Psychopathy In War: The Importance Of War

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Humans, in general, are relatively destructive creatures. Since the dawn of man, bloodshed is common. War is, by definition, a human creation. However, humans rationalize war with more noble ideals: courage, pride, etc. Nations raise their warriors up as heroes, and in some cases, treat them like gods; Samurai, Aztec, Gladiator, Marine. All warriors from different times and all wielding different weapons. But all have one core thing in common. All are murderers. What sets these men apart from criminals? Is it a cause? Does fighting for a country forgive the many families left without a loved one? The answer to these questions is simply a matter of human emotion. Like most humans, most of these warriors had empathy for their opponents …show more content…

In fact, most possess an extremely charismatic way of dealing with others. “In addition to their aggression and violence, psychopaths are thought to be chronic deceivers, often lying for instrumental reasons such as to escape punishment” (Porter 2006). Psychopathy is often accompanied by pathological lying, in which the subject deceives many others for no obvious reason. However, this does not discredit the number of liars who use deception as a form of allure, in which trust is built. As a result, the lies can vary from what the person did on an afternoon to what the person does for a living. Minor “white lies” can quickly change into larger ones, leading the victim to question everything. This manipulation, coupled with the psychopath 's charismatic personality, is key in how cult leaders gain a steady …show more content…

This brings the character on screen to life and enables a deeper suspension of disbelief. Naturally, the characters can be studied more deeply and in some cases, these characters can be psychologically diagnosed, both villain and hero alike. In perhaps one of the most shocking displays of psychopathy in film, Anton Chigurh shows how dark a psychopath 's mind can delve. In the 2007 Coen Brother 's film, No Country for Old Men based on a book by Cormac MacCarthy, Vietnam veteran Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon the remnants of a drug deal gone wrong. He finds and takes two million dollars, which brings psychopathic killer Anton Chigurh after him to recover the money. Chigurh is a textbook example of a psychopath, killing any and all that get in his way with no

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