Gary Watsons argument psychopaths - Essay Example

In an article titled Psychopathy and Prudential Deficits, Watson uses the story of Howard Dever. Dever had a young life of hustling and petty crimes in New York City before being conscripted into the United States Army in the 1940s. While in the Army, Dever had 14 AWOLs and many incarcerations (Watson 308). He would later be shipped to England where he married an English woman. However, he would abandon his wife and their child and at one time was faced with 15 counts of indictment for forgery, burglary and impersonation in Massachusetts.

He could he heard at one time remarking after leaving Florida without telling his wife , “but I forgot to tell my wife, she didn’t know where I was, but she took me back when I came home” (Watson 308). Another time he was heard remarking after being indicted for burglary, “ hell I didn’t need the money, I would just get an idea and I would go out and do it. Maybe I hurt somebody doing it but I have had fun” (Watson 308). Thus, it is from this story that Gary Watson (309) observes that this sort of thoughtless behavior by Dever causes so much grief, but the psychopath has a blank incomprehension of the moral responses which his inconsiderate and malicious behavior elicits.

This is what makes a psychopath so chilling as opposed to people with other anti-social behaviors. The psychopathic profile is characterized by egocentricity and self-centeredness which makes them lack concern. Watson’s argument is based on a thesis that there is the co-occurrence of moral and prudential deficits in psychpathy. As such, there is one striking aspect about psychopaths. They are as careless of themselves as they are of others. Therefore, Watson’s argument is that since psychopaths have a blank comprehension of the moral responses that their actions might elicit on other people, they cannot be held morally responsible for their actions. The