Candace Palacios LSP 112 Final Paper Draft Dr.

Jason Winslade May 23, 2012 The Birth Order of Robin In May, 1939, Detective Comics (DC), decided to create a new character for the comic book industry. That character, by day was Bruce Wayne, a billionaire playboy, but by night, he was Batman. Created by Bob Kane, Batman was a man who was influenced to fight crime after his parents were murdered by a criminal. In 1940, DC decided to add a new character to this comic book in order to attract younger readers. For the Batman writers and illustrators, the most logical, practical, and ultimately successful solution to this readership quandary was the creation of an exciting, death-defying kid who would lighten both the look and tone of Batman (Tipton, p. 323). His name is Robin, Batmans kid sidekick. There have been five Robins throughout the Batman comic books, and Batman treats each of those Robins differently. Any reader would realize that it is very easy to analyze how Batmans parenting styles change throughout the series, and how the birth order can alter his way of parenting.. Does the birth order theory really apply to the comic book? Does each Robin and their personalities correlate with the traits Alfred Adler characterizes each child once they are born? Alfred Adler was the first theorists to tie in the idea of birth order into his work, by using it along with other information as a way to judge a certain lifestyle. There are two different types of birth order, and although most of the Robins were not Batmans biological children (with one exception), this will be referred as ordinal position, meaning the actual birth of the siblings (Eckstein et al., 2010). Each Robins first appearance symbolizes the birth of the siblings. Because of the way each Robin behaves, Batman demonstrates different kinds of
Comment [L7]: stick to MLA format Comment [L5]: Awk. Comment [L6]: unclear Comment [L4]: I think first you have to establish that the Batman/Robin relationship is a parent/child relationship. That in itself is a claim that others have debated. Comment [L3]: floating quote Comment [L1]: Awk. Comment [L2]: awk

parenting styles for each one. Parenting styles depend on two different factors. Parental warmth (responsiveness) is the first, meaning the degree of positive affection present in parent-child relationships (Carlo, McGinley, Hayes, Batenhorst & Wilkinson, 2007, p.148). Demandingness is the second, meaning the degree of strictness and behavioral standards expressed by parents for their children (Carlo et al., 2007, p. 148). Depending on how high the demanding the parent is and how responsive the parent is, there are four different kinds of parenting styles. The style that requires a high amount of demandingness and a very low amount of responsiveness is called the authoritarian parent. These kinds of parents expect their kids to be obedient and expect all orders to be obeyed without any questions asked. They have a strict set of rules and regulations, and constantly monitor their childrens activities. Parents that are both high demanding and have high responsiveness are called authoritative parents. They are assertive, but not as restrictive as authoritarian parents. Authoritative parents disciplinary methods are supportive, rather than just for punishment. Parents who are more responsive than demanding are called permissive parents, who are lenient and avoid confrontation. No demandingness and no responsiveness are called disengaged parents (McVittie & Best, 2009). It seems that Batmans way of parenting most of the Robins are in the authoritative way. It is very unlikely that Batman is not a disengaged parent, but these types of parenting styles are prominent throughout the series. The original Robin was Dick Grayson, a boy who was a member of a family circus called The Flying Graysons. After Graysons parents were killed by some gangsters, Batman takes Robin in because they share the same experience: seeing their parents gets killed. Dick Grayson is written out by many authors as the first son of Batman as well as his prodigal son (Dick,
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2012), and when examining him in his early years as Robin, it is very noticeable. Grayson is a fearless, adventurous, hard working, and very obedient, and behaves very much like Batman. According to Eckstein et al. (2010), the characteristics of a first-born child should be assertive, identified with parents, organized, responsible, self-confident, obedient, and the least emotional. When examining the relationship between him Grayson and Batman, one can see that these characteristics fit Dick Graysonhe displays those all of those tendencies. When observing Grayson as he is fighting crime on his own, Batman?he states Well, doggone! All I can say is he certainly is an apt pupil! (Detective Comics #39, 1940). This is why DC allowed Grayson to grow up to become the leader of the Teen Titans, and retire as Robin to be his own superhero called Nightwing to show how he is more independent from than just being a sidekick. The reason why Grayson became so independent and responsible is because of Batmans parenting style. In this case, Batman shows an authoritative parenting style. He has demands for Grayson, but also supports his decisions. An example of this was shown in the Robins first appearance. After his parents death, Dick immediately thought to go to the police for this manner. Batman stops him, and tells him that he cannot go to the police (the demand). He does not just leave it at that, though. He explains how Boss Zucco would kill him because he runs the whole town. Not only did Grayson not go to the police (the response), he also asks if he could be Batmans aid. Carlo et al. (2007) claims that authoritative parenting was positively associated with prosocial behaviors. Moreover, parents use of inductive disciplinary practices (i.e., child-centered disciplinary practices that use verbal reasoning and explanations) has been linked to childrens displaying high levels of moral reasoning and markers of moral

