Charles Manson
While it is true that psychoanalytic theory can be used to help a wide range of individuals, perhaps the most interesting use for this technique comes in attempting to analyze those that have committed crimes so heinous that they are considered to be among society's most undesirable citizens. Considering those that fall into this category, one immediately recalls the crimes of Charles Manson and his devoted group of followers, "the family." By using psychoanalytic theory and various other criminal justice theories, one is able to scratch away the surface of famous criminals through thorough research and explication in a custom research paper. Paper Masters can help you write about and understand the personality type of famous criminal and sociopath, Charles Manson. For example, the following criminal justice theories have been used to explain the crimes and mind of Charles Manson:
Born with an uncanny ability to dominate others, between the years of 1969 and 1971, Manson and his family carried out nine murders in the name of Jesus Christ. What was most alarming about the crimes was the grotesque manner in which they were carried out. Describing the crime scene at the "Tate murders" Bugliosi writes that the officers had seen death. "But nothing like this. 10050 Cielo Drive was a human slaughterhouse".
Manson and the Insanity Plea
To escape prosecution, Manson attempted to plead insanity at his trial. His defense claimed that Manson had suffered years of abuse at the hands of his mother and various other relatives. Although Manson's defense did not describe tortuous physical abuse, they did note a long history of neglect and abandonment by his mother: According to her own relatives, Kathleen would leave the child with obliging neighbors for an hour, then disappear for days or weeks .
Lack of love, a stable home environment, and the continual stream of neglect that Manson was subject to throughout his childhood invariably played a role in the development of his personality. Utilizing psychoanalytic theory one could effectively argue that Manson spent a considerable amount of his childhood and adolescence feeling like he had no control over his life or the direction that it took. Being bounced from neighbor to neighbor to neighbor and relative to relative, Manson has no sense of stability in his life. This desire for stability and family lead Manson to effectively learn how to control those around him.
Manson's Control Issues
Arguably, Manson found satisfaction in being able to dominate those around him. Once he was able to establish this type of control over his environment, it seems as if he needed to take his exercise one step further, by forcing those he controlled to kill for him. While this is an extreme extension of his childhood treatment, many psychologists maintain that for those who seek control, killing is perhaps the most incredible form of satisfaction. For Manson it was not only the ability to kill, it was the ability to control those that killed for him.