Well, that is the definition of the real mental disorder of a psychopath. They are basically people who lack empathy, and are indifferent to moral guidelines. They are really the only people who could be "true" villains, as we think of in the comic book sense. People without the disorder, even those that seem to act in very "evil" ways, tend to think that they are good people and are acting in the best interest of... whoever. Their country or the human race or their people. They are not evil to just be evil, they just recognize different things as evil than most of our society, or feel more drastic actions need to be taken for the greater good. Magneto is portrayed as this kind of villain. He does terrible things, but he thinks that he is doing them for the good of the mutants. He still is bound by moral boundaries, they have just been drastically skewed throughout his life.
you get crooks and thugs - who just want money wanna be gangsters - who just want power revenge villains - they want revenge on a certain hero or team saviour villain - like magneto or apocalypse who believe that what they do is for the greater good and villains who want to destroy everything for lolz - galactus
@Edamame: yeah... those Sabretooth can be revenge and he does whatever he has to for a paycheck, revenge for Shadowking too on the x men, at first he just was like a pickpocket owner
@Sheep-Kill: Joker's a psycho- he's driven by irrational thoughts and far-too-powerful emotions Assasains are usually in it for the money or the prestige
I think that the origin of a villian is usually a very sad story. The same is true for life. Most villians have been mistreated or wronged in some way in their past and that's what makes them lash out against whatever it is they are against. They use their past as an excuse to allow themselves to change into the villian. They almost always feel pity for themselves or their situation and use it to justify their actions. To me, in my experiences, this is the definition of a violent criminal.
Of course this doesn't include villians like Galactus or the Void. However the previous statement probably applies to many Spiderman and X-Men villians (but not them all).
It's also an interesting point that the scenario I've described above fits the Punisher perfectly. So not every character fits into this box I've made but it's just a general statement.
No one started to be a villain because he wanted to be one(except kid Karnevil), but trauma and psychological diorders, some earned, others inherited....led them to the path of not bothering with morality and smothering their conscience.... Lets face it, having a conscience is a constant non-physical pain that appears when certain actions or occasions appear in life. Your own private tormentor. The easiest way is not to have one...
@Edamame: I think it's all about the attitude Psychos are a little cooler, more collected, maybe even charming Sociopaths are a little....um....LESS collected, they live a little more on the fringe, I guess
Sociopathy and Psychopathy are so similar terms that most people do not distinguish it.....
Psychopaths ". personality disorder characterized by an abnormal lack of empathy combined with strongly amoral conduct, masked by an ability to appear outwardly normal ..Psychopaths are superficially charming, and can be excellent mimics of normal human emotion some psychopaths can blend in, undetected, in a variety of surroundings, including corporate environments. According to some, there is neither a cure nor any effective treatment for psychopathy; there are no medications that can instill empathy, while psychopaths who undergo traditional talk therapy only become more adept at manipulating others ..."
Sociopaths "...a pervasive pattern of disregard for, and violation of, the rights of others that begins in childhood or early adolescence and continues into adulthood." So Lex Luthor is a PSYCHOPATH, but LOBO is a SOCIOPATH.....
I think those that feel the need to provide an excuse for their crimes have Munchhausen's By Proxy. They want attention, to feel important, in control.... so they prey on the weaker, more vulnerable types to accomplish this. With Apocalypse (and Cable 0_0) they've evolved extenuating and traumatic experiences into their own personal reasoning for why mutants must always be faced with a great threat - as the strong and more cunning of mankind are the types who survive. Pushing those expectations on others not only to satisfy their standards, but under the guise that the meeting of those expectations will make them a teacher, or a savior.
Bishop is a character who will forever justify that his harsh "ends-justify-the-means" attitude is to prevent a grim future, his future, from ever coming into fruition for anyone else, even going so far as to try and kill an infant Hope, for fear of what she may unleash. One could argue that his own messiah complex has corrupted his reasoning, and driven him to such a moral lapse as trying to kill a helpless baby.
@Edamame: Apocalypse was abandoned as an infant, adopted into a tribe that was later slaughtered, and then became a slave.... (obvious childhood trauma) Sinister was ridiculed in the scientific society, but greatly loved his wife and son...when they died, and when he tried everything scientifically possible to save them, he was so traumatized that he never loved anyone again, nor ever had any human feelings in general.... Definitely a birth of a Psychopath or Sinister.....
" @ofaaron: I thought it would fit a sociopath better than a psychopath. No? Since a sociopath apparently lacks morality. Psychopaths basically are more bent on insanity. At least that is my initial understanding of the terms. Feel free to correct me. However, Sabretooth, the Shadow King and/or Blackheart are evil just to be evil. Wouldn't you say? "
" @ofaaron: I thought it would fit a sociopath better than a psychopath. No? Since a sociopath apparently lacks morality. Psychopaths basically are more bent on insanity. At least that is my initial understanding of the terms. Feel free to correct me. However, Sabretooth, the Shadow King and/or Blackheart are evil just to be evil. Wouldn't you say? "
I agree with that. "
Bullseye is the best example of a psychopath I can think of in modern comics. Someone like the Joker is just completely out-of-touch with reality, whereas Bullseye kills because he thinks it's fun.