Comment [L10]: do NOT use Wikipedia as a source. A Wikipedia page should direct you to actual sources. Many scholarly essays have been written about Batman and Robin, enough to provide you with plenty of support.

conscience (p. 149). With this kind of father-figure relationship, it portrays the time period that this was created. In the 1940s, it was prevalent that children should respect and obey their elders, and since Robin was created to have more of a younger audience, then there has to be that kind of image throughout the comic book series. Does Batman follow through with this kind of parenting with the other Robins to get the same result? After Grayson takes his leave as Robin to be a part of Teen Titans, Jason Todd takes over to be the new Robin. His story was very similar of Dick Graysons, such asin that he is the son of circus acrobats. Batman definitely has a special place for orphans who share a similar experience with their parents. At first Jason had the desire to be just like Dick, and had the desire to be on Batmans team; despite the fact that he was not completely trained well enough for the job. He was very envious, which according to Eckstein et al. (2010), is a middle born child characteristic, but when the series Crisis on Infinite Earths came out, his personality changed completely. He was more rebellious, violent, moody, reckless, and had different beliefs and values than Batman did. This is more prominent when Todd is revived into the antihero Red Hood, who resembles Batman in many ways, except with a willingness to use lethal force and weapons (Jason, 2012). He still keeps that authoritative parenting style throughout the series by reminding himself that he is still a kid. Times are changing, which is probably why the authoritative parenting style did not work well with Jason. The way families are being portrayed in the 1980s is much more different than the 1940s. Todd does have some qualities in Adlers Theory, but Todd fits more into the last born child category. Last born children tend to be very creative, but at the same time, they are more emotional, disobedient, and rebellious. This proves that Adlers theory does not fit everyones personality. It is a good concept to think

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Comment [L13]: Unclear. Explain further.

about, but the human mind is very complex for everyone to be the same. Eckstein et al. (2010) states that in Adlers theory additional factors such as death or impairment of a siblinga large gap between siblings, and differential familial and cultural norms may influence expectations of siblings differently. If you think about Jasons lifestyle (especially in the Crisis of Infinite Earths series), his parents die, grew up in the streets, and he stole tires from cars. Just because Batman took him in, does not mean that Jason has the same values as him. After Jasons death in A Death in the Family, the next person in line was Tim Drake. At first, he was very different from the other two Robins for one main reason: his parents were alive and well. This makes no difference because his parents are out of town all the time, so what Tim does with Batman was nothing they were concerned about. He was an orphan to some degree because of his parents job, but that changes after his parents were poisoned (the mother dies, and the father is now comatose). Tim knew who the original Robin was due a memory he had while at the Flying Graysons circus. This inspired him to be more like Grayson, and that he is living a legacy. Drake had strived to not disappoint Bruce Wayne/Batman. Tim is not the best fighter like his siblings, Dick and Jason, and has had to train a lot more than they did for him to become Robin (Tim, 2012). However, since Tim is one of the middle children in the Batman series, he should behave like an envious, not so bold character according to Alder. Drake is the opposite. Although Batman was not around much at first because he was sulking over Jasons death, Tim was getting well acquainted with Grayson. This is probably why Tim shares some first-born characteristics. After Batman realizes that Tim is ready for the Robin role, those characteristics still carry on: to strive and be a part of the Dick Grayson legacy. His Batmans parenting style is still the same, despite the fact that it was the same parenting style

Comment [L14]: So doesnt this negate the whole point of the paper? You need some sort of transition in order to properly contextualize this.

