Joker: The very definition of a Sociopath.
By likalaruku 9 Comments
1)Glibness and Superficial Charm.
*The very definition of a "smooth criminal." The Joker's weak point. He likes to put on airs, but his reputation precedes him, so people usually see right through this. However, he can pull it off with total strangers who think he's a total Joke & Harley falls for it every time.
2)Manipulative and Conning.
They never recognize the rights of others and see their self-serving behaviors as permissible. They appear to be charming, yet are covertly hostile and domineering, seeing their victim as merely an instrument to be used. They may dominate and humiliate their victims.
*The Joker believes that aside from Batman & himself that no one realy exists. He plays up on the insanity to stay cozy in Arkham instead of rotting away on death row. The Joker isn't very good with teamwork & will immediately bump himself up to leader. IT was revealed early in the Harley Quinn series that he views her like a toy, The Joker simply adores one-upping Lex Luther & rubbing it in his face.
3)Grandiose Sense of Self.
Feels entitled to certain things as "their right."
*He's always telling the other villains that Gotham is HIS city & that if he can't kill Batman, no one can. He also enjoys hunting Robins & doesn't like being beaten to it.
4)Pathological Lying.
Has no problem lying coolly and easily and it is almost impossible for them to be truthful on a consistent basis. Can create, and get caught up in, a complex belief about their own powers and abilities. Extremely convincing and even able to pass lie detector tests. He also has great acting skills.
*The Joker never recalls his past the same way twice & uses many false names. In teamwork situations, he has a habit of being a backstabber. The Joker is immune to poison, fear, & has an incredible tolerance for pain & uses these to cover up for any shortcomings he may have in battle.
5)Lack of Remorse, Shame or Guilt.
A deep seated rage, which is split off and repressed, is at their core. Does not see others around them as people, but only as targets and opportunities. Instead of friends, they have victims and accomplices who end up as victims. The end always justifies the means and they let nothing stand in their way.
*The Joker is known for using his own henchmen as target practice, especially in Batman 663. While he may occasionally form an alliance with someone, he has no friends. He has tried to kill Harley Quinn on several occasions & has driven lesser men to madness. He doesn't care how or what happens to the world & it's people, so long as he achieves his goals, no matter how paltry they may be.
6)Shallow Emotions.
When they show what seems to be warmth, joy, love and compassion it is more feigned than experienced and serves an ulterior motive. Outraged by insignificant matters, yet remaining unmoved and cold by what would upset a normal person. Since they are not genuine, neither are their promises.
*In the earlier days when he kept Harley around as an errand girl, he used to play on her crush on him & then talk about her behind her back when she wasn't around. He laughs at important situations & flies off the handle on unimportant matters. The Joker laughs at societies misfortunes & does not grieve for the dead. The Joker is not one for making promises or keeping his word.
7)Incapacity for Love.
*This is the first one that writers can never seem to agree on, especially on whether or not he had a wife before he became the Joker. In Going Sane, when the Joker thought Batman was dead, he started a new life with a wife (I'm fairly certain this was a non canon Elseworlds story though) & in Gotham Knights, the Joker was uncharacteristically morning about his past & hired the Riddler to track down the man who killed his wife. Joker often comments offhandedly that he loves Batman & killing & that killing was better than sex. Otherwise, writers will have him flirt with a woman he intends to kill or use or he is asexual. Lex Luther can't decide whether the Joker is Batsexual or impotent.
8)Need for Stimulation.
Living on the edge. Verbal outbursts and physical punishments are normal. Promiscuity and gambling are common.
*He's a notorious criminal & provokes Batman to come & get it. He rants, yells, & hits people with whatever is lying around all the time. His crimes are promiscuous enough that Batman can't always figure out what he's going to do next. The Joker is definitely one for taking chances.
9)Callousness/Lack of Empathy.
Unable to empathize with the pain of their victims, having only contempt for others' feelings of distress and readily taking advantage of them.
*Seeing as he actually enjoys receiving pain, it would be impossible for him to empathize with the pain of others. However, he doesn't have contempt for the distress of others; it elates him. If he can spot a sucker, he will take advantage.
10)Poor Behavioral Controls/Impulsive Nature.
Rage and abuse, alternating with small expressions of love and approval produce an addictive cycle for abuser and abused, as well as creating hopelessness in the victim. Believe they are all-powerful, all-knowing, entitled to every wish, no sense of personal boundaries, no concern for their impact on others.
*This pretty much sums up Joker & Harley in a nutshell. She left him almost two years ago after he tried to disfigure or possibly kill her, but who's to say she won't victimize herself to him again in the future? The Joker is definitely one for revenge against other villains who think they are above him. Sofar he should have vengeance against Hush& Ra's al Ghul stored in his mind for the future, & while he seems to be on-par with Lex Luther in the cunning & intelligence department, he never skips an opportunity to one-up him. The other Rogues in Arkham seem to know better than to question his authority.
