Essay Questions

Explain why Batman visits Joker at Arkham Asylum. Does he succeed?

Batman visits Joker to end their longtime feud. Since Joker resigned from his job to become a stand-up comedian and failed, he plotted a plan to rob a company where his attempts were thwarted by Batman. During the time, his face was disfigured by chemical waste. Batman goes to Arkham Asylum but fails to meet Joker. After learning that Batman would be visiting him, Joker escapes and put a trap in his place. Batman knows that the feud between the two would lead to consequences. However, Joker seems to be ignoring him.

Why is Joker obsessed with the statement, “it only takes one bad day to drive an ordinary man insane”? How does he prove this claim?

After failing to rob the company, Joker is swept under a canal of chemical waste where he comes out with a disfigured face. The disfigurement of the face along with the demise of his wife and unborn infant drives him completely mad on that particular bad day. As a result, he uses this statement to justify the predicament of his insanity. Joker uses Commissioner James W Gordon as an example to prove the statement. He kidnaps and tortures him to become insane.

What is Joker’s response after Batman extends an olive branch to him?

When Batman requests Joker to end their feud after subduing him, he responds by insisting that “it is too late for that.” Batman wants Joker to recover from his madness and end their hostility. However, Joker believes that insanity is the only way to escape the challenges of normal life. To justify why he wants to remain in the insanity condition, Joker tells Batman a story about two inmates in a lunatic asylum.