Ellynne wrote:
On Thu, 1 Feb 2001 22:57:56 -0500 "Dana Shilling" dshilling@worldnet.att.net writes:
Helen said:
Okay, the Deliverance thread has expanded to misogynism in the
series as
a whole and the accusation has been thrown that Servalan is
insane.
She has some sociopathic tendencies. A sociopath essentially understands right and wrong, it just doesn't matter. However, there's debate (so I understand) about whether they're insane. True sociopaths have been known to act in ways where the profit-loss just doesn't add up (the sociopath who stole the credit cards of his pro bono defense attornies while they were defending him) that suggests a lack of ability to make essential judgements. Anyhow, Servalan's not that far gone. She may have hubris, ego, and overconfidence, but you can follow the math behind her calculations.
I personally always think that Servalan is completely sane, and that her murderous behaviour has been trained into her by the brutal society in which she lives; bit like Travis' argument in 'Trial'. If Servalan had been living in a comfy western liberal democracy she would be a substantially different person. OK, she has some loopy impulses, but it's mainly that the environment she has been trained and lives in encourages those to some degree.
Una