11)Early Behavior Problems/Juvenile Delinquency.
Usually has a history of behavioral and academic difficulties, yet "gets by" by conning others. Problems in making and keeping friends; aberrant behaviors such as cruelty to people or animals, stealing, etc.
*This one is totally unknown. He has claimed to have been a good student & over achiever, & he has claimed to have killed his own mother when he was still a child. Sometimes he remembers being an average Joe before becoming the Joker, but if Batman Confidential is Batman's recollection & not the Joker's, then the Joker was already insane before he hit the chemicals.
12)Irresponsibility/Unreliability.
Not concerned about wrecking others' lives and dreams. Oblivious or indifferent to the devastation they cause. Does not accept blame themselves, but blames others, even for acts they obviously committed.
*This is a half-truth. The Joker is terribly unreliable, but he wants everyone in the world to know when he's responsible for some irresponsible thing he did. He looks upon his devastation like a painter looks at a finished canvas.
13)Promiscuous Sexual Behavior/Infidelity.
Promiscuity, child sexual abuse, rape and sexual acting out of all sorts.
*This one is the biggest mystery of all. Is he Asexual, Bisexual, Homosexual, Heterosexual, Batsexual, or Pansexual? Could you call him Sanguinsexual or Murdersexual? One things for sure; if he's getting any at all, he's not getting much. He's definitely not a rapist, necrophiliac, or pedophile; the Mad Hatter is suspected of the latter.
14)Lack of Realistic Life Plan/Parasitic Lifestyle.
Tends to move around a lot or makes all encompassing promises for the future, poor work ethic but exploits others effectively.
*This is probably a more suitable description of a lazy adult who still lives with his mother. The Joker always has a plan, even when it seems to fail, he's usually though of that too. He does leech off of Arkham & Gotham however; despite all the money he's stolen, he rarely pays for anything, & he certainly isn't paying for rent & meals when he's locked up. The current Arkham Asylum was built over a mansion the Joker was occupying; a really stupid idea. The Joker is not only an escape artist, but knows all of the secret passages, allowing him to leave & return to his cell as he pleases.
15)Criminal or Entrepreneurial Versatility.
Changes their image as needed to avoid prosecution. Changes life story readily.
16)Batman suspects that the Joker is sane, but as Batman himself is not exactly sane either, that's not saying much. The Joker has been on trial twice to see if he's truly insane. If he was found sane, he would be executed. The Joker can easily lie about his past, as he had no one from his past to contradict any of his stories. Either he was a bachelor or his wife is dead, he killed a man who claimed to be his cousin, he had no friends apparently, the chemicals have effected his DNS, & he's even gone as far as to remove the prints on his fingers with acid.
Other Related Qualities:
1.Contemptuous of those who seek to understand them
*Not something the Joker concerns himself with. Even Batman hasn't fathomed the mind of the Joker yet, & often the Joker expresses dissapoint in this.
2.Does not perceive that anything is wrong with them.
*No. Of all the rogues in Arkham, he's possibly the only one who has excepted the world's negative opinion of him. However, he is anarchistic & doesn't have to respect their point of view. One man's wrong is another man's right.
3.Authoritarian.
*Yes. He usually submits to Batman during a fight if he's satisfied, but otherwise he has to be in charge. He also hates taking orders & prefers to be giving them. He definitely doesn't like his authority being questioned.
4.Secretive.
*Sometimes, probably at most times, but he's also not good at keeping secrets at times. He definitely doesn't want anyone knowing who he was before he became the man he was today, & many believe that the Joker has known about Batman's identity long before Batman RIP, keeping it to himself & not using the knowledge against him because Batman is the real thing & Bruce Wayne is just the mask.
5.Paranoid.
*No. In fact, the Joker has proven to be immune to fear, afraid of nothing. Scarecrow's fear gas & Visionary's hypnotism, he claims, are like a high, but as far as Scarecrow & Visionary are concerned, they simply had no effect.
6.Only rarely in difficulty with the law, but seeks out situations where their tyrannical behavior will be tolerated, condoned, or admired.
*No, He's in trouble with the law every second of his life. If people started tolerating his behavior, he'd become bored.
7.Conventional appearance.
*I'm not sure if this means "showing up conveniently" or "dressing conveniently."
8.Goal of enslavement of their victim(s)
*Generally a yes for any sadist, but it's only the mind & sanity that he really wants dominance over. For instance, if he were to drive Batman over the edge & make him crazy enough for Arkham, turn him evil, or make him kill, then the Joker wins. If Batman were to kill the Joker, the Joker would still be the winner.
9.Exercises despotic control over every aspect of the victim's life.
*Usually he just ends a victim's life, but he's been on power binges; notably with the Last Laugh & Emperor Joker story arcs, where he either turned other villains into imitations of himself or ruled the world like it was a book & he it's writer.
