Psychology Through
"Popular" Prototypes
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​​Is Anti-Social behavior an aberration caused by mental health problems or "madness", or is it a natural by-product of certain types of societies?
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Can a society make someone Anti-Social? Wouldn't that be antithetical?​
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For our non-fiction case study, we've picked the so-called Mad Trapper of Rat River from 1932.
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In 1981, an acton movie premiered based on The Mad Trapper of Rat River.
It was called
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Death Hunt.
Then in 1982, we had ​First Blood which had a similar storyline
Both Rambo and Bronson’s Albert Johnson start out as mysterious characters — outsiders and complete unknowns, who are hunted down for questionable reasons.
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Both were good guys pushed to their limits by other good guys—all upstanding members of society and therefore considered "Social"— not "Anti-Social".
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In the movie, Albert Johnson was mistaken for a serial killer. The RCMP were later informed that he was US Army Intelligence.
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​​​​​​What about the real Albert Johnson?
Was he a criminal or a victim?
Was he Anti-Social?
Was Rambo Anti-Social? Compared to what?
Even if Albert or Rambo were or are anti-social, did society make them that way?
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​click on cover
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The injustice done to the so-called "Mad Trapper" is attested to by William Carter who became a Mountie after the hunt, and Bill White, Mountie and author of Mountie In Mukluks. Almost everything anyone else says about the Mad Trapper is false. He has been mythologized as the ultimate "baddy". But his relative innocence makes him good for what we want. Good. Safer.
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I'd say he's relatively safe as a prototype for Anti-Social Criminal behavior. Once you know the truth about him, he doesn't engender extreme negativity that will cloud your judgment and prevent the furtherance of knowledge that would prevent real-life tragedies or would bring closure and justice.