The Dark Knight

Can heroes, that one comes to idealise over years, actually be evil? Are discourses around their extraordinary courage created to hide their ordinary degeneracy? Moreover, is it their 'natural' human nature that is capable of both good and evil, at fault? Or is it the far more sinister impulse to categorise them as either of these two facets of man's personality that is responsible? These are some of the questions that the paper would aim at answering by studying how false discourses around matters of 'heroism' and 'heroes' are produced which are then further propounded in order to hide the

Socrates, in his final statements to the Athenian jurors and crowd gathered before his impending execution, reveals himself to be playing a game much longer than the span of his trial, lifespan, or even those of his successors.

When faced with the verdict of guilty and the sentence of death, Socrates remains defiant towards his accusers and steadfast in his conviction of the righteousness of his activities.

Where previously in The Trial, Socrates gives the impression of a man averse or neutral to the prospect of death, at this stage, he turns the tables on his condemnation by insisting on the goodness of the fate that is soon to befall him, and the wretched vengeance no doubt awaiting his executioners (Plato 93, §39b-c.) Moreover, he claims that possibly the most splendid of fates may be in the wings for himself, as he may soon have the pleasure of congressing with the fabled heroes, demigods, and poets so revered in the Greek pantheon upon his descent into Hades (Plato 95-96, § 41a). These final proclamations do nothing to change what is coming for Socrates and clearly are not meant for this purpose. I contend, instead, that the last remarks made by Socrates at the tail-end of his trial demonstrate Socrates' keen understanding of the reverberations his speech can make through the generations and his undying commitment to teaching the way of the examined life to others. Though his light was soon to be extinguished, Socrates' immortal words remain with us because, in his last stand, he took care to ensure that they might be worth hearing. Upon receiving his death sentence, we get a Socrates who remains unapologetic as ever, consistent with his attitude throughout the trial. Reflecting on the defense speech he has given thus far and his unwillingness to do anything beneath himself in hopes of altering the course of the trial by appeals to emotion, he says "neither did I suppose that I should do anything unsuitable to a free man because of the danger, nor do I now regret that I made the defense speech like this: I much prefer to die having made my defense speech in this way than to live in that way" (Plato 93, § 38e.) Crucially, he points out here that death would be not merely

Slavoj Zizek’in “The Pervert's Guide to Ideology” (Bir Sapığın İdeoloji Rehberi) isimli belgesel filminde ele alınan ideoloji ve söylem ilişkisi; anlatıcı tarafından planlı kesitler halinde, sinema filmleri ve müziklerle desteklenerek aktarılmıştır. İdeolojilerin yalın tanımlarının dışında, sinema filmleri ve müziklerde vurgulanan ideoloji betimlemeleri, repliklerde ve örneklenen müziklerin sözlerinde kendisini göstermiş, bu betimlemeler; bazı örneklerde ideoloji propagandasını desteklemek amaçlı, bazılarında ise ideolojinin propagandasının etkisini yok ederek normalleştirme, başka bir deyişle mesaj öğesini minimalize ederek sadece sanat haline getirmek için kullanılmıştır. Take-home sınavımızı, bu çerçeveyi göz önünde bulundurarak her sinema filmi veya her müzik için ayrı ayrı başlıklar halinde ayırmak yerine, örneklemelerin anlatmak istediği konuları başlıklar halinde ayırarak, kısa metinler planlamaya karar verdim. Slavoj Zizek’in “The Pervert's Guide to Ideology” (Bir Sapığın İdeoloji Rehberi) isimli belgesel filmi take-home sınavı; belgesel film seyredilirken çıkarılan notlar, bu notların anlatılmak istenen başlıklara göre kısa metinler halinde ayrılması, bu başlıkların içerisinde yer alan konuların ideoloji ve söylem ilişkisi içerisinde siyasal düşünceler tarihinin modern tezahürleri ve ders içeriği göz önüne alınarak hazırlanmıştır.

El objetivo de la presente comunicación es llevar a cabo un ejercicio de análisis crítico del discurso narrativo audiovisual de una obra cinematográfica contemporánea. La elección de la obra analizada obedece a un criterio múltiple, incluyendo factores como el éxito de público y de crítica, la importancia del subgénero de superhéroes en el nuevo Hollywood del siglo XXI, y la coincidencia en el renacimiento del subgénero con las políticas de la Guerra contra el Terror auspiciadas por la administración Bush tras el once de septiembre de 2001.

