The Dark Knight's Moral Fight

In the Dark Knight movie poster, Batman is standing in the forefront as a bat symbol burns into the face of a building behind him. Debris floats through the air as smoke billows out of the windows of the building. Emblazoned across the top of the poster are the words, “WELCOME TO A WORLD WITHOUT RULES”.

Throughout the entire movie, Batman has to deal with the fact that his, and everyone else’s actions have consequences. Batman has to choose multiple times between saving different people, whether it be the woman he loves or her lover, a group of prisoners or a number of families. Every action he makes has both positive and negative consequences, he must choose between his desires and what is best for society. 

The burning bat symbol on the poster is a signifier of this, and the poster shows that even though Batman is in Gotham, even though he is making an impact in the city, he is still leaving a trail of debris and destruction behind him. The bat symbol was typically used by Commissioner Gordon to signal for Batman’s help when Gotham was on the brink of total chaos. It was symbolic of peace in the city. 

Yet, on this poster, the bat symbol is destructive. It burns the face of buildings, it smokes out the inner rooms. But Batman still seeks justice, even if he knows that it will be costly. He cannot stop the Joker without creating mayhem, which is just what Joker wants. Joker even goes as far as to call himself an agent of chaos. He often doesn’t even seek to kill, just to cause mayhem and watch everyone freak out around him. The first thing that the burning bat symbol signifies is the destructive nature of the work that Batman has to do to save Gotham from Joker.

The second thing that the burning bat symbol signifies is Batman’s struggle throughout the movie to toe the line between being a hero and an antihero. One of his deepest maxims is that he, no matter the circumstances, will not kill. Yet, many times throughout the movie he has Joker in a position where he could easily kill him, yet every time he does not fall to his temptation. The Joker even takes advantage of Batman’s strict moral code by putting himself in positions where Batman could easily kill him. 

Batman constantly fights the urge to turn from his maxims, to stray from what he stands for and take the easy solution to the problem Gotham has. Yet, if Batman does kill, then he can no longer be this shining example of heroism that Gotham relies on. He will be twisted, distorted into just a normal vigilante with nothing that separates him from the common man.

The significance of the burning bat symbol is that it represents both the destructive consequences that Batman’s actions will have, and it also represents Batman’s battle with his maxims, and his struggle to not become an antihero.