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Mental disorder and violence theory
Emotional and psychological effects of guilt
Effects of guilt
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Gilligan also believe that guilt is part of violence. Shame causes violence but guilt inhibits it. He believe that when an individual is so disrespected, abuse, humiliated and lacking in self-love, behaved as if they could not emotionally afford to love others, as if they need to conserve the love that they were capable of giving. For that reason those individuals who are capable of killing is because they are incapable of love and feeling guilty of what they did; remorse for others. Depending on the degree of pain they cause to the other individual, the less of feeling of guilt and remorse is present. The motivation of violence is to gain pride and abolish the feeling of shame and humiliation. When an individual gains pride the feeling of being rewarded, powerful and respected is the feeling they gain when they hurt others, naturally that is the feeling that every human wants to have (Gilligan, 2003). Is like a circle, the lacking of empathy is because of the guilt they feel by others. Starting with susceptible to shame which leads to the lack of love to others and then it leads to ...
These two men, both coming from different backgrounds, joined together and carried out a terrible choice that rendered consequences far worse than they imagined. Living under abuse, Perry Smith never obtained the necessary integrity to be able to pause and consider how his actions might affect other people. He matured into a man who acts before he thinks, all due to the suffering he endured as a child. Exposed to a violent father who did not instill basic teachings of life, Smith knew nothing but anger and misconduct as a means of responding to the world. He knew no other life. Without exposure to proper behavior or responsible conduct, he turned into a monster capable of killing an entire family without a blink of remorse. In the heat of the moment, Perry Smith slaughtered the Clutter family and barely stopped to take a breath. What could drive a man to do this in such cold blood? The answer lies within his upbringing, and how his childhood experiences shaped him to become the murderer of a small family in Holcomb, Kansas. ¨The hypothesis of unconscious motivation explains why the murderers perceived innocuous and relatively unknown victims as provocative and thereby suitable targets for aggression.¨ (Capote 191). ¨But it is Dr. Statten´s contention that only the first murder matters psychologically, and that when
Guilt is the inevitable consequence that comes along after committing a crime and is a feeling that can paralyze and tear one’s soul away. However, it is evident that an individual’s feelings of guilt are linked to what they believe is right or wrong. In Robertson Davies Fifth Business, guilt is a principal theme in the novel and its effects have a major toll on the lives and mental state of many characters. Throughout the novel, it is apparent that the values and morals instilled within childhood shape an individual’s personality, as exhibited by the different ways the characters within the novel respond when faced with feelings of guilt. The literary elements Davies utilizes in the passage, from pages fifteen to sixteen, introduce the theme of guilt and display the contrast in how
A society that presumes a norm of violence and celebrates aggression, whether in the subway, on the football field, or in the conduct of its business, cannot help making celebrities of the people who would destroy it. Unfortunately, such acts of rampage have become a prevalent factor in the Canadian culture. As a result of endless media coverage, Canadians now are constantly bombarded with numerous images of violence. Many of which often portray a victim avenging their opponent by means of force. Thus, indoctrinating a nation of individuals to believe that it is only through aggression that problems can be resolved. Rather than being punished for acts of violence, those who commit such offenses are often praised for their “heroism”. In addition, the success of films like The Godfather, Gladiator, and Troy further aid in reinstating the fact that we live in a society that praises violence. Furthermore, this ideology allows for individuals to partake in violent acts with little or no backlash from ones community. However, when an individual strays away from the “norm”, they are likely to then be viewed as a deviant. Such cases of rejection within a society, are often seen in the portrayal of serial killers. Although our society tends to condone violence when it is directed towards a specific individual(s), it does not allow the killing of innocent bystanders. Instead, crimes that are targeted against a number of people over a long period of time, entail the harshest forms punishments under the law. Sadly, in executing the law for said crimes, those in charge often face much public scrutiny. Such occurrences were apparent in the faulty murder investigations of Canada's most notorious serial killer Robert Pickton. This is due to the ...
