Killing in the name of the other: A lacanian analysis of the systematic serial killer

Abstract

Drawing on Jacques Lacan's writings, 'Killing in the Name of the Other' looks to illustrate the way in which the child's movement through the mirror phase has been thematised in the development of the cinematic serial killers. In this process the serial killer is diagnosed with the psychopathological structure of the pervert. Through the lens of the analyst, the serial killer is reconstructed as the ultimate legal subject - a subject who kills in the name of an Unconscious Law.