Hello everybody.
Today's post is going to contain things that are potential triggers for some people (death, primarily), and links to articles referenced also contain many triggers (death, rape, etc.) so if you decide to read it or click on the links, just proceed with caution. Take care of yourself!
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Why is society so obsessed with serial killers, and death, and destruction? You may be thinking, "what?" and honestly, I am too, but not for the same reason. Many people feed off of the darkness and negativity of people who have committed and are committing absolutely horrendous crimes.
In an article in Psychology Today from 2017, author Scott A. Bonn says, "When you bring up the name of an infamous real-life predator such as
such as Ted Bundy or Jeffrey Dahmer in conversation with a group of
people, it is clear that serial killers are a popular topic. Some people
actually become gleeful while discussing them. Why is that?"
In the same article, Bonn states, "I believe that the public loves serial killers for a number of interrelated reasons. First, they are rare in the business of murder with perhaps 25 or so operating at any given time in the U.S. They and their crimes are exotic and tantalizing to people much like traffic accidents and natural disasters. Serial killers are so extreme in their brutality and so seemingly unnatural in their behavior that people are drawn to them out of intense curiosity."
In the same article, Bonn states, "I believe that the public loves serial killers for a number of interrelated reasons. First, they are rare in the business of murder with perhaps 25 or so operating at any given time in the U.S. They and their crimes are exotic and tantalizing to people much like traffic accidents and natural disasters. Serial killers are so extreme in their brutality and so seemingly unnatural in their behavior that people are drawn to them out of intense curiosity."
In this sense, it explains why so many people enjoy true-crime shows and documentaries- and often consider these things a guilty pleasure. If I ask people what kind of shows they like, it tends to be an after-thought thrown in, or someone confessing somewhat red-faced that they know it's weird, but they enjoy true-crime type shows, or even just crime shows in general.
"Dr. [Elizabeth] Rutha says this type of emotion is taught to be suppressed or is
dangerous like a guilty pleasure. She says that watching a true crime
about a brutal killing allows people to experience some of
their darkest emotions without acting on them. It also provides an
outlet to connect to fear or anger in a safe and controlled environment." is an excerpt from an article on eHealth News, and that brings up another question- is this strange obsession opening the door to more people learning how to commit horrible crimes?
In an article published by the BBC and written by Michael Bond, he talks about a man named John Schwenk, who has numerous paintings done by serial killers, not to mention many other things he has found or received from serial killers. One paragraph from this article is as follows:
"Schwenk owns thousands of letters from serial killers on death row, many of them addressed to him personally. They have sent him locks of hair, a prison shirt, a prison ID card, a set of false teeth, some unused dental floss and other oddities of dark provenance. He has got to know some of these pen pals and even considers a few of them friends. “I’m interested in what possesses somebody to kill another human being, and to do it numerous times,” he says. He acknowledges that one or two of them are 'really scary'."
"Schwenk owns thousands of letters from serial killers on death row, many of them addressed to him personally. They have sent him locks of hair, a prison shirt, a prison ID card, a set of false teeth, some unused dental floss and other oddities of dark provenance. He has got to know some of these pen pals and even considers a few of them friends. “I’m interested in what possesses somebody to kill another human being, and to do it numerous times,” he says. He acknowledges that one or two of them are 'really scary'."
This sort of perversion, this obsession, with people who have committed horrific things, is astounding. You bring up the name Jack the Ripper, Ted Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer, and people immediately know who they are, much the way you would bring up a celebrity, like Taylor Swift or Chris Hemsworth. It's strange to know how insanely popular they are that they have become a household name; and while its estimated there are only 2-dozen serial killers 'active' at any given time, who's to say that this is truly the case?
With thousands upon thousands of unsolved crimes, especially murders, who knows if some of these cases could be connected to one person- and if they are perhaps still out, blending in with the rest of society.
With thousands upon thousands of unsolved crimes, especially murders, who knows if some of these cases could be connected to one person- and if they are perhaps still out, blending in with the rest of society.
While there is nothing wrong with watching a show like CSI, or learning facts from a documentary on television, the obsession with serial killers seems wrong. You may simply be thinking, "thank God that's not me," or even that something like that could never happen to you- and while that is almost true, since relying on solved cases, the chance of it happening is very slim- it is always a possibility that someone out there could be the next victim.
Life is not a game, and it needs to be respected and revered- and serial killers, people who take away multiple lives, do not need to be.
Thank you for reading my rambling- this is just something that has been bothering me lately, with the rise of interest in crime in television, magazines, and books- people have become so desensitized that no one truly thinks about the loved ones that people have lost to these horrible people.
Ciao,
Hannah
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