Kimaya Khurana - Blog #3 - "Mask"
"Mask"
Manipulative. Deceptive. Predatory. Sadistic.
They seek control. They can hide who they truly are. They view people as objects, targets, a “trophy” for them to keep. They desire pleasure.
There are multiple theories that exist to try and understand the psychology behind a “mask”. Some argue that it's due to environmental factors; some say it's because of personality traits; some say it's because of biological factors. Or some will say it's a mix of all. They all, however, will most typically have the same personality: manipulative, deceptive, predatory, sadistic. Most aren’t even psychotic; they’re real human beings who can distinguish between right and wrong and aren’t clinically considered insane.
One easy way to find the identity of a “mask” is by taking a look at their childhood. They may not be manipulative, deceptive, predatory, or sadistic at a young age. However, they may have strange interests, including “a fascination with fire, cruelty to animals, and prolonged bedwetting”. Many become “interested in pornography as teenagers and anti-social when they reach adulthood” (Edubirdie). Even this may not seem to fit the description of manipulative, deceptive, predatory, or sadistic.
Then what will?
It's the way they can easily fit into society, knowing something is wrong with them. Wearing a “mask”. The way they can be organized: having a crime scene picked out, knowing to take the weapon with them, and to move the body instead of broadcasting the scene. Or even they can be the opposite and not take the weapon and not move the body, almost signaling that they’re proud of what they achieved and want to display it like it's art. They may even be disorganized, slowly becoming psychotic, and truly becoming the true definition of manipulative, deceptive, predatory, and sadistic.
I think that to be manipulative, deceptive, predatory, and sadistic would mean to have an antisocial personality disorder. A sociopath. The way they don’t feel anything. The way they don’t feel remorse. The way one could argue, they don't even have a life: no job, no family. The way there is no safety for him or others around them. The way you can just tell something is wrong with them. Constantly looking for weaknesses, having a mindset that “they had it coming”. No loyalty, no guilt, no empathy. Just manipulative, deceptive, predatory, sadistic.
What makes a serial killer?
There may not even be a straight answer to this question. Research shows it can be factors around them, such as “nature vs. nurture”. Or maybe they're just a sociopath. They can be human, or they may not just feel anything. They can be clinically diagnosed or not. Half the time in movies, you can see when a serial killer is revealed, it's so shocking because they have a life. They have a job, they have a family. They're a “mask”.
I absolutely love the constant repetition of the words manipulative, deceptive, predatory and sadistic. It helps tell a story throughout the whole blog, while keeping it all connected and tying it back to those specific personality traits. As I mentioned in another blog's comments, I am fascinated with serial killers and the psychology behind them. Going through the Jack the Ripper museum and seeing real pictures, real artifacts, and reenactments of certain situations, makes me wonder how exactly one person, one man was able to get away with killing at least five women in an absolutely brutal and violent way without ever getting caught? If we ever knew who he was, we would be able to study and at least attempt to understand his way of thinking and processing information. Like you mentioned, it could go back to his childhood, or perhaps be propelled by a psychological disorder. The possibilities are endless, and since he has definitely died himself, out of the cards to even think about dissecting. The masks these people wear are scary, and many might not be able to tell that it is in fact, a mask. This all just goes to show that the world and the people in it are unknown, and definitely unpredictable.
ReplyDeleteOh, Kimaya. Thank you for informing me about the intricate identities of serial killers. It’s so weird, everyone in our cohort wrote about some sort of sadistic or eerie topic (except Tanisha, hers was awesomely optimistic). Pretty interesting if I do say so myself. Adding to your point about factors of a serial killer, according to the National Library of Medicine ((https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8374040/)(I know it’s very long, just scroll to the bottomish)) 4.5% (or around 1 in 22) adults meet the criteria for psychopathy. That’s beyond demonic. I know we both know way more than 22 adults and over our 16 years, it’s kind of impossible for us to not have met some sort of psychopath or sociopath. From 1st grade to 10th, we’ve had 30 different teachers (yes, I know that’s not how it works and teachers are a specific group of people and I can’t equate 30 teachers to a random group of 30 people, blah, blah, but it’s an interesting train of thought). On the other hand, statistically it’s nearly impossible for at least one to not be a psycho/sociopath. Very freaky. But (again) as you said, people like that and serial killers can be oddly charming. I’ve heard (weirdly too frequently) about how some killers were just so charming; you would have never even known! Just, you know, the way he had this way with words, and was just charitable, and SO funny… I would have NEVER thought the killer was Jimmy!! Though they’re usually about serial killers years ago, (Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, etc.), but even now, all you hear from family and friends is “there were no signs!” Also, some murderers (like Luigi Mangione and Chris Watts) get extremely romanticized in media and end up getting all this (completely unnecessary) idealizing attraction from the general public. Did everyone just forget they literally took a person’s life? And I’ve noticed this mostly happens with male criminals, not so much females. I guess it’s easier to romanticize a male murderer and associate that with a big, strong, handsome man vs. a sick, stupid, demented, woman (even if they committed the exact same crime!). It’s so dangerous to idealize literal criminals, and I think that perpetuates a sense of “hero” mentality to be able to push a sick person over the edge into committing a crime. I went on a long tangent but the point I was trying to make was that I thought your entire blog raises the question of, if not only are serial killers kind of blending into the general population, but also somewhat romanticized… that’s kind of raunchy.
ReplyDeleteFor "On the other hand, statistically it’s nearly impossible for at least one to not be a psycho/sociopath." I meant "On the other hand, statistically it’s nearly impossible for at least one or our past classmates not to be a psycho/sociopath."
DeleteI enjoy how your blog utilizes repetition with the words "manipulative", "deceptive", "predatory", and "sadistic." All these words have a negative connotation and placing them at the beginning of your blog helps the reader receive the apathetic tone regarding people who put up a "mask." These words guide the blog's direction despite the topic shifts amongst the paragraphs. The words provide clarity for what a "mask" may be and adds emphasis on the specific points you draw attention too regarding people's ability to shift amongst society.
ReplyDeleteTowards the end of your blog you elaborated on how people with masks are prone to becoming a danger to those around them due to their tendency on developing antisocial personality disorder. Upon further research I learned that people can develop this disorder due to the environment they were raised in as well as genetic or hereditary factors that contribute to their inherited traits. This allows me to believe that the "mask" that people develop could be not just from their own premonition but also from generations before them. Due to factors such as generational trauma, people could develop masks before they can even compute that they have.
Overall I agree that people can hide their true selves. You can never really know who someone truly is because people, whether they know it or not, have created a mask.