Female Serial Killers example essay topic

Serial Murder The mind behind the crime! Thesis statement: Serial Murderers are not just murderers but also victims of the rotten hand they were dealt. Abstract I. DefinitionHistoryA. The Most Infamous Killer. Myth Theory 1. WereWolves 2.

Vampires. Causes. Serial Killer Characteristics. Theories VI.

Case Studies A. Charles Manson 1. Bibliographical Info 2. Childhood Trauma. John Wayne Gacy 1. Bibliographical Info 2. Childhood Trauma.

The Female Serial Killer IV. Closing Abstract -Thesis Statement' God, I've never done anything. Help me, help me, help me! God, why is this happening? Help Me!' ; Robert Violante screamed as the Son of Sam's. 44 caliber bullet tore through his temple (Mitchell p. 15).

At this moment Robert Violante must have asking himself why this was happening, what could cause someone to do something so atrocious? This paper examines issues related to the definition and study of serial murder. It probes the minds of some of the world's most infamous killers all the while asking the question WHY. It examines methodological issues such as problems with the FBI's so called serial murder profiling system: the fact that the serial killer stereotypes does not necessarily stand true. This paper argues that the killer is not the only one to blame for his / her actions. Together we will probe the minds of killers such as Charles Manson and John Wayne Gacy.

I ask you, 'Are they Murderers or Victims?' ; I personally have come to the conclusion that they are both murderers and victims. I. Definition: 'Serial murder'; has long been a term used to describe those human beings that repeatedly commit heinous crimes. It is rare that the average person probes the mind of a serial killer without bias. However, what lies behind the eyes of a serial killer deserves more than the cold hard look that society so often gives (A aronson, Internet). To truly understand a serial killer, we must put aside our media born misconceptions and look upon them with an unbiased attitude. A serial killer is not a person gone mad for no reason at all. A serial killer emerges from the pain and suffering of a life riddled with abuse, neglect, hormonal imbalances, and numerous other situations.

Serial murder is a disease and there are valid explanations that help us to realize that these individuals experienced events so traumatic in their early life that they became dead to their surroundings; attaining no sense of moral autonomy (Mitchell p. 23). Just listen to the definition of a serial killer. A serial killer is described as a Caucasian male in his late twenties or early thirties who kills three or more people with a cooling off period in-between. This definition is yet another example of the cold shoulder society gives these people; in this definition there is complete disregard for the problem. II. History: The Most Infamous Serial Killer!

Jack the Ripper is undoubtedly the most infamous serial killer of all. No other evokes such vivid images, the shrill cry of newsboys 'Whitechapel! Another 'orrible murder! Mutilation!' ; The fear struck into the hearts of everyone at the sight of a shadowed figure (Bardsley p. 1). Jack the Ripper murdered and raped five prostitutes in back alleys, lurking in the shadows. But in retrospect, compared to today, the murders of five prostitutes by Jack would barely make it to the head lines.

However, there are more books written on Jack than all the American presidents combined. Given the murders of modern society, we must ask ourself why we are obsessed with Jack. We are obsessed because this represents the classic 'whodunit. ' ; 'He comes from out of the fog, kills violently and quickly, and disappears without a trace. Then for no apparent reason, he satisfies his blood lust with ever increasing ferocity, culminating in a near destruction of his final victim, and then vanishes from the scene forever'; (Bardsley p. 1). The perfect ingredients for a blockbuster thriller.

Myth Theory Serial murder. It is the stuff of horror films and, in fact, the legends of vampires and werewolves may well have begun when mutilated bodies of ancient serial killers were found. Even today there are deranged vampire killers like Richard Quentin Chase, and killers who seem normal, even charming, like Ted Bundy while they conduct their own campaigns of carnage. (Mind of a Killer, intro) . Causes: SERIAL KILLER CHARACTERISTICS R. Roessler, A. Burgess, and J. Douglas executed a study involving 36 incarcerated serial killers, and compiled the data collected into a chart of childhood behavior traits among serial killers (p. 29). Frequency of Reported Behavior Indicators in Childhood BEHAVIOR # OF CHILDREN WITH BEHAVIOR PERCENTAGE WITH BEHAVIOR% Daydreaming 28 82 Compulsive Masturbation 28 82 Isolation 28 71 Chronic Lying 28 71 Enuresis (bed wetting) 22 68 Rebelliousness 27 67 Nightmares 24 67 Destroying Property 26 58 Fire Setting 25 56 Stealing 27 56 Cruelty to Children 28 54 Poor Body Image 27 52 Temper Tantrums 27 48 Sleep Problems 23 48 Assaultive to Adults 25 38 Phobias 24 38 Running Away 28 36 Cruelty to Animals 28 36 Accident Prone 24 29 Headaches 21 29 Destroying Possessions 25 28 Eating Problems 26 27 Convulsions 26 19 Self-mutilation 26 19 As you can see these characteristics in early life can be normal in a strange kind of screwed up way, or indicators of trouble yet to come.

