An Investigation of the Portrayal of Mental Health Issues in Comics Books from 1939 to the Present

Since 1939, Batman has been a staple character of the comic book industry. He has been used throughout the last 80 years as a conduit through which to portray mental health content. This thesis analyzes how mental health content has changed in Batman comic books from 1939 to today. Based on existing research, I identified that mental health content has been present in Batman comic books for as long as they have existed. According to my research results, content can be traced back to the Golden Age of comic books (1939-1956), with a decrease in content in the Silver Age of comic books (1956-1970) due to the emergence of the Comics Code Authority. In the Bronze Age of comic books (1970-1986), mental health content reached its peak. In the Modern Age of comic books (1986-Present), content once again dropped, but not as low as in the Golden and Silver Ages. Identifying how mental health representation has changed since 1939 can help researchers to better understand how comic books can be used to communicate with readers.