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Hervey Cleckley

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The Mask of Sanity: An Attempt to Clarify Some Issues about the So-Called Psychopathic Personality Paperback – February 23, 2015

by Hervey Cleckley (Author)

4.5 281 ratings

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Although highly controversial, Hervey Cleckley's Mask of Sanity provides one of the most influential clinical descriptions of psychopathy in the 20th century. At the crux of his argument, Cleckley claims that many psychopathic personalities go undiagnosed because they maintain a social mask that conceals their mental disorder and enables them to blend in with society. Furthermore, many of these affected individuals appear to function normally in accordance with standard psychiatric criteria.

Intent on detecting and diagnosing the elusive psychopath, Cleckley has compiled an assortment of case studies and offers suggestions for palliative care. This ambitious work aims to define and examine every aspect of this abstract state of being. Ultimately, Cleckley refines the term "psychopath" and strips it of stigmatization.

This classic has transformed the psychiatric definition of sanity and continues to provide insight on American society and psychological introspection.

Print length

598 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Echo Point Books & Media
Publication date

February 23, 2015
Dimensions

6 x 1.33 x 9 inches
ISBN-10

1626549664
ISBN-13

978-1626549661
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Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Echo Point Books & Media (February 23, 2015)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 598 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1626549664
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1626549661
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.91 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6 x 1.33 x 9 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,068,408 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #672 in Personality Disorders (Books)
- #1,683 in Medical Psychology Pathologies
- #2,384 in Popular Psychology Pathologies

Customer Reviews:
4.5 281 ratings

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Tricky Ricky Earthdogbonzo3

The Mask Of Sanity by Hervey Cleckley M. D.

Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2012

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I first became interested in this topic about eleven years ago after seeing an MSNBC investigates special about serial killers. The particular case which captured my attention was the Southern California perpetrator dubbed in the early eighties as 'The Original Night Stalker', whose connection through DNA matching to the 'East Area Rapist', earned him the moniker: EARONS. As EARONS is still at large, and the case so very tantalizing, I began to read any books, articles or papers which might shed light on the mindset of this and other characters of this type.
Hervey Cleckley's book goes a long way to illuminating the nature of 'psychopathy' or 'anti social personality disorder(APD)': The term psychopath is used for ease of communicating the many shades and degrees of this complex personality disorder. He presents extreme case examples of people who are disabled by this syndrome as well as cases where the individuals are functioning, even successful members of society. He also illustrates other personality disorders, i.e. schizophrenia, psychoneuroses and their symptoms and other clinical features in juxtaposition as to 'why' these disorders and the people who suffer from them are not necessarily psychopaths, but that many disorders share overlapping features with psychopathy.
It is very readable. Dr. Cleckley's elegant narrative has a 'southern' rhythm and tone mingled with erudition and the warmth of his humanity as he discusses each case: the facets thereof and the patients affected. His message is never obscured by overly esoteric jargon, nor does he lose the reader in overly technical detail. His aim is sincere in understanding this complex issue as well as to communicate to professionals and other interested readers. Also, since this goes back to the forties and early fifties, some of the language regarding sexuality, morality and gender roles is indicative of the cultural attitudes of those times; a kind of sounding board as to how we as an American culture have evolved in our attitudes and awareness of sexuality, mental illness, gender roles etc. To leave off: there is also great humor on the part of Dr. Cleckley as, for example, he attempts in chapter twelve to illustrate the libidonistic mindset of a group of teenage boys relevant to the chapter's presented case history.

58 people found this helpful

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Dark3nedDragon

Good, Complex Read, with Interesting Ramifications

Reviewed in the United States on December 28, 2016

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As someone that has no experience nor particular study in the field of psychology, the book is well written to the effect that it is easy to understand while also presenting complex ideas. It's content is mainly comprised of case studies, and explanations of the case studies. Often the author will let the reader draw their own conclusions, but also provides their own thoughts on the matter. It is to be understood that while the persons being examined are not (at that time) clinically diagnosable as insane, they are very clearly not right in the head. It does bring up questions of how far we can trust a person's statements versus their clearly viewable past, and I might add consistent behavior. While we as a society may want to trust that a person is telling the truth, the best way to verify the integrity of a person is to simply look at their history. In many cases, the persons would abuse the criminal justice system, claiming that they were mentally insane, and getting sent to an Institution rather than serve jail time, and after spending a month or so there, petitioning, and succeeding on leaving said asylum, and avoiding jail time. The family members were consistently enabling this behavior, cycling between institutionalizing them, taking them home where they would near immediately proceed to repeat the past behavior, them getting in trouble with the law, and back to the institution they go again. Oftentimes the temporary, yet repeat inhabitants of the institution would fake good behavior for a time in order to cause mayhem once again. These are just a few, but noticeable relationships between all the cases that were noted. It's an interesting read, is informational material (grows your mind), and overall helps with understanding the complexities of the human mind. Whether you're a college student considering majoring in Psychology, or just a person that wants to further understand the insanity that is not quite insanity, it's a good read for you.

