1) we have particular meaning and importance to others (even when they hate us)
2) cruelty is punished
3) and evil people are alien (to us)
She makes a compelling case that evil, sadistic characters let us experience the thrill of breaking social norms (because one must be strong and powerful and confident and smart) with not risk of the inevitable social and legal ramifications (being ostracized and/or imprisoned and/or killed). We identify with and long for their power, vicariously. Plus, she argues that negative emotions (fear, disgust, cruelty, sadism, callousness, etc.) are all more powerfully distinguished in the neural pathways. Having a cup of tea is rewarding and wonderful, but leaves no echo of its passing. Reading the horrible things Hannibal Lecter does gets our neurons all fired up with moralizing and fear and squirmy pleasure and vicarious thrills and the hope he will be caught and thinking about how we would react if we were confronted with that situation and wondering if we could ever do something like that or if we would be smart enough to catch him, etc.

I recently read an article about the “Uncanny Valley”, that part of the spectrum between unrealistic human depiction, such as cartoons and Claymation, and lifelike – human. There is a valley in the graph which shows that just before a human depiction becomes the most lifelike, it becomes creepy. The depiction that is almost human is frightening to people, much more-so than the inhuman monsters in even the best horror fiction. The concept of a serial killer that is attractive (and creepy) is that by the time the uncanny valley is revealed, it’s too late. What a helpful man, helping me with my flat tire. And he’s good-looking, too. What did he just say? What size clothing do I wear? Oops! I’m done for.

Does the attraction translate to real killers? Only to the extent that people take enjoyment in figuring out the puzzle. We need to profile this person, put them in a neat package, so that they don’t outsmart US. That’s the play-at-home game. To most people, there is nothing sexy about actual serial murder, but the safety of fiction allows us to peek inside and safely play with the parts of it that are super-, sub-, exra-human.