Cultural fascination with serial killers continues to proliferate, yet little research has been done exploring the roots of this macabre obsession. In this paper, I seek to understand the root of our culture's fascination with killers, and the effects that this media has on its fans, their loved ones, and the victims' families. Our inability to unite seemingly incompatible facets of the same person—the typical, family-oriented person on the surface versus the hidden identity of a sadistic killer—is one of the most confounding, and thus intriguing, traits of serial killers. Many of them are represented as the \"boy-next-door\" archetype, and people are perturbed by their external normalcy as they begin to see the killer as someone potentially proximate to them. The stereotypical criminal is dramatically othered and dehumanized, so when serial killers are framed as like us, the fascination is heightened as the killer is seen as a person, rather than a \"monster.\" This also contributes to the sense of identification many people feel with serial killers: we all harbor anger and frustration, and many believe that we all have the capacity for evil dormant within us. This exacerbates our fascination with those who live out these evil actions as their reality: we wonder where the line between ourselves and the incomprehensible other begins. Through the lens of two investigative crime TV shows, Des and Mindhunter, I demonstrate the potential dangers posed by proximity to serial killers, as identification with the killer begins to threaten personal identity. This leads into an exploration of the role of empathy with regard to violent offenders. While generally a positive trait, I ultimately conclude that empathizing too strongly with those who have committed acts of violence can distract from the harm done to their victims and threaten the identities and relationships of those who are absorbed into the killers' orbits.
"},{"label":"Degree","value":["Bachelor of Arts with Departmental Honors"]},{"label":"Author-supplied Keywords","value":["Serial killers","Empathy","True crime"]},{"label":"Administrative Note","value":"Drupal Node ID: 23757