Draft:Dark passenger
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| The Dark Passenger | |
|---|---|
| Dexter character |
The Dark Passenger is a metaphorical term coined by author Jeff Lindsay in his novel series and popularized by the Showtime drama series Dexter. The term refers to the obsessive, internal drive that compels the protagonist, Dexter Morgan, to commit murder.
Overview
[edit]Dexter portrays his "Dark Passenger" as a separate entity residing within him, responsible for his bloodlust. For Dexter, it's not merely a "desire," but a voice or presence that guides him toward his victims. In the series, the term is used to describe the psychology of a serial killer attempting to balance his normal social life with his biological/psychological need to kill.[1]
Origin and Narrative Emergence
[edit]The Origins (Season 1): This impulse is rooted in a childhood trauma (the shipping container incident), which analysts see as the birth of the "monster" within Dexter.
Definition and Description (Season 2): Season 2 is considered the pivotal point where the term "Dark Passenger" came into use. Through addiction therapy sessions with Lila, Dexter began to coin this concept to describe his compulsive impulse, using it as a metaphor for addiction that robs one of their willpower.
In the second episode of the second season, titled "Waiting to Exhale," Dexter introduced himself to his fellow members of Narcotics Anonymous with this speech:
"My name is Dexter and I’m not sure what I am. I just know that there’s something dark in me and I hide it. I certainly don’t talk about it, but it’s there always. This Dark Passenger. And when he’s driving, I feel… alive, half sick with the thrill of complete wrongness. I don’t fight him because I don’t want to. He’s all I’ve got. Nothing else could love me, not even... especially not me. Or is that just a lie the Passenger tells me? Lately, there are these moments when I feel... connected to something else... someone. And it’s like the mask is slipping and things... people... who never mattered before are suddenly starting to. It scares the hell out of me."
The concept in the novel versus the series
[edit]There is a fundamental difference in the interpretation of the Dark Passenger between the literary source and the television adaptation:
In the novels: Jeff Lindsay sometimes suggests that the Dark Passenger may be a supernatural entity or an evil spirit that passes through generations (especially in the book Dexter in the Dark).[2]
In the television series: It is treated as a purely psychological concept. It is an expression of post-traumatic stress disorder, psychopathy, and dissociation. In later seasons (especially season seven), Dexter begins to question whether the Dark Passenger is merely a "scapegoat" onto which he hangs his conscious decisions, concluding that he himself is the Dark Passenger.
Psychological Dimensions
[edit]Dissociation: A defence method Dexter uses to morally separate himself from his heinous actions.
Addiction: The desire to kill is depicted as a chemical addiction, with Dexter feeling an "itch" or tightness that does not subside until the killing is carried out, which is called "feeding".[3]
References
[edit]- ↑ Depaulo, Bella (2010-09-07). The Psychology of Dexter. BenBella Books, Inc. ISBN 978-1-935618-33-1.
- ↑ Lindsay, Jeff (2007). Dexter in the Dark. Orion. ISBN 978-0-7528-8509-4.
- ↑ Greene, Richard; Reisch, George A.; Robison, Rachel (2011-04-12). Dexter and Philosophy: Mind over Spatter. Open Court. ISBN 978-0-8126-9726-1.