Batman and Deontology

As it turns out, I have some down time this Saturday afternoon, and I am energized to begin discussing the philosophy behind the Batman movie.

Like many great movies, what makes this one so wonderful is that the hero (Batman) is faced with the ultimate ethical dilemmas and it is beautiful to watch him struggle to maintain his integrity throughout the film. Now, I want discuss some of the more subtle layers of ethics in this movie with you, but before I can, you may need a brief philosophy background. You see, some "ethical dilemmas" don't make sense to certain people because there are different systems of morality/ethics. Consequently, you cannot fully understand an ethical dilemma until you understand the moral context from which a movie or piece of literature is functioning. Batman Begins and the Dark Knight both work within the framework of deontology, in keeping with the morality of the original Batman. If you don't need all of this background, you can skip to the "Back to the Movie" section.

Ok, blah, blah, blah. Let me get to the point. While there are hundreds of different ethical systems (from the Ten Commandments, to the principles of karma, to Ayn Rand's objectivism), there are three basic ethical families. They are consequence-based, motive-based, and action-based ethics. Consequence-based ethics believe that an action can be considered right or wrong based on the outcome it produces. Its motto is, "The ends justifies the means." This is a very pragmatic view which says that sometimes we must lie or harm others to save the most people or bring about the most good. Motive-based ethics (or "virtue-ethics") maintain that ultimately what matters is the intention of the actor. If someone has pure intentions but makes a mistake, that person is not considered immoral. The focus here is in developing a good heart or soul. The third kind (not necessarily the best - I actually don't adhere to this one) is action- or duty- based ethics. This ethical system argues that neither the result nor the intention determines if an action is right or wrong. Ultimately, what matters is that the action is in line with what's right. This morality suggests that we need to make ourselves do what is right because we know it is right. It is also called deontology.

My argument is that Batman is the Deontological Ideal. The first movie set the stage for this kind of moral framework. For example, consider the classic line between Batman and Rachel Dawes in Batman Begins: "It's not who you are on the inside, but what you do, that defines you." This is a blatant critique of motive-based ethics in favor of action-based ethics. Batman is committed to doing what is right because it is right. Now that we know this, let's consider deontology in a little more depth.

Immanuel Kant was the most influential deontological philosopher. Kant argued that there is a moral law which we all recognize subconsciously. This moral law declares that we should never act in such a way that we wouldn't want other people to act that way in the same circumstances. For example, I may be down on my luck and feel justified in stealing - but I certainly wouldn't want someone else stealing from me just because they were down on their luck (because maybe I needed whatever they stole too). Similarly, people shouldn't lie to get out of unpleasant situations, they shouldn't use their power to kill or eliminate people who inconvenience them, etc. Also, some later philosophers have suggested that people should always help others when they have opportunity, always be grateful, etc.

Kant believed that as moral beings, every human should follow this rule no matter how hard it gets. Why? Just because we have a moral duty to do it. Let's use telling the truth as an example. Sometimes, it will be easy to tell the truth - such as when we are asked to defend ourselves. In that case, we should tell the truth. But sometimes, it will be hard to tell the truth - it may result in us getting in trouble, in making us lose friends, in costing us something severe. In that case, we still should tell the truth. Now, what separates the moral from the immoral is not who tells the truth when it is easy, but who tells the truth when it is hard.

Back to the Movie...

The Dark Knight presents two deontological "heroes" at the beginning of the movie: the Dark Knight and the White Knight, Batman and Harvey Dent. Both believe very strongly in the rule of law. (Listen closely - you'll see that submitting to law is a key theme in the Batman movies). For Batman, there are two driving duties: you must save everyone you can and you must not kill anyone. We see at the beginning of the movie, to meet these ends Batman endures quite a bit of physical pain. Similarly, Harvey Dent is absolutely committed to bringing justice to every criminal, no matter what the consequences are. He faces threats against his life and against his career with the absolute integrity of a deontological hero. But later in the movie, both men will be pushed to see how strong their committment to duty really is.

Let's begin by talking about Batman. He faces a major challenge when the criminals pick up on the fact that Batman can't kill anyone. At one point, Batman tries to question Salvatore Morani (the guy Two-Face almost shot in the limo before killing the driver), but Morani tells Batman that Batman has limits - he won't kill, whereas the Joker has no limits. At a more important scene, Batman throws Joker off of the cliff but catches him before he hits the ground. How much the city would have been a safer place if Batman had just killed Joker! But that would violate his deontological principles, and Joker knew it. That is why Joker was laughing all the way to his death (because he thought he had corrupted even Batman), and why he acknowledges him as incorruptible when dangling from the rope.

However, despite all of the inconveniences and pain Batman had to experience throughout the movie, the most painful of all was undoubtedly losing Rachel Dawes. Both Batman and Harvey Dent loved Rachel, and when she was killed, they were both put under the ultimate test: could they still follow their duty to punish the bad guys by the book, to not kill anyone but to struggle for what was right, when they knew that the bad guys would get away and no one would be adequately punished for Rachel's death? And this is what separated the two characters. For Harvey, it was too much. Rachel's death made him give up on the duy to the law and take matters into his own hands. (More on this in a later blog). But Batman, who lost just as much as Harvey Dent, remained committed to justice. He didn't kill Joker when he could have, but was resolved to continue fighting the good fight - no matter how impossible or painful it gets.

And so, at the end, Batman is presented as the ultimate moral hero. His committment to morality gives him physical pain, has absolutely ruined his reputation, and has made him lose the woman he loved. He is committed to fulfilling his duty, no matter what happens.