This paper focuses on the relationship between the gaze of the other and the alienation of the individual and how they are related to free will in terms of existentialism through “The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe, The Dark Knight by Christopher Nolan, Notes from the Underground by Dostoyevsky, and “The Judgment” by Franz Kafka.

Drawing on Walter Benjamin's "Critique of Violence," this paper illuminates the complexity of law and violence in global biopolitical cinema. Benjamin's key notions ("lawmaking" and "law-preserving," "mythical" and "divine" violence) are revisited through diverse films such as The Dark Knight series, Dogville, The Act of Killing, and Waltz with Bashir. The paper explores how the sovereign agents of killing here embody 'pseudo-divine violence,' posing ethical dilemmas about justice and life's value. This analysis leads to the quest for 'true divine violence' without sovereign power and the sanctity of humanity believed only as potential to retain and relay.

The United States arguably practiced torture during its global war on terrorism. In turn, torture has played a prominent role in various works of popular culture, including The Dark Knight film about Batman and the Joker, the television series 24 and the film Zero Dark Thirty, which provided a fictionalized account of the targeted killing of Osama bin Laden. Some critics argue that these popular depictions have helped to normalize and justify torture. Yet, various elites have also condemned the scenes of torture and challenged the legitimacy of the practice as depicted in these popular accounts. For example, the CIA remarkably denounced the Zero Dark Thirty storyline about the role of torture in the bin Laden case. This paper explores how ideas and images from popular culture can frame serious public debate about security and human rights issues. Specifically, it investigates whether pop cultural films or television programs
promote inclusive and open discussion about important issues like torture. Alternatively, do these films and programs help create particular and powerful narratives that minimize debate? This paper briefly identifies depictions of torture in a few popular cultural products and then investigates both the elite reaction to them and the broader cultural meaning.

In questo testo cercheremo di delineare le differenze che nascono in due tipi di film molto distanti tra loro, ma che si fondano entrambi sul genere drammatico. Analizzeremo il materiale sonoro dei due lungometraggi attraverso una serie di punti chiave. La realtà rappresentata -entrambi i film sono atti a delineare una realtà in cui sono immersi. Rosetta vive nel mondo che conosciamo, freddo e concreto. Gli ambienti sonori sono fedeli agli originali. Il mondo di Il cavaliere oscuro al contrario non si fonda sulla nostra realtà, si mostra con caratteristiche nuove e complesse. Costruzione -Perciò in quest'ultimo l'intera realtà sonora è stata ricostruita da zero. Essendo poi una storia tratta da un fumetto, le stesse onomatopee BANG, CRASH, POW che leggiamo sulla carta devono essere tradotte nel film con notevoli interventi di sound design. Inoltre se questi tipi di suoni fossero stati sonorizzati più 'naturalmente', l'effetto risultante sarebbe stato paradossalmente meno realistico, e assolutamente meno credibile. Partendo dal fatto che il cinema è sempre e comunque invenzione, quello alla fine che percepiamo ne Il Cavaliere oscuro è solo una realtà 'diversa', ma non per questo meno vera di quella di Rosetta. Si presenta anzi molto più fisica e densa di ingredienti.

Spanish:
Es ya casi una tradición que los villanos de celuloide (o digitales) posean una o varias características que nos recuerden a los enemigos políticos reales del país productor de la película, o incluso a los enemigos dentro del propio país según la ideología concreta que sustenta la película. El caso de la trilogía de El caballero oscuro de Christopher Nolan, que aquí analizamos, es representativo de esta tendencia por dos razones. En primer lugar porque llega marcada por la radicalización política llevada a cabo por el gobierno de Estados Unidos tras el atentado del 11 de septiembre de 2001. En segundo lugar porque ofrece una profusa galería de villanos que quedan fuera del círculo de amigos según la nueva doctrina del “o con nosotros o contra nosotros” inaugurada por George Bush para el siglo XXI. Esta galería incluye desde a los propios terroristas que justifican la llamada Guerra contra el Terror (Ra's al Ghul, el Joker), hasta los “radicales de izquierda” (Bane, Talia al Ghul), pasando por los políticos liberales (Harvey Dent), y los corruptos que se aprovechan de la blandura de las leyes para delinquir impunemente (Dr. Crane, el Espantapájaros).

