“Is it just me, or is it getting crazier out there?”
“Boo.” “Hehe.” “Can you please stop bothering my kid?” “Sorry.”
Every once in a while, a film captures philosophy in its most quintessential form, and the Joker
does exactly that. This film is a masterpiece. It's superbly written, remarkably acted, and
it's dance with Nihilism is beautiful. Put it this way, the edgelord king of nihilism
himself, Friedrich Nietzsche, would've been displeased... but that’s just because everything
displeased him. "Ahahahaha!”
What follows isn't a review of the film (though it will contain major spoilers), it isn't
a commentary on the socio-political controversy surrounding it (though it will lightly touch
upon it), and it isn't an academic course on how to overcome nihilism (though it may
interest you in one). What it is, is a light shone upon the nihilistic philosophy of the
Joker, and the most wonderful fruits that it yields.
"Ta da." I look a mess, don’t I? But then again… so do you. I'm Stephen Woodford, thanks for
joining me, and this is The Nihilism of the Joker
As an African proverb wisely states, "The child who is not embraced by the village,
will burn it down to feel its warmth”, and Arthur “Joker” Fleck, my fellow apes,
is that child. Most believe the Joker to be motivated by moral nihilism – they see him
as someone who’s seen that the chalice of religious authority is empty, and that consequently,
all is merely a social contract – one of which, he refuses to sign. Now this is arguably true of many depictions.
“Some people just want to see the world burn."
But for the Joker of Todd Phillips and Joaquin
Phoenix, it’s different. His nihilism is born less of intellectual observation, and
more of emotional abuse. Arthur is not a nihilist because he rejects the epistemological axioms
of society… no, he's a nihilist because society has rejected him!
And this, I would argue, is the primary cause of the enveloping controversy. For the first
time, the Joker is terrifyingly relatable. He isn’t some psychotic maniac on an arbitrary
rampage of destruction, but rather a mentally ill, broken, abused, bullied, mistreated,
person with hope and dreams. He’s human… all too human!
Arthur is simply someone who has been dealt a shit hand. His life sucks. He lives in a harsh city that’s saturated
with callous, mean people. He has no friends, no appreciation at work, and no recognition
from society – who, in fact, refer to people like him as rats. He’s heavily medicated
(until the rich retract his prescription), his spontaneous laughter (pseudobulbar) makes
it near impossible for him to connect with anyone, and the person he loves the most (his
mother) turns out to have betrayed him in the worst of ways.
But despite his own tragedy, Arthur sought to bring happiness to dying children (until
he was fired), and his dream was to make the entire world happy through comedy. But again
and again and again, he was denied the warmth of the village… and so, he burnt it!
When the world deals you a terrible hand, and then laughs in your face as you're forced
to play it, what do you do? When your life is suffering, and literally no one cares,
how do you respond? When you try your best, but your best is not nearly good enough, what's
the answer? For the Joker (for the nihilist), it's suicide or vengeance.
And Arthur chose the former – he chose to end his own existence, as was made clear by
him rehearsing as much on his sofa. But the universe… oh, she chose the latter. Arthur
shot Murray, delivering the “joke”: “What do you get when you cross a mentally ill loner
with a society that abandons him and treats him like trash? You get what you fucking deserve!”
To empathise with evil is taboo, but empathise
we must. The Joker’s lesson, so far as I see it, at least, is to deal more kindly with
one another. We need to assume the best in people, even when they refuse the same courtesy.
That tramp who always seems drunk on the sidewalk… perhaps he's not – perhaps he has suffered
brain damage due to physical abuse, like Arthur? That woman who cut you up on the highway…
perhaps she's rushing to pick up her three children from school because their dad is
no longer around to support her? That offensive arsehole in comments, who criticises my wonderful
makeup and extravagant character… perhaps he's bullied relentlessly in real life by
those who ought to love him, and he needs this outlet before he explodes?
To quote my favourite contemporary thinker, Sam Harris, "Consider it: every person you
have ever met, every person will suffer the loss of his friends and family. All are going
to lose everything they love in this world. Why would one want to be anything but kind
to them in the meantime?” To nihilists like Arthur and myself, there
is no ultimate meaning (we have no ultimate purpose), but to quote Nietzsche, “Those
who have a why to live, can bear almost any how.” If you see someone without a why,
become it. A little bit of kindness goes a very, very long way. Anyhow, I’m Stephen Woodford,
this has been surprisingly fun, and as always, thank you kindly for the view, and an extra
special thank you to my wonderful patrons, and those of you who’ve supported the channel
via other means. I’ll tell you what, dressing up really helps one get into character. I
can totally see who Contrapoints, PhilosophyTube and Sargon do it…
"Ahahahaha!