‘I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti’
It has been nearly three decades since the movie Silence of the Lambs came out, introducing us to what the American Film Institute later awarded Hannibal Lecter as ‘The Best Movie Villain of all time”. The purpose of this blog post would be to ascertain whether Hannibal Lecter objectively fits the diagnostic criterion of a psychopath. The Psychopathy Checklist is a diagnostic tool devised by Robert Hare and his colleagues (Brazil, 2016). Some criteria in this checklist will be used in this blog as a basis of comparing the character of Lecter, to the qualities of a diagnosed psychopath.
According to PCI-R, psychopaths tend to have a high threshold for disgust. This was measured by their reactions to foul odors or photos of mutilated faces. (Hirstein, 2013) Hannibal Lecter also has a high threshold for disgust. Being a cannibal, he frequently consumes human flesh, without displaying any revulsion. He also displays a lack of disgust when it comes to consuming the flesh of people who are alive. This is seen in his escape scene where he completely chews off the face of one of the guards, kills him, and simply walks away.
In the PCL-R, there is also the quality of “superficial charm” that is said to be associated with psychopaths (Hirstein, 2013). This is demonstrated through manipulative behaviour and purposely saying certain things that would make others think they have a captivating personality. Lecter is very courteous to Clarice. He is always well-groomed and is extremely polite to her and everyone around him as well. His courteousness does seem to have an effect on people around him because the prison guards refer to him as ‘Doctor’ even though he is a killer. Research has shown that psychopaths seem very normal and that is what is alluring about them (Hirstein, 2013).
Another characteristic in the checklist is that psychopaths display a “lack of realistic long-term goals” and ‘‘impusivity’’ (Hirstein, 2013). Hannibal Lecter was a well-off famous Psychiatrist who threw his life away on an impulse and began to kill people and eat them. He did not think or talk about his future, and only focused on immediate gratification through killing and eating people. Also, when he escapes prison, his only goal is to go and eat Agent Terry.
On the other hand, the checklist also states that psychopaths are “callous” — they're also supposed to exhibit a lack of empathy (Hirstein, 2013). While he did not display any empathy for his victims, he does show empathy while hearing about Clarice’s background story. As a result of his fascination with her background, an unconventional bond develops between them. In their last meeting in person thumb, he hands her her case file and strokes her thumb with his. Over here this could be seen as his way of saying ‘goodbye’ to her or even a way of showing the slightest support to her as she is being taken away by the agents. Even when he escapes the prison he makes an attempt to call her just to assure her that he would not come after her. In reality, if Lecter was a psychopath, he would never have become attached to her. According to a psychiatrist, even after sitting with serial killers for multiple days around 8-10 hours per day, it feels like “starting all over again” when they come back the next day (Hirstein, 2013). Thus, Hanibbal’s ability to connect to Clarice in just two meetings does not align with real life interactions with psychopaths.
Also, the characteristic "insincere speech” in the PCL-R refers to the tendency of psychopaths to distort their speech by manipulating it to suit their own self-interest (Hirstein, 2013). However, Lecter never lies to Clarice about who he is as a person or his actions. His speech towards Clarice is never self-centred or self-serving in any way either. Hence, he does not meet this criterion.
Psychopathy is also linked to genetics and early childhood experiences (Hirstein, 2013). However, in the movie, the audience is not privy to information about Hannibal Lecter’s parents or his childhood.
Through judging him across the applicable criteria of the diagnostic manual of the Revised Psychopathy Checklist, this blog post comes to the conclusion that Lecter cannot be diagnosed with psychopathy. He does have certain qualities that can place him into the category of a serial killer, however, his ability to empathise with Clarice and his lack of insincere speech stops him from meeting the criterion for psychopathy. His unconventional bond with Clarice draws a firm line between a person with psychopathy and one of Hollywood’s greatest villains.
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Bibliography
1. Hirstein, W. (2013). What Is a Psychopath?. Retrieved 22 November 2019, from https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/mindmelding/201301/what-is-psychopath-0
2. Demme, J. (1991). The Silence of the Lambs [Film]. Hollywood: Strong Heart/Demme Production.
3. Brazil K.J., Forth A.E. (2016) Hare Psychopathy Checklist. In: Zeigler-Hill V., Shackelford T. (eds) Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences. Springer, Cham
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