Linda, a friend of the site, submitted an interesting article that I felt obliged to share.
Most of the time, we watch movies without thinking too hard. We want to be entertained and get lost in someone else’s world for a while in order to forget the real world we live in. Star Wars is great for that.
When films get very popular, however, people have a tendency to over-think every aspect of the film, the story, the characters and everything in between. Darth Vader is most definitely one of the most popular and recognizable characters in motion picture history. He’s been studied head to (artificial) toe time and time again but some time back, a group of French psychiatrists put Darth Vader on the couch and tried to figure out just what was wrong with him. Why was he so evil? What made him that way?
They decided that he suffered from something called Borderline Personality Disorder, or BPD. Without knowing much about it, it sounds about right, doesn’t it? I personally think there was a lot more at work than just a personality disorder, but I’m no doctor.
Best selling author and expert on BPD, Randi Kreger, came across the article and decided to set the record straight on her blog on Psychology Today. She takes on the diagnosis and backs it up with facts. It’s an interesting read and while she appreciates the fact that using a popular cultural icon to raise awareness is a smart move, the diagnosis just doesn’t hold water.
Sources: Fox News , Psychology Today, BPD Central