Attracted to Evil: The Hybristophiliac
by Tina Glasneck
Every day we are almost beat upside the head with tales
of horrible crimes: murders, rapes, torturing and armed robberies. Yet, while many of us gasp and shake our
heads in outrage, others feel a deadly attraction. It is when the ultimate bad
boy becomes an object of intense desire.
As you may know, my research takes me everywhere and
I believe that to create believable characters, I also need to understand them.
This month, my research has broached a topic I was unfamiliar with by name, but familiar with by concept.
We
all have our kink?
Hybristophilia, also known as the Bonnie and Clyde
syndrome, referencing the dynamic crime duo of the 1930s, is nothing new, and the
most popular case thereof, dates back to the 1890s.
With the romanticizing of darkness, our once
hardened shell has become more accepting of finding the barbaric and atrocious
appealing, evident by the rising trend of hybristophilia. By performing an internet search of it, you’ll
notice that this paraphilia has been playing in the background of society for a
while, but also that it is rising in the limelight.
Hybristophilia , as defined by sexologist, Professor
John Money, is "a paraphilia of
the marauding/predatory type in which sexuerotic arousal and facilitation and
attainment of orgasm are responsive to and contingent on being with a partner
known to have committed an outrage or crime, such as rape, murder, or armed robbery." Statically, women are known to suffer from this
syndrome more than men.
The hybristophiliac seeks out companionship with
violent criminals and is most known for their fan letters to serial killers,
and are often referred to as serial killer groupies. In their letters, they often
express their love and devotion. In fact, it is estimated that a once notorious
serial killer, who shall remain nameless, “received about two hundred fan
letters each day from female admirers” while incarcerated.
There are two main categories or types of hybristophiliacs: passive and aggressive.
The passive hybristophiliac is not serial killer fan because of her
overwhelming interest in the crimes committed by the criminal, but because of her
exaggerated attraction to the ultimate “bad boy.” Somewhere between fan letter
and her knowledge of her idol’s crimes, she convinces herself that the
perpetrator is either innocent, as in he didn't do it; or, he been reformed by
the criminal justice system and has changed, or, he will change because her love can be a catalyst of change, i.e., I
love him enough to make change happen. Through her love, she truly believes she
can change and rehabilitate the beast, changing his nature from feral to
domesticated.
The aggressive hybristophiliac can be a ticking time
bomb, whereby she can be involved in the crimes of her “bad boy.” According to Love Art History website, “[She is] willing to help out [her] lover with [his]
criminal agenda by luring victims, hiding bodies, covering crimes, or even
committing crimes.” As an active criminal element, she is willing to do
anything and everything she can to achieve that which she wishes to have.
When our appreciation of the anti-hero climaxes, and leaves us longing for more, and we've soaked up all that we can throughout hours of laid back entertainment, and we start to see monsters as men, we teeter on being swayed by our romanticism, until we reach the true dark side.
When our appreciation of the anti-hero climaxes, and leaves us longing for more, and we've soaked up all that we can throughout hours of laid back entertainment, and we start to see monsters as men, we teeter on being swayed by our romanticism, until we reach the true dark side.
For more information on hybristophilia, please check out the following resources:
- Bonnie and Clyde: http://qi.com/infocloud/bonnie-and-clyde
- Passion Victim, Psychology Today, http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/in-excess/201310/passion-victim
- Psychology of Hybristophilia http://lovearthistory.hubpages.com/hub/psyhparaphilia
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Women's history of fascination with the 'bad boys' has a name, Who knew? Tina did!
ReplyDeleteReally interesting, Tina!
ReplyDeleteI hope to one day locate the first evidence of hybristophilia, but as of yet, there isn't much data as to the first case (and I'm not referring to Bonnie). Gotta love the research, right? :)
ReplyDelete