The Joker: The Clown Prince of Discomfort

This is something I have been meaning to write about for a long time... One of my (if not my most) favorite villains ever created: the clown prince of crime himself, the Joker. 

The Joker has been around almost as long as his counterpart, Batman, and is equally beloved/appreciated by fans. However, there are others who are simply put off, even disgusted by the character. Why is this? Of course there are obvious reasons such as his murderous ways and sadistic style, but there are so many villains out there who are like that who do not cause the same discomfort. What is it about the Joker?

First, let’s look at his history: the Joker first showed up in the 40’s during the Golden Age of comics. He is labeled as the first “comic book villain” meaning he was the first villain to dress up in a costume like the hero and to really challenge the hero not only physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. (Before the Joker, Batman always faced off against common thugs, bank robbers, etc. Nothing to write home about.) This was the Joker’s purpose of creation. He was so well received that the writers continued to make comics including him as the main antagonist. This version of the Joker was mainly a sadistic murderer. He pushed the hero to the limit and fans loved it.

By the 50’s, an act called the “Comics Code Authority” was passed where all comic books were censored. No violence or criminal activity was allowed unless the perpetrator was caught and received proper justice (and the violence could only be so great). No romance could be shown beyond hand-holding and maybe even a chaste kiss. Basically all comic books were G-rated. During this time, the Joker managed to survive, but his character was changed drastically. He became this goofy, silly, non-sensical criminal instead of the original murderous, sadistic villain.

In the 60’s, a new editor and chief came into play, Julius Schwartz. He hated the Joker and as a result, the character became almost non-existent. However, thanks to the 1960’s TV show, the Joker was not forgotten completely. 

Cesar Romero as the Joker in 1960's TV show

Finally, in the 70’s, two writers, Dennis O’Neil and Neil Adams, were tasked with bringing the Joker back. They decided to combine the old, sadistic Joker with the current goofy and non-sensical one. This new character was SO well received! Fans loved it! Ever since then, many different writers have used this character in stories, movies, and TV shows. This is the Joker we are most familiar with today.

So let’s look at his character: the Joker is definitely a psychopath. A psychopath is “a person with a psychopathic personality, which manifests as amoral and antisocial behavior, lack of ability to love or establish meaningful personal relationships, extreme egocentricity, failure to learn from experience, etc.” (Dictionary.com). However, I really question if he is “insane”. He is always sent to Arkham Asylum whenever he is caught to be rehabilitated, but I often wonder if this is necessary. Is he really mentally ill?

He is clearly very intelligent and his plans are very meticulously thought out (even if they do not always make a ton of sense). He knows how to manipulate people and use them to his advantage. These are not the actions of an insane person. Even though his schemes sometimes seem to have no order, if you either look at the big picture or analyze the details of it, you realize that there is a certain pattern to everything he does. He always wants people to laugh at “the joke” whatever it may be. Most often, his goal is to “make people like him” or to “see themselves for what they are” because deep down everybody is like him. So even though his schemes may seem irrational and insane, they always have a purpose. 

One doctor at Arkham said of the Joker that perhaps he is not insane at all. He is something we have not encountered before. He is “super sane”. He sees reality differently than the rest of us on a different intelligence level than normal people. That combined with his psychopathic tendencies makes it look like he is insane. Now, of course he is a lunatic, but there's a difference between crazy and "insane" in the criminal justice and medical sense of the word. But I can delve deeper into that question sometime later perhaps.

As stated above, his main goal, most of the time, is to “make people like him”. Some obvious examples of this can be seen in The Dark Knight and The Killing Joke. In The Dark Knight, the Joker sets up a situation where two boats full of people are rigged with explosives and each boat has each other’s trigger. They are given an hour to blow up the other and live or leave it and both blow up at the end of the hour. The Joker’s idea here is that people are selfish, chaotic animals just like himself and will not think of others. They will do anything to save themselves, even kill an entire boat full of people. 

In The Killing Joke, the Joker kidnaps Commissioner Gordon and puts him through a hellish sort of amusement park ride that he set up himself in hopes of driving the commissioner insane. He believes that all it takes is “one bad day” to drive even the most stand up, sane person over the edge. 

So, why does the Joker make people so uncomfortable/afraid? Even diehard fans have to acknowledge that the Joker is a pretty menacing figure, but we still love him. I think it is all a matter of taste really. However, there is something about him that makes him stand out among other villains. He is so long-lasting and timeless.

I believe part of it is the air of mystery surrounding him. No one, not even the Joker himself, is entirely sure of his exact origins. Most villains have a backstory. Nowadays, something I have noticed is that writers try to make the villains more relatable. Why? I have no idea. I think it makes them less menacing. Evidence here of how to make your villain more terrifying... Make them more mysterious. The Joker’s past is shrouded with uncertainty.

The most widely-accepted origins among fans comes from The Killing Joke where (through flashbacks) it is told that the Joker was originally a young, struggling stand-up comedian who lost his pregnant wife. He got wrangled into helping some criminals break into a chemical plant where he used to work by dressing up as the Red Hood. While there, he was confronted by Batman and fell into a vat of chemicals. Once he was washed out outside, he found himself transformed with green hair, white skin, and red lips. The transformation, along with his wife’s death, drove him mad and he dove into a permanent life of crime. However, the Joker acknowledges later that he is not sure if that is what really happened. The fact that we have no idea where he came from adds to the terror that surrounds him. It’s just like the Devil himself created him and he emerged one day from the pits of Hell. 

Heath Ledger as the Joker in The Dark Knight

Another part that I think makes most people uncomfortable is that we do see a little of ourselves in him. Naturally we are not all sick, sadistic murders, but the fact that his goal is commonly to point out that we are just like him makes us uneasy... because sometimes it works. We see how evil and sick he is so when he manages to succeed in whatever he is doing, it is very upsetting. 

One other thing that causes unease is his sense of humor. Most people love a good laugh and associate laughter and humor with happy and nice things. However, in the Joker’s case it is not so. At the very least, one needs a dark sense of humor to really appreciate his humor (depending on what you are watching/reading). The Joker takes all sorts of normally nice things and twists them into something evil. He manages to find humor in almost everything. Lots of people do not like that. They want to laugh at the typical funny things and do not like seeing normally horrible things laughed at. It is sick. He laughs at pain, he laughs at irony, he laughs at death, he laughs at himself, he laughs at Batman, he laughs at stupidity, he laughs at gore, and so on. Often he laughs shortly before twisting it around and getting angry, then he’ll laugh again. And then that laugh makes so many people uncomfortable (again, depending on what version you are looking at). It is so psychotic and maniacal. That mixed with his trademark grin and signature look equals a not-so comforting character. Simply, he's just scary.

In conclusion, I will say overall, I believe it is a matter of taste and opinion. The Joker is simply not for some. However, if you delve deeper into why he may not be for some, I would round it up to his psychotic ways, the mystery surrounding him, the fact that he is not as different from us as we might think, his twisted sense of humor, and his all around creepiness. I personally enjoy every aspect of his personality and since he is such an icon not just in the comic book world, but in pop culture as well, I do not think he will be going away any time soon. Let us appreciate what a well-written character he is and how well-matched he is for the Dark Knight.