The Psychology of Dexter - Bella DePaulo [1]
But what if none of that came naturally? That’s one of the most tantalizing questions posed by Dexter. Sure, it’s fun to think about murderers and psychopaths and what makes them tick. But we’ve probably all pondered that at times. In your life before Dexter, though, did you ever consider what it would take to pass as an ordinary human if you didn’t have the same feelings and needs and desires as everyone around you?
The show is seeded with tiny bursts of surprise and delight, as Dexter fumbles the most ordinary human reactions and mangles routine social interactions. Then we’re charmed in an entirely different way when Dexter says or does exactly the right thing, even when we know he’s just faking it or mimicking someone else.
Season after season, the writers of Dexter address some of the most profound questions about human behavior. For example: What determines who we are and who we become? We are all products of genetic roulette, but no self-respecting scientist believes in genetic determinism. We inherit tendencies, but our environments, including the important people in our lives, shape those inclinations.
Some of the most pessimistic predictions in the writings of psychologists are about psychopaths. For a long time, the prevailing view was that little could be done to set them on a constructive life path. More recently, though, that perspective has been challenged, including by a number of the contributors to this book.
You will find among these chapters the argument that Harry really blew it with Dexter. He thought Dex was doomed to a lifetime of irresistible impulses to kill—but he was wrong. He could have guided Dex in an entirely different direction. Maybe Dex is not a full-blown psychopath after all but merely has psychopathic tendencies.
Harry had the opportunity to shepherd his foster son while Dexter was still young. To many psychologists, those early years are the crucial ones, especially for children whose little lives have already been so sodden with trauma. The Dexter we fans see is an adult. Is there still hope for him at this (psychologically) late date? That’s another question addressed in this book.
Dexter has had his angels. Camilla and Rita were there for him in seasons past, and Deb has been there all along. From psychological research and theory we know what these people could do in order to draw Dexter away from his homicidal urges. Eventually we will see if Deb, building on the work that Camilla and Rita have already done, will succeed.
Another fundamental question addressed by the writers of Dexter concerns the nature of evil. Should we think of Dexter as evil because he kills people, or is he redeemed by his choice of victims? There are so many nefarious characters on the show: the criminals Dexter targets; the murderers without a code who are hunted down by the justice-seekers of Miami Metro; the men such as Miguel who tread on one side of the legal line in their public life but descend into atrocity in private; the crazed characters such as Lila; and the despicable ones, like Paul. We can rank order the wickedness of their demonic deeds, can’t we?
Maybe. But some of the contributors to this collection will shake your assumptions. Do you think Dexter is way better than Paul? That Paul was abusive but Dex was not? Gong! Maybe you’re wrong. Do you think that the certifiable psychopaths are the scariest of criminals? You will find within these pages an argument that it is the most ordinary among us who have the potential to inflict the greatest harm.
Even before I read all of the other chapters in this book, I found myself questioning my initial impressions of Dexter as I wrote my chapter on his deceptions. Dexter, I would begin to say, doesn