anarchy in the city by installing fear in the individuals inhabiting the city. In today’s day and age, with the growing number of car bombings, explosions, and assassinations, fear of terrorism has become a reality. The Joker is seen much like a terrorist, since his attacks make him a criminal that people from all around fear. Luckily this fear is quickly subsided when a masked hero by the name of Batman, wages in into what seems to be an endless war. Although the Jokers motives to destroy and install fear are unsettling and senseless, Batman’s attendance allows the people of Gotham City to rest assure that they no longer have to live in constant fear. Batman like many other superheroes can relate to the stateme...

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...ople may not know it, people often fear the same thing. For the people of Gotham City the fear is real. The Jokers ability to kill innocent people of just kill an entire group defiantly influences the minds and defines the level of fear of the people of the city. This is why Christopher Nolan continues to connect the movie to the collective unconscious. During the film he emphasizes the unconscious fear as a lack of structure and organization. Like the world of today, were terrorism influences and creates collective unconscious fear, the Jokers lack of empathy does the same. Throughout the move, The Dark Knight, we get to see a mentally unstable villain, terrorize a city, and untimely get defeated by a timely just superhero. All we can hope for is that much the same will happen in the real world if and when individuals wishing to cause harm cross our paths.