Suarez-The road to hell is paved with good intentions
The Penguin and Batman have a lot of similarities when it comes
to their backgrounds, most prominently the fact that they were both
abandoned—whether purposely or not—by their parents. Both born into wealth, one
was left for dead and the other watched his parents murdered right before his
eyes. Both are definitely very scarring and impactful as well as a tragedy. This,
along with other similarities, such as their introspective natures and a need
to understand who they are, makes them foils for each other. They have all
these similarities but there is one defining detail that makes them hugely
different, and that is the path in life they decided to take. Batman chose to
take his pain and despair and use it to help people, whereas the Penguin chose
the path of evil and vindictiveness to try and make others suffer the way he
did. The function of making these two characters foils is to show that everyone
has a choice in life. When faced with tragedy, that tragedy defines the person
that you are; you can allow it to let you grow as a person, or let it fester
inside and destroy you. Being isolated from society like the penguin was
definitely had a large impact on him being the way that he is, but everyone
always has a choice, and he chose to let his abandonment issues embitter him to
a point of extremity. He spent his entire existence focusing on how his parents
did him wrong, and how his life is horrible, and he never tried to do anything
to change that. The only time he tried to do anything to change that was not in
a good way; he planned on killing all the first-born babies in Gotham. Batman,
faced with isolation, but in a slightly different way, chose the path of excellence
and “goodness.” His isolation took place in a mansion outside of the city,
which was nicer than the sewers the Penguin was raised in, but just because
someone has more money does not mean they have a better, happier life.
I love that you brought up the question of free will and choice and pointed out that the Penguin and Batman are foils of each other. The fact both Penguin and Batman had a choice in their grown up versions of what they would become is a large point in this movie. Batman could have easily turned into a revengeful criminal mastermind. Instead he became a revengeful vigilante. He didn't let his need for retribution overcome him like the Penguin and Catwoman. He fights for the people who cannot fight for themselves just like he couldn't defend his family when he was a child.This is what makes the Penguin and Batman perfect foils for each other. One chose to overcome their hatred and resentment and one decided to wallow in it.
ReplyDelete-Starlight W.
I like this post. I never noticed that The Penguin and Batman are the same character emotionally but one is focused on good and the other evil. But then when you think about it all of the main characters are similar because they were all in a traumatic experience and it changed them. Being abandoned, watching your parents die, or falling out of a building will do something to you. They all then masked by either their appearance, a bat suit, or a pleather jumpsuit went out and did something to affect Gotham City
ReplyDeleteI really like how you focused on how, even though both Penguin and Batman were abandoned, it’s how they chose to use that pain caused by the abandonment that separates them. I think that is kind of reflection on life, and how everyone is dealt a set of cards, and it is how we use the cards we are dealt that makes a difference in our lives. I that you made a very good point about how we all have free will and we can choose to take the right path or the wrong path. Eventually, it is our choices are what shape us into who we are. Batman chose to use his pain to help the people of Gotham, while Penguin used his pain to terrorize the people of Gotham, which is why we see one character as the hero and one as the villain. They both went through similar emotional trauma, but it is how they used that trauma that makes them different.
ReplyDeleteMelissa Johnston