Bad Men Do What Good Men Dream: A Forensic Psychiatrist Illuminates the Darker Side of Human Behavior

By Robert I. Simon

Book Overview

Robert Simon's Bad Men Do What Good Men Dream: A Forensic Psychiatrist Illuminates the Darker Side of Human Behavior is that rare title that is both essential reading for the mental health professional and accessible in style and content to the fascinated lay reader. In twelve powerful and provocative chapters, the author introduces readers to a psychological perspective on evil, character and destiny, as well as the making of good men and women. Simon also illuminates the psychology of psychopaths, serial killers, rapists and all manner of evil characters who appall and challenge us by their very existence. He rejects the common belief that his subjects are "monsters" with nothing in common with the more "normal" among us. Simon posits that if we deny our dark side, it can only obscure our understanding of violent offenders and impede our ability to both know ourselves and control our own, at times, unacceptable impulses.

The author is among the foremost experts in forensic psychiatry. He is Director of the Program in Psychiatry and Law at Georgetown University School of Medicine. Author or co-author of more than two dozen books and editions, including the foundational Textbook of Forensic Psychiatry, Simon has made important contributions to the field of forensic psychiatry for more than 30 years. He is also an eloquent writer with a dramatic, yet nuanced, narrative style that takes the reader inside the mind of the evildoer.

The first edition of this groundbreaking work garnered uniformly superlative reviews and was translated into several languages. This updated version retains Simon's engrossing portrayals and keen insight, while offering a number of key enhancements. The highlights include:

- Explorations of the Internet and violence, "corporate" psychopaths, cyberstalkers, perpetrators of school violence, and a new cast of serial killers, terrorists, and other evildoers.
- A psychological perspective on evil, serial killers, and us.
- Updates on the neuroscience and genetics of deviant behaviors.
- Reflections on empathy, character, and destiny: the making of good men and women.
- A new foreword by Thomas G. Gutheil, M.D., Professor of Psychiatry and Co-Founder, Program in Psychiatry and the Law at Harvard Medical School, that illuminates Simon's thesis and grounds it in historical context.

Graphic but never sensational, unsparing but never cold, Simon's writing transcends the theoretical and achieves that most difficult of aims: leading readers to discover, contain, and transform the darkness within us all, to the betterment of our human condition.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 158562294X
• ISBN13: 9781585622948
• Release Date: May 2008
• Publisher: American Psychiatric Association Publishing
• Length: 339 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.8" x 6.4" x 9.0"
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

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Bad men do what good men dream

Dr. Robert I Simon's book Bad Med Do What Good Men Dream is an erudite and readable treatment of one of the knottiest questions in the history of humanity: what separates good men from bad men? Dr. Simon has applied his vast experience in clinical and forensic psychiatry to illuminate the similarities and differences between those who demonstrate remarkable psychopathology and "normal" people. He has explored the spectrum of violent and horrifying behavior, from killer cults to serial murderers to workplace violence, and provided a thoughtful discussion of the difficulties of identifying the good and evil inside us and around us. As a forensic psychiatrist, I found this book enlightening, thought provoking and well written. I highly recommend it to any professional or lay student of human nature.

the struggle between good and evil

Bad Men Do What Good Men Dream is a fascinating and well researched account of mankind's capacity for evil. Written by a forensic psychiatrist with years of clinical experience examining the human mind, the book not only provides the theoretical underpinnings of the subject, it provides the seasoned observer's inside account of what makes us "tick". In the humanist's tradition, it recognizes that dark thoughts are latent in all of us. Dr. Simon has produced a highly educational and riveting read without ever lapsing into the usual pomposity or sensationalism often found in writings on this topic. Readers will enjoy the many thought provoking discussions not only about why we do the things we do, but about what separates "good" people from "bad".

Simon gazes into abyss of the psyche with courage and wisdom

"Bad Men Do What Good Men Dream" is a timely, fundamental contribution to our growing understanding of character and behavior, and to the perennial question of why there is good and evil. In the tradition of Freud's "Interpretation of Dreams," Simon gazes into the abyss of the psyche with both courage and wisdom. The ensuing reflections will not only be 'must reading' for forensic psychiatrists, but illuminating for any clinician or, for that matter, anyone seriously asking the question 'Why?' when confronted with the horror of 'mad and bad.' Harold J. Bursztajn, M.D./Co-Director, Program in Psychiatry and the Law/Massachusetts Mental Health Center/Associate Clinical Professor, Department of Psychiatry/Harvard Medical School

Successfully bridges fields of psychiatry and criminology.

"Bad Men Do What Good Men Dream" has successfully bridged the fields of psychiatry and criminology. The age-old question of 'mad or bad' has been brilliantly explained by current examples of psychopaths in crime, workplace violence, stalkers, spies, cults, and serial killers. This book provides answers previously unavailable to those who are trying to unravel the puzzle of a violent society. Robert K. Ressler, M.A./Author of "Whoever Fights Monsters" and "Justice is Served"/Federal Bureau of Investigation, Retired/Director of Forensic Behavioral Services