Theories There are many theories as to what causes a man to kill. There is the killer who has a distorted perception of reality and fantasy. This person often starts off very passively fantasizing of those deeds they could never commit. e.g. Jerome Bru dos brought home a single pair of woman's high healed shoes he found in a dump. This became the beginning of a life long obsession that eventually led to serial murder (Dolan p. 37). There is also the question of insanity. It is sometimes the case that the murderer has inherited a mental illness such as schizophrenia.

This is true of Herbert Mullin who embarked on a murderous rampage to avert what he saw as an environmental catastrophe which would happen if nature didn't get the blood sacrifices it required. Experts believe that most serial murderers have a clear perception, of reality and aren't legally insane. One could go on and on with infinite theories and postulates but one thing seems to have a direct correlation with all of these examples. Serial killers are all the product of dysfunctional homes in some form or another, without the close family net to catch them when they fall into the life of a serial killer. VI. Case Studies: Charles Manson " bibliographical Info - Childhood Trauma At the very least Charles Manson could be said to have had a 'troubled childhood'; .

Charlie was an unplanned and illegitimate child. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, on November 12, 1934 to Kathleen Maddox, a sixteen year-old, unmarried mother (Schechter p. 12). She was not a picture perfect mother. She drank far too much and couldn't seem to keep herself out of trouble. As in Null Emmon's book Manson in His Own Words, Manson Describes his mother: Other writers have portrayed Mom as a teenage whore... In her search for acceptance she may have fallen in love too easily and too often, but a whore at that time?

No! ... In later years, because of hard knocks and tough times, she may have sold her body some... (p. 13) Charlie never knew his father, William Manson, who was only around long enough to give him a name and walk out the door. To add to having no father figure, his mother had this habit of disappearing for several days, if not weeks at a time. Charlie has faced some of the worse sides of mother as shown in this story:' Mom was in a caf'e one afternoon with me on her lap.

The waitress, a would-be mother without a child of her own, jokingly told my Mom she'd buy me from her. Mom replied, 'A pitcher of beer and he's yours. ' The waitress set up the beer, Mom stuck around long enough to finish it off and left the place without me. Several days later my uncle had to search the town for the waitress and take me home (Emmon's p. 25) This is just a taste of what little Charlie went through. Charlie began his self-destructive behavior at the age of nine when he was caught stealing and was sent to reform school.

This, unfortunately, had no affect on him; he continued on this path of destruction amassing a criminal record including; burglary, armed robbery, grand theft auto, evading arrest, and homosexual rape (Bardsley p. 3). Dr. Block, a psychiatrist, examined him, noting 'the marked degree of rejection, instability and psychic trauma. ' His illegitimacy, small physical size, and lack, of parental love caused him to constantly strive for status with the other boys. 'This could add up to a fairly slick institutionalized youth,' (Bardsley p. 5) No one can pin-point exactly what drives a person to kill, but one thing stands out against all, and that is that little Charlie suffered a terribly traumatizing childhood and seemed to have an intense need to call attention to himself. We must ask ourselves what caused this. Was there some thing we could have done to stop it?

As we look at the past of killers such as Manson, we can see that there are many factors that play a role in the genesis of a serial killer. For poor Charlie, it seems it may have been the environment in which he grew up. That lack of attention that he strive d to gain in childhood continued into his adult years through his terrible crimes. John Wayne Gacy Bibliographical Info - Childhood Trauma It was St. Patrick's Day and Marion Elaine Robinson Gacy and John Wayne Gacy, Sr. welcomed their first son into the world at Edgewater Hospital in 1942. John Wayne Gacy, Jr. was the second of three children. John grew up in a middle class neighborhood where he had a paper route, participated in boy scouts, and seemed to be just like any other child, but Johnny's troubles were all but normal.

