Blackwell continues to realize that even the smallest vein of pop culture vastly outsells anything in academic philosophy:
Blackwell Publishing Call for Abstracts
Batman and Philosophy
Abstracts and subsequent essays should be philosophically substantial but accessible, written to engage the intelligent lay reader. Contributors of accepted essays will receive an honorarium.
Possible themes and topics might include, but are not limited to, the following:
The dynamic duo and dualism
The aesthetics of the Batman universe
The flip of a coin: Two-Face and determinism
Batman and the ethics of collateral damage
Batman and the ethics of vigilantism
Batman or Bruce Wayne: which is his 'true' identity?
“What’s it like to be a Batman?”: Subjectivity and the mind/body problem
Appearance, reality, and the importance of masquerade
Gotham City, political corruption, and the need for heroes
Bruce Wayne and Batman, the morning star and the evening star: sense, reference, and the problem of naming
Batman and the ethics of child care
Batman and the recurring Messiah complex
Knowing Bruce Wayne and knowing Batman: propositional attitudes and substance dualism
Batman and the use/abuse of technology
Bats, confronting fears, and moral courage as a motivator for action
Heroes and obligatory vs. supererogatory acts
Batman’s deontological respect for Robin vs. a villain’s objectification of his/her henchmen
The death of god and the birth of god-like heroes in Western societies
Batman and paranoia: what kind of hero builds a satellite to spy on his friends?
Batman and Superman: Different means to the same end, or different ends altogether?
Batman and identification: can there truly be another Batman
Batman and dealing with the recurrence of death (parents, Jason Todd, Stephanie Brown)
Playing well with others: Batman and other heroes/teams
