  Mystery
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There is a delicious horror in reading a mystery that features a psychopath. In addition to being mentally disturbed and possibly violent, the token psychopath typically has no moral compass, a fearsome characteristic. The writer can indicate – and even make good on – the idea that anything can happen.
Yet, while characters with psychotic tendencies can breathe vitality into a well-written mystery, I feel there are far too many mysteries that use a psychotic as the perpetrator of a murder. Mary Higgins Clark, specifically, has repeatedly used mentally unstable characters as her suspects, revealing a formula to her readers. Clark is guilty of perpetuating a stereotype of the mentally ill.
Ironically, recent studies have shown that not only are the mentally ill less likely to commit a violent crime, they are more prone to becoming victims. Yes, one out of every six U.S. prisoners is mentally ill. However, most of those prisoners are there because of the lack of mental health facilities that can take in poor persons with mental disorders. Also, as the American penal system does not offer much in the way of mental health, mentally ill prisoners may have a difficult time controlling their actions while imprisoned and thereby earn more jail time due to disorderly conduct – thus maintaining their high percentage behind bars.
Most mentally ill prisoners are jailed for small infractions, such as petty theft or disturbing the peace. Similarly, fictional characters do not have to be psychotic killers to add spice to a mystery. Mental disorders vary in intensity and can elicit a wide spectrum of behaviors. An example of a character on the more dangerous end of the spectrum would be one with delusional disorder of the erotomanic type, as this person may be more likely to kidnap and break other laws. Arty Taggert, in Clark's A Stranger Is Watching, is a prime example - Arty believes that Nina Peterson, a woman he has never met, loves him. He kidnaps her and plans to move away with her after he has finished collecting ransom money and killed off Nina's boyfriend's son. Arty is clearly dangerous. A more mild disorder, behaviorally speaking, would include something like caffeine intoxication disorder. A character with this disorder might feel restless, have insomnia, and go through periods of inexhaustibility. This disorder might be useful when fleshing out the character of a crooked cop or a brilliant bank robber as the condition frees up a lot of time for plotting but does not necessarily promote violent behavior.
If you choose to use a character with a mental disorder, consider deviating from the popular trend of painting him or her as the villain. Clark’s first novel, Where Are The Children?, depicted a murdering pedophile, but her victim also had a disorder – dissociative amnesia (she could not recall important information of a traumatic nature). In a more recent Clark novel, We’ll Meet Again, the victim again has amnesia, but a witness, this time, appears schizophrenic. This mentally ill character's innocence was a welcome departure from Clark's typically predictable pattern.
Sometimes, for a unique twist in a mystery, “the good guy” or the detective, has an abnormal quality. In a fresh approach, the TV show, Monk, has a main character who is diagnosed with obsessive compulsive disorder. Monk’s need to solve crimes while living with such a worrisome, perfectionist lifestyle, adds humor to his cases.
Batman, DC comics' “Dark Detective,” could be categorized as having post traumatic stress disorder. According to the Diagnostic And Statistical Manual Of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, Text Revision (DSM-IV-TR), Batman meets a little more than the minimum diagnostic criteria:
A. He witnessed a traumatic event as a child that threatened death/he felt helpless as his parents were murdered
B. He dwells on it and has flashbacks
C. He feels detached or estranged from others/he has a difficult time loving or trusting others/he does not expect to marry, have children, and so forth
D. He does not sleep much/he shows hypervigilance
E. This disturbance has lasted much of his life
F. The disturbance causes clinically significant distress or impairment in social, occupational, or other important areas of functioning - he takes on the Bruce Wayne persona in social situations and Batman in occupational situations…when is he “himself”?
Batman may have "issues," but he is a fascinating character with an honorable goal: to make sure other innocent citizens do not experience a horrific crime similar to the one Bruce Wayne witnessed as a child.
If you decide to incorporate a character with a mental disorder into your next story, I urge you to research first – talk to those accredited in a psychological profession or read current literature. I like to flip through the DSM-IV-TR now and then. Disclaimer: If you choose to pick up a DSM, understand that knowledge does not make you a professional AND know that it is easy to make yourself believe that many of the disorders apply directly to YOU. Unless your life is severely affected by your own thoughts and actions, and a disorder is confirmed by a practicing, licensed psychologist/psychiatrist/doctor/therapist, please do NOT take the DSM's disorders personally.
Some research used in this newsletter:
http://www.northwestern.edu/univ-relations/broadcast/2005/08/mentally.html
http://hrw.org/english/docs/2003/10/22/usdom6472.htm
Bats image courtesy of Jacci Howard Bear, About Desktop Publishing, http://desktoppub.about.com |
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*This campfire is not categorized as a mystery, but members DO take on a multitude of characters with mental disorders:
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Mystery: August 16, 2006 Issue [#1215]
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