John's father was a habitual alcoholic, he would come home from work everyday and lock himself in the basement where he would drink. He was not to be disturbed during this time under any circumstances. Hours later he would emerge from his basement dwelling in a drunken rage to beat his wife and children (Dolan p. 24). John Claimed his first victim in 1972, supposedly in self defense, when a young man he had sex with attacked him with a knife. He hid the body in the crawl space of his home, which would be the resting place of 33 more victims as his lust for blood intensified. So what drove John to kill?

Beaten and abused as a child by a father whose rages were fueled by alcohol consumed in the basement, John grew up to abuse and kill young men - and bury them beneath his own house. The parallels are to striking too ignore. And Gacy would violently strike the genitalia of his victims while slowly strangling them, a fact that has lead some analysts to conclude that he killed to symbolically recover the masculine power that his father had taken from him. (Dolan p. 24) V. Female Serial Killer The Female Serial Killer? Today there are 35 active serial murderers loose in the U.S. who claim one-third of the annual murder rate. Throughout the last three decades, the U.S. serial killer rate has risen 940% and it is estimated that in the next millennium it will claim an average of 11 lives a day.

The U.S. has 6% of the world's population, yet it has three-quarters the world's serial killers (Hepburn p. 2). To go along with these startling statistics, the average serial murderer is described as Caucasian male in his late twenties to early thirties. To the casual reader this is the picture of a serial killer, but this is not true. What isn't apparent to the casual reader is that a serial killer can be anyone.

Killers can be your next door neighbors. They can also be female. Contrary to popular belief there are, and always have been, female serial killers. Some even date back as far as the 1400's, such as the case of Gilles de Rais, a friend and advisor to Joan of Arc, who was executed in 1440 for killing more than 100 children.

There is also the case of Elisabeth Bathory convicted in 1611 for the killing some 650 young men for the purpose of bathing in their blood (Dolan p. 16). Today there are seven types of serial killers in the female genre: the quiet killers, black widows, angels of death, sexual predators, revenge, for-profit, and team killers. Listed below, as described in Kelleher and Kelleher's Murder Most Rare: The Female Serial Killer, are descriptions of the various types of female serial killers. 1. The quiet killer-they are every bit as lethal as male serial murderers, but we are seldom aware one is in our midst because of the low visibility of their killing 2. Black widows - a poisonous spider of the genus Latrodestus, especially the female, which devours its mate (Webster's Dictionary).

3. Angels of Death-the angel of death has been abroad throughout the land. You may almost hear the beating of her wings (Bright, Speech, 1855). 4. Sexual Predators- Predators: An organism that lives by praying on other organism (Webster's Dictionary). 5.

Revenge-' If you prick us do we bleed? If you tickle us do we not laugh? If you poison us do we not die? And if you wrong us shall we not revenge? (William Shakespeare) 6.

For profit-Crimes of which a people are ashamed constitute its real history. The same is true of man. (Jean Genet, 1973) 7. Team Killers-Team: a group organized to work together (Webster's Dictionary).

Despite her morbid ability to succeed at murder, the female serial killer has been virtually ignored in the press and media (Keller p. xi). So overlooked is this subtle criminal that it has been frequently written that America has only experienced a single female killer in its history-Aileen Wuornos. In fact, nothing could be further from the truth. (Kelleher p. xi) There may not be as many female serial killers as their male counterparts although 100 female serial killers have been identified since 1900. This may seem shocking to the casual reader, but what will shock them even more is the fact that many female serial killers are never identified. This is because the methods of these predators are far superior to those of their male counterpart; like most women they are deceitfully cunning.

'These highly allusive predators are meticulous in planing and disposing of any evidence that will link them to the crime ' (Kelleher p. 20). Due to a strong cultural bias, society often dis involves or denies the very existence of a female serial killer. Whereas the male serial killer has been regularly lionized by his outrageous exploits, the female serial killer is typically ignored, viewed as an anomaly (Kelleher p. xi) Closing: Who are these people? What makes them so different from the rest of us?

Why do they commit these shocking crimes? There are theories but no answers. Serial killers are a disturbing piece of the puzzle that we must figure out to save numerous lives in the future.