10.Has an emotional need to justify their crimes and therefore needs their victim's affirmation (respect, gratitude and love)
*His purpose for mayhem making is 90% of the time to draw out Batman. He gets enraged if Batman stands him up or sends in a replacement. This is why he so passionately hates Robin & Nightwing; anyone who could potentially replace Batman is perceived as a threat. This is why I firmly believe he will play an active role in Battle for the Cowl & getting Bruce back in the bat suit.
11.Ultimate goal is the creation of a willing victim.
*No. That would take the fun out of everything. Harley was a willing victim & she got on his nerves plenty of times. Batman is his favored toy & his obstinacy makes him all the more fun.
12.Incapable of real human attachment to another.
*I can't even begin to describe his attachment to Batman, but he genuinely seems to feel nothing for Harley, his henchmen, or his fellow rogues. Another thing that made his mourning for his dead wife in Gotham Knights so ill-fitting.
13.Unable to feel remorse or guilt.
*This depends on whether the writer believes he's insane or a damned good actor with reversed morals. A couple of times, he's been temporarily brought to sanity & seemed depressed by his past actions, but he's also a total ham a lier, & an actor. After a dip in the Lazarus pits, the temporary sanity could easily be perceived as a joke.
14.Extreme narcissism and grandiose.
*The Joker thinks very highly of himself & always has grand schemes & obscure goals. Anything for a laugh.
15.May state readily that their goal is to rule the world.
*He did rule the world once. But his main goal is to keep Gotham firmly in his grip.
QUESTION FROM YAHOO ANSWERS:
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Q: Would the Joker show tenderness toward the woman he loved?
Would The Joker care for his girl if she was crying or would he tell her to toughen up?
What i'm talking about is if he fell in LOVE with a woman would he show her tenderness?
A: Okey, first key to understanding how the Joker display's effection is by understanding his sadomasochism. He enjoys giving pain & he enjoys recieving pain. It should also be noted that the Joker's sexuality is unknown, but there is evidence of asexual, bisexual, & gay tendancies (he's openly hit on Batman & Lex Luthor several times).
Love & respect should be on-par. When the Joker wants someone to "toughen up," he hits them. If they hit back, he respects that, it makes him happy. He has a short temper, so if his lucky lady or luck guy doesn't want to cater to his pain fetish, all they have to do is inflict pain on someone else (which he refurres to as "a good joke").
So basicly, the only tenderness he gives or wants in return is tender beatings. A good way to tell if he likes someone is whether he tries to torture them & their family/frieds slowly (hates) mess with their heads, uses them, & inflicts moderate wounds often (likes) or tries to outright kill them (not interested in).
COMICS THAT MADE THE BIGGEST MISTAKES:
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Legends of the Dark Knight:Going Sane; so out-of character it can only be elseworlds. Seriously, this is a Silver Age-type story, that or his sudden moment of sanity was actualy an insane lapse in his supersanity.
Gotham Knights: Pushback & Payback; it's uncharacteristic enough for the Joker to be interested about a person from his past, but saying that he had a wife hits the cardinal no-no rule of insinuating that the Joker has a solid origin story.
Every comic that ever referenced the Joker as having been the Red Hood. Crisis on Infinate Earths nullified everything that happened in the silver & golden aged comics, it was a really retarded, poorly thought out short story, & Batman Confidential was made for the purpose of rebuilding Batman's history from the ground up. Another reason is because the Joker lies, & when Red Hood references are made, it's coming from his mouth or memories. Batman Confidential is from Batman's perspective.
I can't help but think that the Joker also has a little romantic attachment to Batman. Not at all sexual mind you, but combination of sadomasochism, compulsive behavior, routine, & single-minded obsession. Hatred is love, murder is sex, pain is pleasure, reality is fake, insanity is sane, & worst enemies are biggest fans. I have all the comics that capture that well, & Batman Cacophony has really been tapping that.
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In the comics, the Joker changes his ideas of the world & the people in it every 10 years. It's almost like having Multiple Personality Disorder, but he's only every one person at a time.
*His insane side believes that the world is a dream & that he & Batman are the only people he views as real.
*His Supersane side believes that the world is a stage, he's the star, & no one outside of heroes & villains have a script to go off of, making everyone else expendable extras.
*His inner child (& he is such a manchild) believes that people are his toys to play with. Batman & Harley are his favorite toys & he doesn't like to share toys. The best toys; Batman & Lex Luthor, are the ones that put themselves back together after he breaks them.
*The Joker believes that the truth, the past, & the future are not static & can be changed or killed. His belief in this is what makes him such a flexible character. The first truth he killed was his own identity. No one is alive who can identify him, the chemicals made his DNA untestable, he burned his fingers in acid to destroy the tip prints.