The Joker's wife was a woman who, according to the Joker, had married him in years prior to his assault on Gotham City.
History
The Joker threatened Rachel Dawes at Harvey Dent's fundraiser party by holding a knife to her face. After asking if she was troubled by his scars, he rhetorically asked if she wanted to know how he received them. The Joker then related the following story, either an historical anecdote, or merely a tall tale, and possibly a combination of the two:
The man who would later be known as the Joker had a young wife who was a gambler. She borrowed from loan sharks, and after being unable to repay them due to her lost money, they cut her face, resulting in disfiguring scars. Some time later, "Joker" then proceeded to place a razor blade on his cheeks and created an extension of a smile, known popularly as a Glasgow Smile or a Chelsea Grin. He informed her he did it to show her that her disfigured appearance did not bother him, and he still loved her.
Tragically, his wife could not stand this newly disfigured face, which was likely in equal approximation to her own, and left him, never to return. This incident may have built upon "the Joker's" views of the world around him, if not being the major beginning factor. Whether or not this incident or his wife as he described her were real, remains unverifiable as the Joker was prone to relating conflicting anecdote's as to his facial scars' origin.
Behind the scenes
- To enhance the popularity and mystery of the Joker's characters, his creators may never wish to reveal, or create, a true backstory explaining many aspects of his origins as his criminal reinvention as the Joker, including his cheek scars. They may or may not have been inflicted in the incident(s) that didn't kill him, but "made him stranger".