This culture of, if you aren’t succeeding in everything then you didn’t try hard enough, creates intense shame for those who can’t succeed, for outcasts already dealing with shame of differing from the norm. Gilligan calls our culture a culture of shame, as opposed to a culture of guilt. The difference is that guilt is internalized; the feeling that you’ve done wrong can’t be reconciled by forcing others to respect you because guilt comes from oneself. This is why in such guilt cultures like Japan, Gilligan theorizes, that suicide is much more common since the only way to alleviate guilt would be to reconcile the wrongdoing or eliminate the source of guilt, themselves. This culture of shame is precisely what James Gilligan proposes we must fix in order to prevent violence. He believes that in order to stop people from using violence to take back respect, or in some cases, to beget fear in lieu of respect, we must give them ways to be respected
One area of research in psychopathy focuses on the set of structures in the brain known as the limbic system, but more specifically on a structure known as the amygdala. According to neuropsychology class slides, the amygdala is involved in emotions and storage of emotions in memory as well as the fear response when encountering threatening environmental stimuli. Osumi and colleagues (2012) note that the affective and interpersonal facets of psychopathy, such as cold-heartedness and lack of empathy, which are thought to be the core features of psychopathy, are associated with reduced activity in the amygdala. This is coupled with the fact that a less functional amygdala is associated with a psychopathic individual’s exhibition of antisocial behaviors, at least in part because he will not perceive the threat of punishment as a consequence of his actions. So whether it be the acts against other people or the acts of justice that may be carried out against the perpetrator, the psychopath will perceive both as less significant, as compared to a non-psychopathic individual. (Osumi et al., 2012)
Though individuals live by and react similarly to various situations, not all people have the same morals. I can relate to instances where I have supported a belief, regardless of the criticisms that arise, all because my choice is based upon personal morals. The same can be said regarding Debra J. Dickerson as she expresses in her novel, An American Story. In Carol Gilligan’s “Concepts of Self and Morality,” she states, “The moral person is one who helps others; goodness in service, meeting one’s obligations and responsibilities to others, if possible without sacrificing oneself” (170). After considering this statement, I strongly feel that Gilligan’s proposal lacks the depth to accurately characterize the moral person, but I am able to accept the argument raised by Joan Didion. Her essay entitled, “On Morality,” clearly provides a more compelling and acceptable statement in describing the moral person by saying, “I followed my own conscience, I did what I thought was right” (181). Joan Didion’s proposal is precise and acceptable. It is obvious that as long as people follow what they believe is the right thing to do, and approach the situation maturely, their actions can be considered examples of morality, and they can then be considered moral human beings.
The proposal of Robert Agnew’s General Strain Theory in explaining criminal deviance is based on three concepts. The first concept is that people are not naturally inclined to commit crimes. Rather, their transition towards deviant behavior begins when they experience strain. The second concept is that once strain is present, depending on the severity of the stain, a person becomes victim to their own negative emotions like anger, jealousy, and frustration. Their response to those negative emotions may expedite their transition. The third concept looks at a person’s ability to cope with the strain and negative emotions. If a person has poor coping abilities they tend to become overwhelmed by the strain and the negative emotions they are feeling as a result of strain. Poor coping abilities may cause someone to commit crime in hopes of rectifying their situation. (Agnew, 2011)
This article also makes referral comparison to another genre of film “Unlike in other genres (detective, thriller), there is usually neither sympathy for the victims of Evil nor admiration for heroes opposing it.”(Kord, 2016) Violence is what triggers the guilt in the audience and what starts to make them speculate of their morality. “Violence may well be the horror film’s way of hacking away at its audience to engage with guilt. Admit who you are. Admit what you did.” (Kord, 2016) The author questions other theorists with an ample amount of valid research from validated
In the beginning of this excerpt when Synge relates the anecdote of the Connaught man who killed his father, he suggests that this experience relates the “primitive feeling of these people…that a man will not do wrong unless he is under the influence of a passion which is as irresponsible as a storm on the sea…[and] they can see no reason why he should be dragged away and killed by the law.” While this seems to be an accurate assumption for the majority of cases, this is a potentially dangerous statement. The premise of this argument rests on the notion that the accused murderer feels remorse and is forever changed by their action. Yet this argument falls apart and would be frankly naive if the person who committed the crime is deranged and knowingly and unreservedly killed the person. If this were
