Portraying Serial Killers As Celebrities, Heroes, and Icons in Modern Media Forms Research Paper

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Analysis of Psycho

Alfred Hitchcock directed a movie called Psycho in 1960. The movie is a horror laced with lots of psychological suspense. The movie storyline is developed from Psycho, a novel written by Robert Block and published in 1959. The novel, on its part, drew inspiration from Ed Gein murders. Psycho has been widely regarded as the first-ever slasher film. Although it got mixed reviews at the onset, it is now considered one of the greatest films produced by Hitchcock, and indeed one of the greatest films of all time.

Indeed, Antony Perkins, the Ed Gein (Norman Bates), was rated the second-best movie villain of all time by the American Film Institute (Gorshin, 2014). According to common parlance, Norman Bates suffers from Disassociate Identity Disorder ( DID), which was earlier known as multiple personality disorder. This view is interesting in all its weight and breadth. It is also a compelling psychological finding due to its shock value (Wilhelmi, 2020). This essay aims to contrast two analyses to determine the most befitting version that exposes serial killers' true characters.

Comparing and Contrasting Movie Psycho and Diagnosis of Norman Bates

There are many cases through the show where dissociative identity disorder indications have been made. Before developing another personality, alterations were made to his character and behavior, which linked him to a higher chance of developing the dissociative disorder. He could look at you while expressing no emotion at all. He adopted a stiff posture, which suggested flatness. In another scene, he claims that he feels powerless concerning his actions and words. Such a stance demonstrates a depersonalized demeanor.

Amnesia is yet another way to diagnose DID. There were numerous instances in which Norman could not remember what he had done or said when the second personality was in charge. He refers to such periods as when he had blackouts. Such blackouts occur in the middle of a stressful or traumatic encounter. Norman gates undergo sexual intercourse or when confronted with his past murderous recollections (Dawar, 2018).

The third criterion is through the disruption of one's normal functioning. This manifested in Norman's emotional and social relationships. The other personality always threw him off balance and prevented him from getting close to others apart from his mother. Socially, he had become awkward, although there were a couple of instances when he felt drawn to some women, but when they tried to move closer, he would recline into his protective cocoon and murder them.

The fourth criterion points out that people with MPD will commonly indicate a comorbid diagnosis.

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In the movie, Norman Bates suffered from anxiety, depression, and often a seizure that wasn't epileptic. These instances were reflected in the implications of suffering from MPD. Fifthly, patients with MPD should not show such symptoms because of the abuse of drugs. According to Show (Dawar, 2018), Norman Bates has never abused drugs.

Diverse Perspectives and interpretation of Real World Connections or Behaviors

According to Sigmund Freud (1919), one of the reasons that change something scary into an uncanny one is the castration complex. In the Norman Bates case, the uncanny aspect emanates from the Oedipus complex unsolved.…

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…our time. However, the sequels of the movie changed him into a hero. One of the reasons why Norman succeeded in his portrayal of the bad guy in Psycho is that he appeared outwardly as a likable person, even though he oddly had a taxidermy penchant. Antony Perkins easily reflected the image of vulnerability and innocence; it helped create the perception that Norman was a good person.

Such a playout was designed by Hitchcock to make it even more shocking when Bates, or his alternative persona, turned out to be the serial killer when the film concludes. As is the trend, serial killers turn out to be those who are least suspected to be capable of committing such crimes. Indeed, Norman Bates perfectly plays into such a frame. Psycho concludes with Norman's normal side, apparently gone forever, even as `` Mother`` plans to convince medical experts that she is no longer dangerous (Kennedy,2020).

Conclusion

It may be hard to understand the condition of Norman Bates, but we relate with the character as a person, tortured son, an unfortunate man, and beguiled owner of a motel. We see him as unfortunate because he is born in a trap he cannot escape from. Psycho toys with our fears of running mad as it makes us relate more closely with Norman Bates.

However, when the revelation comes up in the end, we cringe and recoil, horrified. We do so because it is hard to reconcile how we could identify with a villain such as Norman. Such an ingenious plot is the work of Hitchcock in the movie,….....

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