English:
It is almost a tradition that celluloid (or digital) villains are represented with some characteristics that remind us the real political enemies of the producer country of the film, or even enemies within the country according to the particular ideology that sustains the film. The case of Christopher Nolan The Dark Knight trilogy, analyzed here, is representative of this trend for two reasons. First, because it gets marked by political radicalization conducted by the US government after the attack of September 11, 2001. Secondly, because it offers a profuse gallery of villains who are outside the circle of friends as the new doctrine “either with us or against us” opened by George Bush for the XXI century. This gallery includes from the very terrorists who
justify the War on Terror (Ra's al Ghul, the Joker), to the “radical left” (Bane, Talia al Ghul) including liberal politicians (Harvey Dent), and corrupt that take advantage of the softness of the law to commit crimes with impunity (Dr. Crane, the Scarecrow).

"The Dark Knight" (2008) is the second film in the Batman trilogy created by Christopher Nolan for Warner Bros. The first part, "Batman Begins" is from 2005 and the third, "The Dark Knight Rises" has been released in 2012.

This paper deals with the aforementioned Nolan’s film and studies it at two levels: one focusing on the internal coherence of the narrative and one attentive to the possible overall sense that this story can have. For the first study, a method of analysis of the narrative that addresses the structure of the events described, and the characters in their mutual relations is used. In this first reading, or "navigation", the resolution of "The Dark Knight" can be viewed in the light of the thesis of the "scapegoat" of René Girard. At the same time, it should be a second reading or "navigation" through which one can see that resolution in light of the whole story, which could be stated as: "we should accept a fiction to save the city". This reading, more global, argues that the meaning of "The Dark Knight" allows an interpretation of universal resonance that raises the fiction, as such, as a way to better understand what might be a just and dignified life, both personally and in the community.

»Gefüge des Zuschauens« ist eine experimentelle medienwissenschaftliche Studie: Mit Collagen und im Dialog mit jungen Erwachsenen untersucht Julia Bee Rezeptionserfahrungen von TV-Serien wie »True Blood« und Filmen wie »The Dark Knight«. Indem Affekte und Perzepte dabei als Politiken der Wahrnehmung, des schöpferischen Begehrens und mannigfaltiger Differenzen betrachtet werden, zeigt die Studie, dass Gefüge, Prozesse und Kräfte ein konzeptuelles Gegengewicht zu einer linear-kausalen Wirkung bilden. Aus prozessphilosophischer Perspektive wird unter Rückgriff auf die Arbeiten von William James, Gilles Deleuze/Félix Guattari und Brian Massumi die Zuschauer_innen-Forschung so als schöpferisches, heterogenes Gefüge entwickelt.

„Mračni vitez”/Betmena predstavlja značajnu figuru savremene
popularne kulture koja sublimiše arhetipsku čežnju o racionalizovanog
i sekularizovanog razdoblja za direktnom, starozavetnom pravdom; u tom smislu ona reprezentuje porive ka viteškoj vrlini u drastično izmenjenim modernim uslovima. U filmu „Povratak Mračnog viteza” ona je stavljena u kontekst savremene svetske krize neoliberalnog modela kapitalizma i realne mogućnosti njegovog sistemskog urušavanja. Prateći istorijsku dinamiku i promene u percepciji fenomena društvenih revolucija u modernoj, popularnoj kulturi, a imajući u vidu arhetipska značenja Betmena kao maskiranog, gotskog viteza, u radu se nadalje analiziraju simboličke i, ujedno, vrednosne poruke žudnje za njegovim usponom u uslovima društvenog previranja i krize poznog modernog društva.

Guión para la presentación del libro "El antifaz transparente. Antropología en el cine de superhéroes" (coord. Arturo Encinas). Mi intervención expone  con imágenes-- el contenido esencial del capítulo con que contribuyo al libro, sobre el Batman de Christopher Nolan.