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Charles Manson Research Paper

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A Family Tradition. The Manson Murders One of the most heinous crimes ever committed in recent history is the Tate / LeBlanc murders masterminded by Charles Manson. Although he never physically killed anyone, Manson manipulated his followers to carry out these acts. How can a man manipulate people so easily into committing brutal murders? An even better question is how could his followers obey his command, without a second thought? I’m not sure we will ever get a definitive answer.
Early history
Charles Manson …show more content…

Hippies, at this moment in time, were gentle people, believing in peace, love, and sharing with others. This was an ideal environment for Manson to recruit followers. He started to gather a group of gullible girls who had lost. With a guitar, a nice voice, graceful mannerisms, and sweet talk with empty promises, Manson persuaded many young-adults to abandon their families and lives to join him. The beginnings of his “Family” took …show more content…

Richard DeMargeno, a criminologist, believed Manson could control these people by taking the place of their father figures. “It wasn’t a very difficult process. He was dealing with lonely insecure people in need of a father figure, people who didn’t have much ego to begin with. What he did, in effect, was to tear down that ego and substitute himself, thus gaining enormous control over his followers.” To his girls, Charles Manson was the man of their dreams, their knight in shining armor. Manson had replaced these girls’ father figure, placing himself at the center of their lives. Manson soon recruited dozens of girls into his “Family.” Many outsiders found him to be a persistent recruiter who came on strong with every girl he met, a narcist who treated his followers like possessions and barely showed any real affection to them. When a new girl was recruited, the biggest problem was polyamory. He preached that women should be submissive to men. Shockingly, these girls came to accept his ideas. Obviously, Charles had an unbelievable talent of manipulating people. Per online sources, Paul Watkins, said the following quote: “I lived with Charlie for about one year straight and on and off for two years. I know Charlie. I know him inside and out. I became Charlie. Everything I once was, was Charlie. There was nothing left of me anymore.

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