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that led to Jason Todds demise. Eventually, Tims father wakes up from his coma, and unfortunately, his father found out about his endeavors, and immediately demanded Tim to retire from being Robin. Now, Batman is on the lookout for another potential Robin, and with his next decision, he changes to almost a completely different person. Although it was unsure whether or not she was Robin in order to bring Tim back because she is his girlfriend, Stephanie Brown (AKA Spoiler) was the first woman to be a Robin. Even though she was the middle child, she is the first-born female. This gives Batman a new perspective as to how he should raise her because of his familiarity of raising boys. According to Eckstein et al. (2010), Gender may be influential when the parents model strong sex role differences. For instance, a third-born child who is the first son born into a family may be treated more like a first-born child than like a later-born child (p. 409). Hewho? is influenced by becoming a stricter parent; also known as the authoritarian parent. When Stephanie was first assigned as Robin, Batman made rules that had no negotiations (high demanding, low responses). Lets get one thing straight. Youre on probation, and as long as thats in effect, you dont learn any of the big secrets. And the first time you disobey my orderseven in a minor wayis the precise moment youre out. No second chances (Robin #126, 2004). She worked works very hard, despite the fact that she messed messes up in the long run, and hads the desire to be as good as her boyfriend Tim. Stephanie does not really have any middle-born characteristics. She is very irresponsible for disobeying Batmans orders, regardless of her desire to help him. Being irresponsible and disobedient categorizes her as a last-born child. Because Batman had an authoritarian parenting style while raising Stephanie, Batman
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immediately fired her on the spot, and she was Robin no more. Even when she was fired from being Robin, she was still irresponsible for coming up with a plan that leads her to her death. As Batmans biological son, it was a bit more complicated to analyze Damian Waynes personality by using the birth order theory. There are a lot of main factors, such as him being the youngest Robin out of the five. Also, because he is Batmans one and only biological child, he could fall within the characteristics Adler says an only child should have, which are disagreeable, spoiled, and have a combination of the first-born characteristics and the last born characteristics (Eckstein p. 412). Since Damian is not an orphan, you have to analyze his personality traits from his fathers side and his mothers side, Talia al Ghul (daughter of the villain Ras al Ghul). Having spent his whole life training with the League of Assassins, he has grown to have a personality that is aggressive, spoiled, precocious, and violent. Despite all of his training and abilities he has gained, he is still just a child. He has this desire to defeat Tim Drake so that he can be the next Robin, which he does by stealing Jason Todds old uniform and adding a hood to it (Damian, 2012). Because he is the only child who is biologically related to Batman, it is noticeable that Damian is very disagreeable, which is why he picks on Tim a lot. Batman still has the same style of parenting (authoritative), even though he could be a lot stricter on Damian because of how spoiled he is. Plus, he should have been stricter because of his family history on his mothers side. By examining all of the Robins in the Batman series, Alfred Adlers birth order theory is almost spot-on. Even though all the Robins are not biologically related to each other, they showed the same personalities as if they were really siblings. If a person was to put them in order according to Adler, Dick Grayson would be first born, and Tim Drake would be second
Comment [L19]: Rather than use Wikipedia, just refer to the issue number. Comment [L18]: Awk. faulty parallel

born. He is still one of the oldest because he shows those characteristics as a first-born, but he is still a middle child. Next, would be Stephanie, and the last two would be Jason Todd and Damian Wayne. It seems as though Batman is an authoritative parent throughout the series regardless of what events that took place that could make Batman change his parenting beliefs. Did Batmans parenting skills have an impact on how these kids behaved? Of course, but since they are all orphans (except for Damian), it must be known that their biological parents had an influence on them first before Batman took them in.

Works Cited as I stated earlier, Wikipedia pages are not appropriate sources. They can help with research but they should not be used as a direct source for information. Carlo, G., McGinley, M., Hayes, R., Bathenhorst, C., & Wilkinson, J. (2007). Parenting styles or practices? Parenting, sympathy, and prosocial behaviors among adolescents. Journal of Genetic Psychology, 168(2), 147-146. Damian Wayne. (2012). Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Damian_Wayne Dick Grayson. (2012). Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dick_Grayson Eckstein, D., Aycock, K. J., Sperber, M. A., McDonald, J., Van Wiesner, III, V., Watts, R. E. Ginsburg, P. (2010). A review of 200 birth-order studies: Lifestyle characteristics. The Journal of Individual Psychology, 66(4), 408-419. Jason Todd. (2012). Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jason_Todd [Kane, Bob. (w)] Dectective Comics #38 (1940) [DC Comics] [Kane, Bob. (w)] Dectective Comics #39 (1940) [DC Comics] McVittie, J. & Best, A. M. (2009). The impact of Alderian-Based parenting classes on selfreported parental behavior. The Journal of Individual Psychology, 65 (3), 264-269. [Starlin, Jim. (w), Aparo, Jim. (p), DeCarlo, Mike. (i)+ A Death in the Family Batman #426 429 (1988-1989) [DC Comics]

Tim Drake. (2012). Wikipedia the Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tim_Drake Tipton, N. G. (2008). Gender trouble: Frank Millers revision of Robin in the Batman: The Dark Knight Series. The Journal of Popular Culture, 41(2). *Willingham, Bill. (w), Scott, Damian. (p) (i)+ Robin the Girl Wonder Robin #126 (July, 2004) [DC Comics]