Batman has become a fixture in the popular consciousness of America. Since his first publication in Detective Comics #27 in 1939, he has never ceased publication, appearing in multiple titles every month as well as successfully transitioning into other media such as film and television. A focused analysis of the character will reveal that Batman has achieved and maintained this cultural resonance for almost seventy years by virtue of attaining the status of a postmodern American mythology. In both theme and function, Batman has several direct connections to ancient mythology and has adapted that form into a distinctly American archetype. And as a popular cultural symbol, he has shown remarkable malleability to reflect the attitudes of his contemporary culture. An examination of Batman's enduring and changing characteristics will reveal insights into American values, culture and history during the twentieth and into the twenty-first centuries.
","abstract_html":"<p>Batman has become a fixture in the popular consciousness of America. Since his first publication in Detective Comics #27 in 1939, he has never ceased publication, appearing in multiple titles every month as well as successfully transitioning into other media such as film and television. A focused analysis of the character will reveal that Batman has achieved and maintained this cultural resonance for almost seventy years by virtue of attaining the status of a postmodern American mythology. In both theme and function, Batman has several direct connections to ancient mythology and has adapted that form into a distinctly American archetype. And as a popular cultural symbol, he has shown remarkable malleability to reflect the attitudes of his contemporary culture. An examination of Batman's enduring and changing characteristics will reveal insights into American values, culture and history during the twentieth and into the twenty-first centuries.</p>","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Darowski, John J."],"institution":"Brigham Young University - Provo","degree_name":"MA","degree_level":null,"degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":null,"date_issued":"","date_published":null,"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:28:54Z","subjects":["Batman","comic books","mythology","Classics","Comparative Literature"],"languages":["English"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/1226","outbound_label":"Repository record","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Darowski, John J."]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2007-11-28T08:00:00Z"]},{"key":"dc:publisher","label":"Institution","values":["Brigham Young University - Provo"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["MA"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Batman","comic books","mythology","Classics","Comparative Literature"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["English"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/1226","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/2225/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_1230.pdf"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Humanities; Humanities, Classics, and Comparative Literature"]},{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["Batman has become a fixture in the popular consciousness of America. Since his first publication in Detective Comics #27 in 1939, he has never ceased publication, appearing in multiple titles every month as well as successfully transitioning into other media such as film and television. A focused analysis of the character will reveal that Batman has achieved and maintained this cultural resonance for almost seventy years by virtue of attaining the status of a postmodern American mythology. In both theme and function, Batman has several direct connections to ancient mythology and has adapted that form into a distinctly American archetype. And as a popular cultural symbol, he has shown remarkable malleability to reflect the attitudes of his contemporary culture. An examination of Batman's enduring and changing characteristics will reveal insights into American values, culture and history during the twentieth and into the twenty-first centuries.
"]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application:pdf"]},{"key":"dc:source","label":"Dc Source","values":["Brigham Young University - Provo"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["Mythic Symbols of Batman"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:creator":["Darowski, John J."],"dc:date":["2007-11-28T08:00:00Z"],"dc:description":["Humanities; Humanities, Classics, and Comparative Literature"],"dc:description.abstract":["Batman has become a fixture in the popular consciousness of America. Since his first publication in Detective Comics #27 in 1939, he has never ceased publication, appearing in multiple titles every month as well as successfully transitioning into other media such as film and television. A focused analysis of the character will reveal that Batman has achieved and maintained this cultural resonance for almost seventy years by virtue of attaining the status of a postmodern American mythology. In both theme and function, Batman has several direct connections to ancient mythology and has adapted that form into a distinctly American archetype. And as a popular cultural symbol, he has shown remarkable malleability to reflect the attitudes of his contemporary culture. An examination of Batman's enduring and changing characteristics will reveal insights into American values, culture and history during the twentieth and into the twenty-first centuries.
"],"dc:format":["application:pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/etd/1226","https://scholarsarchive.byu.edu/context/etd/article/2225/viewcontent/ETD_CISOPTR_1230.pdf"],"dc:language":["English"],"dc:publisher":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:source":["Brigham Young University - Provo"],"dc:subject":["Batman","comic books","mythology","Classics","Comparative Literature"],"dc:title":["Mythic Symbols of Batman"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["MA"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-24T01:28:54Z"}