Over the long weekend I started doing some unofficial researching, I guess you could call it, for my topic. I've decided to go with my first choice of the psychological study of serial killers and how they have become such a popular theme in the US. When I say "theme" I'm talking about the horror films, dramas on TV, and crime books that are so popular today. Starting with getting names of some famous and well known killers was fairly easy. There's Top 10 lists for everything on the internet now. The website that I found had the most information on each of the subjects themselves at least in layman's terms, which right now is what I'm looking at, was about.com. It seemed for the most part a reliable source of information and I was curious to see if anyone else had ever used it before.
I've narrowed my list to about 8 serial killers and will probably lower that number as the research continues.
Charles Manson, Richard Ramirez, Coral Eugene Watts, The Zodiac Killer, Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jack the Ripper, and Ed Gein. Another thought that hit me as I was copying these names down is that the names themselves are relatively unremarkable and most are common. This is of course ignoring the Zodiac Killer and the Ripper part of Jack. It is the acts of these individuals that make their names recognizable. My curiosity is why is America so set on desensitizing individuals to these acts or is it their need to understand the acts themselves? Why are they so popular?
Anyway those were my thoughts off and on this weekend while I clicked through research and TV guide descriptions.
Wow interesting topic Ame. I don't know if you were planning on explaining each serial killer and their story, but that would be probably be a lot of work. I am sure you will list them at least. But if you explain each one you might have really long papers or assignments. Which wouldn't be bad, just a lot of work for you. Maybe highlight two or three?
ReplyDeleteAbout.com is kind of like Wikipedia for me. Its got great information and scientific facts but I don't think you should use it as a source, but I really don't know. I have used it a lot in my pre research as you have, to find out facts and lists like you are saying but as a reference, eh, probably not.
I usually stray from scary things. I watch Disney movies and comedies because I don't like scary or people dying ect. I wonder what the people who produce these films are thinking like your saying, do they want to desensitize us or help people who have gone through this kind of stuff get through it? I am curious if you find out any information.
Adrienne
Hello,
ReplyDeleteI am so excited to see where you go with this topic. I think these serial killer television shows are so popular because they are outside of the norm. I understand there are quite a few serial killers but, just think of how few when comparing that number to the number of people in the world... Its pretty minuscule. I think the thing that draws people in is the horrific nature of these crimes. Everyone likes to think they are good, maybe you are "good" in comparison. But, society has a way of pointing out the bad in people to make themselves feel better.
I like the television show dexter because even though he kills people he does it for a moral reason. He is not killing innocent people, he kills the killers or "bad eggs" as I like to call them. Some call him a serial killer others a seeker of justice, I just find the twists and turns intriguing and outside the norm.
Jessica Hanifin
Ame,
ReplyDeleteJust the title of your post made me very interested in your topic! This topic reminds me of a point Atwood made in chapter four of "Negotiating with the Dead." If a man murders someone, he is a murderer; however, what happens when a writer writes about a murder and inspires someone to commit a real murder? In the latter case, should the writer be at all guilty? This goes along with the media and the popular theme of serial killers. How much are television shows and movies desensitizing viewers (or is it making viewers more cautious)? How many crimes have been committed because they were inspired by television shows and movies? Why do viewers find these types of shows so entertaining? (Personally, I will occasionally watch shows like CSI for the drama and suspense.) Like Jessica, I look forward to seeing what you learn about serial killers and if you find any information on these questions.
Julia Lieu
When I was growing up my mom always had murder mystery shows on or crime themed shows. Such as Unsolved Mysteries and Americas most wanted. It used to drive me nuts, and for a while made me somewhat scared to go outside. I knew that those people were standing in my front yard waiting to attack. However, the roles have now been reversed and I can't get enough of Criminal Minds and Snapped. I don't know what it is about these shows that keep me watching. Maybe it's a glimpse into a mind frame that I would never be able to have, or away for me to seem like I know what's important to know about these 'Killers". Kind of like I have the inside scoop of what really happens in the world of murderers. I think this is a great topic. I'm fascinated by how the mind works and how the mind adapts to understanding such horrific things and how maybe sometimes seeing things like this leads to copy cats. Different effects on different minds. It would be interesting to know.
ReplyDeleteLacy Campbell
Serial killer is a good and an attention grabber topic because these killers are found in every culture. For example you can talk about who are they? Why serial killers do the violent acts that are not acceptable by people and religion? Do they like these acts? There are many questions that you can include in your paper and try to answer them. Good luck.
ReplyDeleteRwmal Sarkees
Funny that you are doing this, I was just trying to research Charles Manson to see if I could make the subject work for my personal decision making class. Sadly I couldn't make it work and had to abandon the topic. If you are looking to narrow it down to just one interesting case, I submit a vote for Manson. How serial killers function differently than the average person is very interesting, but the amount of control that Manson had over his followers is something that has always fascinated me.
ReplyDeletePersonally, I think that we tend to be fascinated by serial killers because they satisfy some sort of carnal side of our personality. They are regular people unbridled by any form of conscious or societal norms. It is interesting to wonder how that happens, what is the real difference between them and us.
Krystal Tanner