Serial killers, philosophy for everyone : being and killing / edited by S. Waller ; foreword by John M. Doris.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Introduction: meditations on murder, or what is so philosophical about serial killers? / S. Waller and William E. Deal -- Man is the most dangerous animal of all : a philosophical gaze into the writings of the Zodiac Killer / Andrew M. Winters -- A philosophy of serial killing : Sade, Nietzsche, and Brady at the gates of Janus / David Schmid -- The situation of the jury : attribution bias in the trials of accused serial killers / Mark Alfano -- Serial killers as practical moral skeptics : a history with interviews / Amanda Howard -- Are psychopathic serial killers evil? Are they blameworthy for what they do? / Manuel Vargas -- Sympathy for the devil : can a serial killer ever be good? / Matthew Brophy -- The allure of the serial killer / Eric Dietrich and Tara Fox Hall -- Dexter's dark world : the serial killer as superhero / Susan Amper -- Killing with kindness : nature, nurture, and the female serial killer / Elizabeth Schecter and Harold Schecter -- It puts the lotion in the basket : the language of psychopathy / Chris Keegan -- Are serial killers cold-blooded killers? / Andrew Terjesen -- The serial killer was (cognitively) framed / William E. Deal -- Wolves and widows : naming, metaphor, and the language of serial murder / Wendy M. Zirngibl -- An arresting conversation : police philosophize about the armed and dangerous / S. Waller (with Diane Amarillas and Karen Kos) -- Psychopathy and will to power : Ted Bundy and Dennis Rader / Richard M. Gray -- The thread of death, or the compulsion to kill / J.S. Piven -- Afterword: a solemn afterword : a message from the victim's network / Mary Miller.

"Serial Killers - Philosophy for Everyone investigates our profound intrigue with mass-murderers. Exploring existential, ethical and political questions through an examination of real and fictional serial killers, philosophy comes alive via an exploration of grisly death. Presents new philosophical theories about serial killing, and relates new research in cognitive science to the minds of serial killers; Includes a philosophical look at real serial killers such as Ian Brady, Ted Bundy, John Wayne Gacy, Jeffrey Dahmer and the Zodiac killer, as well as fictional serial killers such as Dexter and Hannibal Lecter. Offers a new phenomenological examination of the writings of the Zodiac Killer. Contains an account of the disappearance of one of Ted Bundy's victims submitted by the organization Families and Friends of Missing Persons and Violent Crime Victims. Integrates the insights of philosophers, academics, crime writers and police officers"--Provided by publisher.

Print version record.