Preview

Batman Stereotypes

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
434 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Batman Stereotypes
“Approximately 1 in 5 adults in the U.S.—43.8 million, or 18.5%—experiences mental illness in a given year.” In movies like Batman: The Dark Knight and books including Joey Pigza Loses Control mental illnesses are misrepresented. Most mentally ill individuals are seen to be dangerous or incompetent. It is putting a stigma on mental illnesses. “”The portrayals serve to distance 'them' from the rest of 'us.'””
Movies and TV shows make it seem like most criminal or violent acts are done by people with mental illnesses. “Studies show that not only are individuals with mental illness less likely to commit violent crimes, they’re actually more likely to be victimized.” “One in four people with mental illness experiences violence of some type in a given year, a much higher rate than the rest of the population.” In Batman: The Dark Knight reinforces this stereotype by talking about how The Joker is a schizophrenic
…show more content…
“There’s usually something “different” about the appearances of people with mental illnesses – be it on TV shows or in video games, movies or comics.” Most of us know though, that you can’t always tell if someone is mentally ill. They look just like a “normal” person. No one is going to look at me and say “oh yeah, she definitely has anxiety.”, unless they are watching me have a panic or anxiety attack.
In reality, most stereotypes of the mentally ill in the media are false. Very few to none of the mentally ill people are going to commit a crime. Most of them are very capable of taking care of themselves and doing everyday tasks without help. Unlike, the media tells you, you aren’t going to tell if someone has been diagnosed with something just by looking at them. They will look just like anybody else. And because of the stigma that social media has put on mental illnesses “only 41% of adults in the U.S. with a mental health condition received mental health services in the past

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Good Essays

    Have you ever wondered if someone with a mental disorder is as easily accepted into social life as someone who is not a sufferer? Those that suffer from any sort of mental disorder are often stereotyped as bizarre and violent. Many are ignorant to how false these stereotypes really are. In fact many who are affected aren’t always distinguishable from those who are not mentally disturbed. For instance, there are many famous Americans who suffer from mental illnesses. Paula Deen is well recognized celebrity known for her scrumptious recipes, drinking straight melted butler on television, and her outgoing bubbly personality. Though she hides it well, Paula had suffered from agoraphobia and depression for over twenty years of her life.…

    • 543 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    We tend to hear a lot in the media that most violence comes from people with mental illness, but do we really know if this is the truth? As Anaya states in her essay “Mental Illness on Television” that “the media tend to always isolate or not mention people with a disability or show that they are not normal which is wrong” (54). This relates to Nancy Mairs essay “Disability” were she talks about physical disability and how the media doesn’t show it as a normal feature of life, but since she wrote it thirty years ago there has been progress in the media. On the other hand Anaya‘s main point is that the media should show mental illness as a feature of normal life as well not a threat which I strongly agree with.…

    • 537 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    society today, often showing those with a mental illness as the “bad guy”, these concerns expressed in…

    • 589 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    There are many debates on whether a mentally ill person who commits a crime should be criminally charged. Some people believe people with mental illnesses should be hospitalized and receive treatment, then be discharged once they are stable. Others believe having mentally ill people who have committed crimes being discharged after receiving treatment is a danger to their safety. I believe that decision depends on the person’s mental illness and their crime. But most of the time the mentally ill know right from wrong and need to be criminally charged like everyone else. Therefore, I think that yes, people with mental illnesses should be criminally charged.…

    • 800 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The Canadian public undeniably relies on mass media as its primary source of information. However, when it comes to mental illness, the media tends to skew reality. For better or worse, the media shapes our ideas and ways in which we understand those around us. For those suffering from mental illnesses, the implications of the often negative and inaccurate portrayals of mental health issues are significant. Inaccurate information in the media about mental illness, even if the portrayal of an individual is positive, results in misunderstandings that can have considerable and very real consequences. For example, inaccurate depictions of bipolar disorder can lead to false beliefs, confusion, conflict, and a delay in receiving treatment. Unlike physical ailments, many mental illnesses are associated with stigma. Whether it is self-directed or from society, dealing with this “shame” can be debilitating and interfere with daily living. The mentally ill continue to receive negative attention, largely due to fear and prejudice. People who suffer from mental illness are often pushed to the fringes of, or are directly excluded from, society (Baun, 2009). 90210's portrayal of adult behaviour in response to Silver's cry for help is consistent with the Special Report on CBC – “Off Course…

    • 2695 Words
    • 11 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Good Essays

    Treatments in the past have been eliminated after extensive research proved that they didn’t work. Though progress has been made, there is still a lot our society needs to work on. There is still discrimination against mental illness occurring today. There are many people invalidating their mental illnesses, claiming that they’re either just “lazy” or “dumb. The modern-day media is also to blame for this. Violent perpetrators are occasionally portrayed as mentally ill, which causes the public to perceive other mentally ill people as “crazy” or “weird”. We may have gotten better in terms of treatment and social acceptability, but understanding mental illness is the next thing we need to work…