After his often lonely, confusing and rough childhood, John Elder Robinson was finally diagnosed with asperger syndrome. The reason being that the disorder wasn't even existent the english DSM IV until the 1980's. He grew up being called names like "psychopath" and "psycho". So much so that, he began to believe what those people had labeled him as. Others would tell him that some of the worst murderer's in history behaved as he did. They had no empathy. It wasn't that John Elder didn't have empathy, he just didn't understand how to show it. (Robinson, 2007)
Human nature is a conglomerate perception which is the dominant liable expressed in the short story of “A Tell-Tale Heart”. Directly related, Edgar Allan Poe displays the ramifications of guilt and how it can consume oneself, as well as disclosing the nature of human defense mechanisms, all the while continuing on with displaying the labyrinth of passion and fears of humans which make a blind appearance throughout the story. A guilty conscience of one’s self is a pertinent facet of human nature that Edgar Allan Poe continually stresses throughout the story. The emotion that causes a person to choose right from wrong, good over bad is guilt, which consequently is one of the most ethically moral and methodically powerful emotion known to human nature. Throughout the story, Edgar Allan Poe displays the narrator to be rather complacent and pompous, however, the narrator establishes what one could define as apprehension and remorse after committing murder of an innocent man. It is to believe that the narrator will never confess but as his heightened senses blur the lines between real and ...
Serial killers are defined to “be driven by instinct and desire to kill.” In a study done in 2000, Dr, Richard Davidson says, “people with a large amount of aggression – in particular people who have committed aggressive murders or have a social disorder – have almost no brain activity in the orbital frontal cortex or the anterior cingulated cortex while activity in the amyglade continued perfectly. The orbital frontal cortex and the anterior congulated cortex control emotional impulses while the amyglade controls reactions to fear.” Davidson concludes his research claiming that although environment can and will affect a serial killer’s thoughts, it is a killer’s genetic makeup that inevitably creates murderous thoughts.
James Rachels expresses his thoughts on what a satisfactory moral theory would be like. Rachels says a “satisfactory theory would be realistic about where human beings fit in the grand scheme of things” (Rachels, 173). Even though there is an existing theory on how humans came into this world there is not enough evidence to prove the theory to be correct. In addition to his belief of knowing how our existence came into play, he also has a view on the way we treat people and the consequences of our actions. My idea of a satisfactory moral theory would be treating people the way we wish to be treated, thinking of what results from our doings, as well as living according to the best plan.
Deontological moral theory is a Non-Consequentialist moral theory. While consequentialists believe the ends always justify the means, deontologists assert that the rightness of an action is not simply dependent on maximizing the good, if that action goes against what is considered moral. It is the inherent nature of the act alone that determines its ethical standing. For example, imagine a situation where there are four critical condition patients in a hospital who each need a different organ in order to survive. Then, a healthy man comes to the doctor’s office for a routine check-up. According to consequentialism, not deontology, the doctor should and must sacrifice that one man in order to save for others. Thus, maximizing the good. However, deontological thought contests this way of thinking by contending that it is immoral to kill the innocent despite the fact one would be maximizing the good. Deontologists create concrete distinctions between what is moral right and wrong and use their morals as a guide when making choices. Deontologists generate restrictions against maximizing the good when it interferes with moral standards. Also, since deontologists place a high value on the individual, in some instances it is permissible not to maximize the good when it is detrimental to yourself. For example, one does not need to impoverish oneself to the point of worthlessness simply to satisfy one’s moral obligations. Deontology can be looked at as a generally flexible moral theory that allows for self-interpretation but like all others theories studied thus far, there are arguments one can make against its reasoning.
In conclusion, there are many factors that can affect a person’s mind on the acceptability of homicide, as well as the capability to commit homicide. Religion, culture, and socio-economic status are just a few of the factors but play a major role. They are used as either a crutch or an ideal solution, depending upon their raising. Each of these factors changes how a person can perceive themselves and what they do. Basically, a person is controlled by past experiences and cultural, religious, and socio-economic status influences. Throughout this paper, evidence supports that a person does not just go out and kill someone, something in their life has influenced them to do such an atrocious act to another person.