The image of the vulnerable, traumatized Arthur Fleck resonated deeply with many. Yet, the fascination with such a character is not as harmless as it seems. When we look deeper into his story, particularly through his entanglement with Harley Quinn, we are forced to reflect on the public's relationship with figures born from pain and the destructive cult of violence that can arise in response to injustice. The dynamic between them becomes a stark portrayal of what happens when profound vulnerability collides with calculated manipulation. But to understand their bond, we must first understand them as individuals.

The Anatomy of a Wounded Man

We know a great deal about Arthur's past. A childhood defined by consistent abuse from his mother and her partners left him with what appears to be complex post-traumatic stress disorder (C-PTSD). His behavior aligns with several criteria for this diagnosis; for instance, he is unable to regulate his emotions, and his moods swing sharply from deep melancholy to agitated bursts of activity.

Due to his PTSD, Arthur is predisposed to depression, struggles to form and maintain relationships, and sees himself as worthless and abandoned. His greatest fear is loneliness. Lacking a complete education and in desperate need of consistent psychiatric support, his condition is precarious. While a definitive diagnosis is never given, it's clear Arthur Fleck is highly susceptible to the influence of others. He never experienced a sense of safety in his formative years, which fostered dependent personality traits. This manifests in his retreat into a fantasy world—imagining a life of success and love while, in reality, he is confined to a psychiatric facility for the criminally insane.

For individuals with dependent personalities, the quality of a relationship is secondary to its mere existence. They often ignore the damage it causes because the alternative—being alone—is unbearable. Yet, paradoxically, they fear true intimacy. A healthy relationship requires trust and accepting the risk of a future breakup, a prospect that is too painful for Arthur to contemplate. This is why he pushes away a lawyer genuinely trying to help him and instead places his trust in an emotionally unstable person.

A dependent personality can certainly develop without a healthy attachment in childhood. A child needs a consistent figure to help them navigate difficulties, which builds the self-belief that they can overcome challenges on their own. Arthur’s mother did the opposite, reinforcing his dependency by telling him he was worthless and incapable. For years, he was dependent on her and hopelessly fixated on his neighbor, Sofia. The emergence of the "Joker" persona was a twisted attempt to gain independence, but it only worsened his situation. Arthur began exhibiting symptoms of grandiose delusions, seeing himself as a star. The Joker became the embodiment of this delusion, but the popularity he found only made him dependent on public admiration, and eventually, on Harley.

The Architect of Adoration

In this story, Harley is not a whimsical, freedom-loving sidekick. She is a manipulator, driven by a desire for superiority and adoration. She aims to win the Joker's complete attention and, in a sense, to enslave him. This becomes her "overvalued idea"—a thought that dominates all others, born from a kernel of rationality but exaggerated to an extreme degree.

Harley meticulously studies Arthur's history and has herself admitted to the same psychiatric hospital. From that point on, she does everything in her power to bind him to her. It is likely that Harley exhibits traits of a narcissistic personality disorder. She shows no genuine interest in the feelings of others; her entire focus is on gaining attention and worship. For her, the emotionally vulnerable but wildly popular Arthur Fleck is not a person to be loved but an opportunity. He is the key to realizing her own dreams of grandeur. In her own words, she didn't need Arthur, only the "Joker" and the queen she could become by his side.

The Mechanics of a Toxic Bond

To achieve her goal, Harley pulls the Joker into a state of love addiction. While not an official diagnosis, psychologists recognize it as a distinct phenomenon. The first sign is an inability to cope with separation. In psychiatry, this is known as withdrawal syndrome. When the partner is gone, all energy is focused on reuniting. We see this when Arthur, after an explosion, bypasses those offering help and runs straight back to Harley, falling directly into her trap. He is consumed by thoughts of her, a clear sign of obsession.

Harley masterfully reinforces his delusions of grandeur, pushing him toward acts that attract more attention. A conversation in an isolation cell reveals the depth of her manipulation. When the Joker admits his educational limitations and his need for a law book to defend himself, Harley dismisses his concerns, telling him he can do whatever he wants and should never doubt himself. This is textbook manipulation. As a result, Arthur loses control of himself—another criterion of love addiction. Harley now directs his life, even lying about being pregnant to solidify her control. Arthur is left with no choice but to follow her lead, admitting that even if their entire story is a fabrication, he will do anything just to be near her.

But why does his critical thinking fail him? Why trust her after such deceit? The answer lies in the physiological mechanisms of falling in love combined with a predisposition to dependent behavior. When we fall in love, the activity in our frontal cortex, which governs critical thinking, decreases. Meanwhile, emotional centers flood the brain with dopamine, serotonin, and other neurotransmitters. We call this wearing "rose-colored glasses."

Harley exploits this by making Arthur believe they are kindred spirits, fulfilling his desperate need to be understood. He falls in love, believes he is loved in return, and then she disappears, leaving him with the suggestion that he is to blame. This is the "emotional rollercoaster." The dependence deepens when separation causes intense discomfort; the person will do anything to avoid those feelings, becoming even more attached. Harley deliberately makes each breakup painful to strengthen Arthur's bond to her. This constant cycle of euphoria and stress—approaching and then withdrawing—is a well-thought-out and cruel plan that ultimately shatters Arthur's already fragile psyche. It serves as a powerful commentary on the danger of heroizing the mentally ill, whose reality is often distorted and easily exploited by those seeking to fulfill their own agendas.

References

• Herman, Judith L. Trauma and Recovery: The Aftermath of Violence—from Domestic Abuse to Political Terror. Basic Books, 1997.

  This foundational work provides a detailed framework for understanding Complex PTSD, which arises from prolonged, repeated trauma, often in childhood. It explains how such experiences can fundamentally alter a person's personality, leading to issues with emotional regulation, identity, and relationships, which closely mirror the psychological profile of Arthur Fleck described in the article. (See Part I, "A Forgotten History," for an in-depth analysis of traumatic syndromes).

• American Psychiatric Association. Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (5th ed., DSM-5). American Psychiatric Publishing, 2013.

  This manual is the primary authority for psychiatric diagnoses. The criteria for Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD) described within it align with Harley Quinn’s characterization in the article: a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, a need for admiration, and a lack of empathy for others. Her exploitation of Arthur for personal gain is a classic manifestation of these traits. (See the section on "Personality Disorders," Cluster B).

• Peele, Stanton, and Archie Brodsky. Love and Addiction. Taplinger Publishing Company, 1975.

  This seminal book was among the first to argue that addiction is not limited to substances and can extend to relationships. It details how a "love addict" becomes pathologically dependent on another person to the detriment of their own well-being. The authors describe the patterns of obsession, loss of control, and withdrawal that characterize such relationships, providing a theoretical basis for the "love addiction" dynamic between Arthur and Harley. (See Chapters 3 and 4, which outline the characteristics of addictive love).