13 people found this helpful

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Middlemarch

An eye opening encounter with the devastating havoc wreaked by psychopaths.

Reviewed in the United States on July 5, 2016

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Hervey Cleckley is regarded as the father of the field of psychopathy studies. His first book was published in 1941, and this version of the book is his 1975 revised edition. He died in 1984, and the last edition of this book came out in 1888. It is a fascinating read, but it does require dedication to one's purpose to see it through to the end. Mr. Cleckley's writing style is to be commended, but he is nonetheless writing from a medical stand point, and the average lay person must focus carefully on the text in order to fully learn from it.

For any author considering creation of psychopathic characters, this book is a must read. The case studies alone will be of invaluable aid to accuracy. Perhaps the most enjoyable aspect of this book is in its latter portions, where Mr. Cleckley observes the character of the psychopath in history and in literature.

We can all of us only ever pray to be spared dealing with a real life psychopath, but for anyone who has the painful experience of it, this book brings with it much clarity on the nature of the human disaster, even though it regrettably offers little in the way of solutions.

7 people found this helpful

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Sruthi

Bad writing.

Reviewed in Germany on August 3, 2021

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If you are not a student of psychology, this book is really not that important to your life. It might have some good research but it is badly written. Long and convoluted sentences, passive voices, superfluous vocab, what not.

Cazador67

Great

Reviewed in Spain on January 18, 2021

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A great book. The part about honosexuality is updated but I enjoyed in anyway

Chillyfinger

Small Steps in Coming to Terms with Personality "Disorders"

Reviewed in Canada on May 22, 2018

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Cleckley is notable for establishing that psychopathy is a "thing", but also notable as a representative of a profession hobbled by assumptions of the day. Cleckly writes in a time when psychiatry is undergoing a sweeping revolution. Looking back, it's easy to see all the things he is wrong about, but it's more instructive to see how he is pulling himself out of the Freudian morass and giving a name the most dangerous people among us. On the other hand, we can see Cleckley still stuck in the "medical model" - the idea that bizarre behavior is to be "treated" by a special kind of "doctor".

Do not let this be the only book you read on psychopaths! This is a great book for anyone interested in the *history* of psychoanalysis. For anyone interested in the personality disorder of psychopathy, there are dozens of more modern and more accurate books available. For those who are specifically interested in the personality disorder of the current occupant of the White House, I strongly recommend The Dangerous Case of Donald Trump: 27 Psychiatrists and Mental Health Experts Assess a President .

Cleckley's classic analysis is instructive in many ways. He regards homosexuality as disgusting and unnatural. He barely grasps the concept of bisexuality. His 1950's attitude toward women borders on hilarious. He provides a long example of female behavior as an example of a female psychopath. Today, such behavior would be called "dating". More troubling still are his assumptions that are still prevalent: the idea that personality disorders are something the medical community should be asked to deal with. even though he makes a strong case that the "medical model" completely fails in the case of psychopathy. Cleckley still speaks in terms of a "disorder" with the assumption that there is a "normal" human. We would all be "normal" if not for some (possibly curable) misfortune. He is specifically critical of the work of Kinsey The Kinsey Institute New Report On Sex , missing the paradigm shift that Kinsey championed: there is no "normal".

Cleckley has an interesting theory of what it's like to be a psychopath. Broadly speaking, he thinks that the psychopath doesn't care about much of anything and assumes that everyone else is the same. For example, not caring about truth or falsehood, he is genuinely surprised when others do. Not caring about his own fortunes or life plan, he is oblivious to the catastrophic effect he has on the lives of others. This seems to be an improvement over the popular characterization of the psychopath as one "without conscience". Without Conscience: The Disturbing World of the Psychopaths Among Us . Cleckley would say that such a characterization visualizes conscience (or "empathy") as a kind of organ between our ears that is somehow missing in the psychopath. He teaches us to shake off our tendency to divide up the human mind into "functions" - a leftover from the Freudian era.

2 people found this helpful

Marion T.

Troisième édition

Reviewed in France on February 20, 2018

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Je ne suis pas déçue, mais il aurait été apprécié de préciser qu’il s’agit de la troisième édition, et non pas de la cinquième comme je l’ai cru au moment de l’achat. Autrement, le livre est de très bonne qualité et l’envoi a été rapide.

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C Rudd

Fascinating insight into psychopaths

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on June 14, 2014

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This book is brilliant for understanding what a psychopath really is which I needed to understand for a screenplay. The case studies are razor sharp. This guy is a pro clearly. Eerily revealing.

One person found this helpful

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