The Psychopath Test By Jon Ronson

“There are journalists and novelists and he is not the latter…..”

From the author of “The Men Who Stare At Goats” comes a journey into the world of the mind, madness and self possession. “The Pyschopath Test” begins with an investigation into “Being or Nothingness”, a handmade work which has been circulated worldwide through academic communities. Through sleuthing its origins, Ronson makes two important connections: with Bob Hare, the creator of the definitive questionnaire for diagnosing psychopaths and with Brian Daniels, a Scientologist who is interested in using him to help debunk psychiatry. From these experiences, Ronson becomes a psychopath spotter and his sleuthing across the globe results in encounters with a bunch of eccentrics; Petter Nordlund, the enigmatic author of the mysterious text, Hare, former LSD fuelled patients of Canadian Criminally Insane establishments, and "Tony", a “faking” psychopath housed in Broadmoor.  Ronson’s pursuit of pyschopaths leads him to explore whether psychopaths dominate corporate hierarchies, through his encounter with Al Dunlap, the Gordon Gekko Sunbeam, who toasted many employees of that corporation and consider the worlds of espionage through the life of David Shayler, spy-cum-activist- transvestite-and quasi messiah, and clinical psychology, through the eyes of Paul Britton, the criminal profiler who wrongfully attributed the murder of a woman on an innocent man.

Through his tale Ronson’s objective is to demonstrate how imperfect and imprecise psychiatry and psychology has been at mapped the shifting sands of sanity (coined by one reviewer) –but his methodology, which is to take his own neurotic persona and use its self-examination as a yardstick against which to judge the psychoses and personality disorders of the seriously disturbed, didn’t really fit the purpose. The BBC agreed with this assessment. Dennis, believed that the book was written to produce a bestseller, not a book that explored the issues in depth and with meaning, “there are journalists and novelists, and he (Ronson) is not the latter..’’ We agreed that many interesting and salient points were raised, but felt that the book did not go anywhere. Andy disliked the book and felt that it was merely a bundle of threads, which failed miserably in its attempts to be woven into a rich tapestry. Kevin, who had chosen the book from seeing interviews with the author (namely QI), found the book accessible and easy to read, but at times alarming. Mark, thought it merely pop psychology and more suited to airport reading. Raj disputed the claims of corporate psychopathy, as emotional intelligence is the recognized ticket to corporate hierarchical success and found it ultimately unsatisfying. Leanne, based her assessment from other Ronson works, and found the author’s style shallow and self possessed. And Alena liked the pizza.

Scores for this month’s venture on Victoria Street:
Andy 3
Kevin 7.5
Mark 5
Dennis: 4.5
Raj: 4
Alena: 7
Average: 5 (neither here nor there).

Thanks to the delectable hosting K and R and woof from Rex.

The Sense of an Ending - by Julian Barnes

The BBC collective usually produces robust discussions regarding the words we read each month. But rarely does a book, whether we have developed a relationship with the characters or not, leave such an indelible mark. One such story which leaves a stain and truly gets under the skin is “The Sense of an Ending”, the 2011 Booker prize winner by Julian Barnes. Memory accounts for who we are and what we become, particularly early memories of facts which become smothered and distorted by an individual’s “chinese whispers”. This concise but compelling novella tracks the origin and distortion of one individuals memory through an apparently long, ordinary and uneventful life to a climax, where the unraveling of that memory to its factual core is fully realised with devastating consequences, leaving this particular reader completely unnerved.

The story is split into two parts. Part one begins at school. Three friends, of whom the narrator, Tony Webster is one, are joined by a fourth, Adrian Finn, whose life seems exotic when contrasted with the others - he comes from "a broken home" and is an intellectual: "If Alex had read Russell and Wittgenstein, Adrian had read Camus and Nietzsche." Adrian's tastes are continental, and so is his spiritual allegiance: "I hate the way the English have of not being serious about being serious. I really hate it." In contrast to everyone else, he has a life that is "novel-worthy".  The group bathes in the glare of this bright star. Adrian brings a spark to their middle-class, suburban lives, at a time where the 60’s sexual revolution had yet to erupt “behind the herbaceous borders and double glazing. "


Tony's narrative chronicles events, but these prove to be unreliable memoirs. Tony leaves for university and experiences his first true romance –Veronica. Sexual frustration, class conflict and youthful insecurity ensue, especially when Veronica shifts her affections to Adrian. Tony's subsequent years form a dreary check-list: dull administrative job, dull marriage, even a dull divorce. Only four decades later does his story get a jolt, when an inheritance casts a new light on the past.  Like an onion, his memories are peeled back to reality’s core.
Raj and Alena had previously loved Julian Barnes work and the lucidity of his latest work reinforced their opinions of the skill of this eminent English author. Andy, new to the Barnes stable of work,  had taken time to immerse himself in the words of the book, and had become enveloped by the narrative.  Dennis, despite being moved, could not sympathise with the main protagonists other than Margaret. In particular, vehemence was held for Veronica, whom others felt was the ultimate victim of the tale. The discussion generated by the book caused Kevin to reconsider his final score and deepen his regard for the book. And everyone enjoyed getting under the skin of Barnes words to a sticky date dessert.


Despite its brevity, The Sense of an Ending, and the discussion generated from beneath its cover, left the BBC thirsty for more of Barnes’ work and for once, in agreement with Booker Prize judges.


Collective Score: 8 3/4