Hero 8: Batman

Nananananananana Batman! Nananananananana Batman! Batman! Yeah! So our last hero I have saved for last because he is the most complex and different we have looked at so far. Without further delay, here us our final hero, the Dark Knight and Protector of Gotham, the Batman.

Heroism and Individualism. Next.

One of the first Romantic elements of Batman is his motivation. He is a vigilante, sometimes hunted by Gotham Police. But the reason Bruce fights crime even in face of the law is because a common criminal murdered his parents when Wayne was just a boy. The emotion of avenging his parents and stopping this from happening drives him far more. This is an example of emotions over logic, a Romantic idea.

Batman also has a tune with nature. First off... He's BATman. Second, Batman is a master of using shadows and his surroundings for fighting crime. While he may not be the personification of the sea or of lightning, Batman definitely is in tune with nature.

But what is really exemplified by Batman is a certain kind of Romanticism- Gothic. Gothic literature is filled with "dark and stormy nights" like in Batman. Gothic stories also usually take place in castles or large buildings, like Bruce's home, Wayne Manor.

And the most Gothic part of Batman is his greatest weapon: fear. Gothic novels are filled with the fear of the unknown and the terror it brings. Batman is a master of stealth and the shadows. He hides and gets into your head. Then when you are confused and overflowing with pure terror because you have no idea where he is, he swoops in and finished you off. This tactic of fearmongering is classic in Gothic novels like in works of Edgar Allen Poe.

There is so much more I can analyze with Batman and with all these heroes, for I have merely scratched the surface. Superheroes first came along in the Romantic Period and these elements have helped make them mainstream to this day. But those are the Romantic ideas in some of the biggest superheroes. Here is where I end unless I receive a large number of comments telling me to go on. So if you want me to look at new heroes, leave a comment.

Also, everyone knows Batman's arch-nemesis is the Joker, and now you see some of the Romantic ideas of Batman, hop on over to Craig's blog to check out the Romantic elements of the Joker.