    • 896 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Patrick Corrigan’s article on stigmas and how they interfere with mental care brings insight into a world that many people face. Although there are conflicting ideas on how exactly stigmas towards mentally ill people are broken down, (people labeled mentally ill are stigmatized more severely than those with other health conditions; people with psychotic disorders are judged more harshly than people with depression or anxiety disorders) there is an ever looming problem with the treatment for mental disorders.…

    • 881 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    When dealing with the care and views of the American people, there are many opinions and stigmas expressed. The understanding of the public and those who are actually dealing with a mentally ill family member are limited to their knowledge. With this, they see a perfectly functioning Human being capable of controlling their full mental capacity. Without the understanding of what’s really going on, the stigma will always persist.…

    • 478 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Powerful Essays

    The media in American society has a major influential impact on the minds and beliefs of millions of people. Whether through the news, television shows, or film, the media acts as a huge database for knowledge and instruction. It is both an auditory and visual database that can press images and ideas into people's minds. Even if the individual has no prior exposure or knowledge to something, the media can project into people's minds and leave a lasting impression. Though obviously people are aware of what they are listening to or watching, thoughts and assumptions can drift into their minds without even realizing it. These thoughts that drift in are extremely influential. The massive impact it can leave on America's perception leads to generalizations, assumptions, and stigmas. The media influence is not always negative, however. In most cases it has beneficial and positive aspects. Without the media, people would be drastically less informed and conscientious about major issues in the world around us. In some cases, however, the way the media portrays an issue can twist one's perception, leaving an assumption instead of a factual concept. Mental illness is one of the biggest concepts that the media has distorted due to the majority of portrayals the media presents. Mental health is extremely important and plays a key role in every individual's life. Yet it is also has millions of misconceptions. Mental illness is more common that one would like to believe. In reality, one in five Americans will suffer from a mental disorder in any given year. Though that ratio is about equivalent to more than fifty-four million people, mental illness still remains a shameful and stigmatized topic (National Institute of Mental Health, n.d.). The taboo of mental illness has an extensive and exhausting history, dating back to the beginning of American colonization. It has not been an easy road to say the least. Due to the endless efforts…

    • 4060 Words
    • 17 Pages
    Powerful Essays
  • Better Essays

    This belief often caused rejection, stigmatization, victimization, and harassment. These people often only receive fragmented treatment, but most significantly is the inadequate housing opportunities. The mentally ill patients who became homeless now become unsupported and at a high risk for self harm. In a recent study, it was concluded that individuals with a severe mental illness were victims of a violent crime at a rate of 11 times higher than that of the general population (Kliewer, Mcnally, Trippany,…

    • 1387 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Better Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mental illness is not a topic to be taken lightly or to turn a blind eye. We should not judge others based on issues, but on their strength of facing their demons…

    • 792 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    In today’s age, the amount of films produced is astonishing. What is even more surprising is the amount of recognition mental disorders are receiving in the 21st century alone. For years, people suffering with mental disorders have been very misunderstood; society assumes their problems are fictitious and fraudulent. However, hollywood is making great progress towards revealing the truth about these victims. They deserve to finally be heard and understood.…

    • 1134 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mentally Ill Stereotypes

    • 525 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Everything we are now is the product of what we have seen, smelt, heard, tasted and experienced. We are not born with the damaged perception that mental illness equals insanity, we are taught it. This stigma originated from the beginning of time where people showing abnormal behaviour were sent to institutions, chained to walls and treated like animals. Treatments over the years have improved significantly, although the ideas behind the practices still remain today. For example, instead of using laws and institutions to marginalise the mentally ill, we use the media and our words to paint the mentally ill as something they may not necessarily be, which leads to the same outcome as it has for thousands of…

    • 525 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Movies are not the only part of the film industry that misrepresents mental illnesses; cartoons and tv shows misrepresent them as well. By referencing mental illnesses within children’s cartoons, it allows the children to learn to stigmatize mental illnesses early in life. For example, in a study of six main cartoon characters portraying mental illnesses, three of them were comical, and the other three were the villains (Wilson par. 15) This is another example of how the entertainment industry is using the symptoms of certain serious mental illnesses in order to portray the ‘villain’ or the funny, ‘crazy’ character. Furthermore, the famous television show, ‘Dr. Phil’, is a talk show hosted by a psychologist who helps people with their problems.…

    • 342 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Good Essays
  • Good Essays

    Mental disorders are often negatively portrayed in the media. Syndromes are misrepresented or represented in a harmful, stereotypical fashion which gives an unfavorable and inaccurate understanding of the disorder to the general public. Misunderstanding is perpetuated by stigma regarding mental health issues. Stigma in the media cause individuals with mental disorders, such as depression, to feel a sense of shame in regards to their mental state of health. This shame prevents these individuals from seeking the necessary psychological and medical help that they need and can actually cause an exacerbation of symptoms. This paper argues that popular media is significant in shaping the public perception of mental disorders and current portrayals are often harmful in nature.…

    • 638 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays