Is Batman/Bruce Wayne a Psychopath?

[YankeesFanboy]

This is a question that's been posed before on other forums, but I'm not sure if it's been asked on SSF - Is our, arguably, greatest superhero bat**** crazy?

It'd be a pretty resounding "Yes" if Bruce invited Gotham's denizens to stately Wayne Manor to wine and dine them, only to drug them and suck out their brains with a straw, but it's more complicated than that.

He's taken the pain and trauma from his childhood - not to mention enormous feelings of shame and guilt - and directed them into a largely one-man crusade against crime.

So, what say you?

 

[Intruder04]

It'd be a pretty resounding "Yes" if Bruce invited Gotham's denizens to stately Wayne Manor to wine and dine them, only to drug them and suck out their brains with a straw, but it's more complicated than that.

That'd be so cool

I was gonna vote #1 but thought of giving him a consolation. That said, he's pretty much self-obsessed with that frequent "I am Batman" talk.

 

[BB&WSF]

He has to be an awful lot crazy to be doing what he does.

But he's no psychopath.

If he becomes one, God help us, he'll be worse than Joker.

 

[devilof76]

Nothing crazy about clarity of purpose.

 

[The Ween]

You should've asked this in the DC section. You might get more replies there.

 

[YankeesFanboy]

Yeah, probably. But I had a feeling it'd be moved to the Sandbox by one of the mods, so I did it preemptively. By the by, why no vote?

 

[RIDDICK]

Miller's post-sin-city Batman is psycho for sure.

 

[karamazov80]

I'm sure he would meet various DSM criteria. Abnormal psychology? Definitely. If not, he wouldn't be special. But a psychopath? No. He has a great deal of empathy of, and compassion for others. Moreso than a guy like Superman ever could, I'm sure. Hell, he captures wanton killers and sends them to Arkham for rehabilitation!

Nothing crazy about clarity of purpose.

I'm sure Hitler, Mao, and Stalin would have agreed!

 

[Kibagami]

I'm sure Hitler, Mao, and Stalin would have agreed!

 

[YankeesFanboy]

I'm sure Hitler, Mao, and Stalin would have agreed!

 

[devilof76]

I'm sure Hitler, Mao, and Stalin would have agreed!

That's easy to say when you fail to judge the nature of their purpose.

 

[fosing]

I'm sure Hitler, Mao, and Stalin would have agreed!

nolan's batman? psychopath, no. sycophant, maybe.
same actor wrong movie though. he went full psycho shat as john connor.

 

[cilantropants]

Batman is a loon and should be encased in concrete and made the cornerstone of a new Arkham Asylum built in his honor.

 

[devilof76]

Weren't all of those dictators textbook megalomaniacs?

 

[SnakeDoctor]

Obsessive/ compulsive. PTSD. Bit of narcissism. Not psychopathic, though. He is anti-social ... but I get the feeling that stems from his obsession, not psychopathy. He's certainly not incapable of remorse, which is the mark of a psychopath. He's also not completely uninhibited. He is extraordinarily self-controlled, to the point that he even has rules about how far he'll go in hurting his enemies. His behavior is purposefully inhibited. That's not psychopathy.

Except Frank Miller's version. Miller's was a borderline psychopath. He enjoyed causing pain in ASB&R and somewhat in TDKR. He's less inhibited than the normal version. Still not incapable of remorse, though.

SnakeDoc

 

[YankeesFanboy]

Obsessive/ compulsive. PTSD. Bit of narcissism. Not psychopathic, though. He is anti-social ... but I get the feeling that stems from his obsession, not psychopathy. He's certainly not incapable of remorse, which is the mark of a psychopath. He's also not completely uninhibited. He is extraordinarily self-controlled, to the point that he even has rules about how far he'll go in hurting his enemies. His behavior is purposefully inhibited. That's not psychopathy.

Except Frank Miller's version. Miller's was a borderline psychopath. He enjoyed causing pain in ASB&R and somewhat in TDKR. He's less inhibited than the normal version. Still not incapable of remorse, though.

SnakeDoc

I enjoyed reading this. Cheers.

 

[BB&WSF]

TDKR, the story as well as portrayal of Bats, ranks #1 in my list, still.

Ironically, ASB&R is one of the worst Batman I have ever read. Miller went completely looney with it, imo.

 

[SnakeDoctor]

I actually rather liked ASB&R. That was a Batman that had taken things too far ... but, I don't think that's out of the realm of possibility between the fresh Batman of Year One and the grizzly old codger in TDKR. None of the stupidity of youth from YO. None of the wisdom of age from TDKR. All the rage and overconfidence of an obsessed man in his prime who hasn't learned entirely how to control the beast. Seemed a suitable interpretation of Miller's Batman's earlyish years.

Haven't ever read TDKSA.

SnakeDoc