Britain's Best-Loved Psychopath?

"Bond: Do you expect me to talk?

Goldfinger: No, Mr. Bond, I expect you to die!"

 

A scene from the film, "Goldfinger".

 

With the impending release of "Spectre", which is, I believe, the 24th Eon-produced Bond film, it seems that my interest in the movies and mental health collide once again. But what, I hear you say, has a Bond movie got to do with mental health? Well, I won't be the first to suggest that the character of James Bond displays many of the signs of being a successful, socially functioning psychopath.

Indeed, in a book by Oxford University psychology researcher Kevin Dutton, "The Wisdom of Psychopaths", the author lists what he calls "the seven deadly wins" of psychopathy, and they are all traits one could apply to Bond. They are: ruthlessness, charm, focus, mental toughness, fearlessness, mindfulness and action. Is it because Bond possesses such psychopathic traits that he's so good at what he does? Dutton's analysis would seem to suggest so, and he attempts to show what we can all learn from psychopathic behaviour, indicating that such traits can actually make us a success. Indeed, if you've read Jon Ronson's "The Psychopath Test", or indeed my own blog, "Do Psychopaths Run the World?", you'll know that being a so-called "socialised" psychopath in our own particular milieu can actually be a sort of bizarre advantage. Having psychopathic qualities can actually make you, for example, a successful businessman or politician.
So, does this account for Bond's seemingly never-ending popularity? If Bond were simply portrayed as an unbalanced criminal, would he have the same appeal? As we all know, Bond can be charming, witty, suave and sophisticated, as well as at the same time being utterly ruthless, cold-blooded, philandering and seemingly without any sort of conscience. He remains attractive to women and for men he appears to be someone to be admired. Perhaps it helps if you look like Daniel Craig, whose portrayal of Bond is probably closest to author Ian Fleming's conception of the character - a sometimes dead-eyed killer.
One might ask, then, just why do we have so much sympathy and love for such an obvious brute? It may be because Bond is also associated with old fashioned ideas of imperial patriotism, the cold war and masculinity. However, some don't find any of this at all attractive, like the actor Matt Damon, who described the character of Bond as "an imperialist, misogynist sociopath who goes around bedding women and swilling martinis and killing people. He’s repulsive.”
It would appear, though, that the public has other ideas. Over the years the Bond films have been hugely successful, and when Bond has veered into the realms of, dare we say it, genuine emotion, the audience hasn't particularly liked it. Timothy Dalton's more human Bond was perhaps the least popular with audiences, and when George Lazenby broke down at the end of "On Her Majesty's Secret Service" after his new wife had been killed, well, it just wasn't Bond-like.
Despite it all, then, Bond remains Britain's best-loved psychopath. So, whatever you do, James, don't go changin'.