" @ofaaron: I thought it would fit a sociopath better than a psychopath. No? Since a sociopath apparently lacks morality. Psychopaths basically are more bent on insanity. At least that is my initial understanding of the terms. Feel free to correct me. However, Sabretooth, the Shadow King and/or Blackheart are evil just to be evil. Wouldn't you say? "
I agree with that. "
Bullseye is the best example of a psychopath I can think of in modern comics. Someone like the Joker is just completely out-of-touch with reality, whereas Bullseye kills because he thinks it's fun. "
" No one started to be a villain because he wanted to be one(except kid Karnevil), but trauma and psychological diorders, some earned, others inherited....led them to the path of not bothering with morality and smothering their conscience.... Lets face it, having a conscience is a constant non-physical pain that appears when certain actions or occasions appear in life. Your own private tormentor. The easiest way is not to have one... "
Yeah, you're right. No one ever thinks "When I grow up, I want to be hated." Everyone is right in their own eyes.
" @ofaaron: I thought it would fit a sociopath better than a psychopath. No? Since a sociopath apparently lacks morality. Psychopaths basically are more bent on insanity. At least that is my initial understanding of the terms. Feel free to correct me. However, Sabretooth, the Shadow King and/or Blackheart are evil just to be evil. Wouldn't you say? "
I agree with that. "
Thanks. = D
@FadeToBlackBolt said:
" @courtney12490 said:
" @Edamame said:
" @ofaaron: I thought it would fit a sociopath better than a psychopath. No? Since a sociopath apparently lacks morality. Psychopaths basically are more bent on insanity. At least that is my initial understanding of the terms. Feel free to correct me. However, Sabretooth, the Shadow King and/or Blackheart are evil just to be evil. Wouldn't you say? "
I agree with that. "
Bullseye is the best example of a psychopath I can think of in modern comics. Someone like the Joker is just completely out-of-touch with reality, whereas Bullseye kills because he thinks it's fun. "
Actually, Bullsey is better example of a sadist or maybe a sadistic psychopath. I am not sure if all psychopaths are sadistic in nature. Look at that smile that he has on his face when he end up killing someone. "
Not necessarily sadistic in nature, but psychopaths act out of compulsion, which, if it is the only way Bullseye can feel pleasure, would make him a psychopath rather than just a sadist.
" No one started to be a villain because he wanted to be one(except kid Karnevil), but trauma and psychological diorders, some earned, others inherited....led them to the path of not bothering with morality and smothering their conscience.... Lets face it, having a conscience is a constant non-physical pain that appears when certain actions or occasions appear in life. Your own private tormentor. The easiest way is not to have one... "
Yeah, you're right. No one ever thinks "When I grow up, I want to be hated." Everyone is right in their own eyes. "
So far as people not suffering from severe mental illness, I believe this is right. And this to me is the most believable type of villain. The kind that mirrors our real world villains; the Hitlers. They followed a path that led them to believe they were doing the right thing even while doing something atrocious. You could have conversation with them, and not think of them as terrible human beings.
The Jokers of the world, the flat out crazies, just don't get enough power to cause much harm. No one follows someone that disturbed besides people that are equally disturbed, and there just aren't enough of them to put one in power.
But a man with good intentions, he could destroy the whole damn world.
@Edamame: A sociopath is essentially a shell of a human being, there's nothing really below the surface. They act out of desire, and they do so without considering what the ramifications on other human beings may be.
A psychopath is far more emotionally aware of what they're doing. They act out of the desire to see the ramifications. They want to watch people cry, hear people scream. Also, a psychopath's action are usually far more violent in nature.
A sociopath can go their entire life without ever breaking the law, but nevertheless cause misery throughout their existence. If a sociopath wants to kill; they will, whereas a psychopath may not want to, they just have an innate need to. From a psychological standpoint, though it's never been proven, it is far more likely that a psychopath is born, and a sociopath is made. One is chemical (psychopath), one is emotional (sociopath).
An example during conversation:
Person 1: "Oh my God, you just slaughtered that family." Sociopath: "Yeah....and?"
Person 1: "Oh my God, you just slaughtered that family" Psychopath: (Breathes sigh of relief) "That's better"
" @Edamame: A sociopath is essentially a shell of a human being, there's nothing really below the surface. They act out of desire, and they do so without considering what the ramifications on other human beings may be.
So sociopaths do not enjoy inflicting pain on others, while psychopaths do? Also, do sociopaths do these said things intentionally or unintentionally? What about psychopaths? "
Both do things intentionally. Sociopaths generally don't find enjoyment in the act itself, rather they commit the act in order to accomplish a separate goal. Psychopaths do enjoy it though. The act specifically.
" @Edamame: A sociopath is essentially a shell of a human being, there's nothing really below the surface. They act out of desire, and they do so without considering what the ramifications on other human beings may be.
So sociopaths do not enjoy inflicting pain on others, while psychopaths do? Also, do sociopaths do these said things intentionally or unintentionally? What about psychopaths? "
Both do things intentionally. Sociopaths generally don't find enjoyment in the act itself, rather they commit the act in order to accomplish a separate goal. Psychopaths do enjoy it though. The act specifically. "
So they do have a choice then. Right? It is not like they can not help themselves. So would you classify Mr. Sinister, Magneto and Apocalypse as sociapaths and the Joker and Bullseye as psychopaths? "
Yeah, they're good examples, though the Joker is very hard to diagnose because of his super sanity. Psychopaths have a choice, only in so much that they can resist the compulsion. Sociopaths have a choice, but it's not even really recognised because they don't realise they've done anything wrong (in their mind).
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