
Are all serial killers deleterious to society? Think about some of the most infamous serial killers to ever live, like Ted Bundy and Jeffery Dahmer. A question has risen whether or not there has ever been a serial killer who has actually helped society, and there has not. The only serial killer that has helped society was a fictional character from the book Darkly Dreaming Dexter. Dexter Morgan, the first serial killer to have a heart, sort of. Morgan does not feel any emotion or does not care to have human interaction at all. He has the perfect disguise where everyone he meets or talks to thinks he is harmless and comedic, a wolf in sheep’s clothing so to say. During the day he is a caring and outgoing blood splatter analyst for a police department, however, at night he roams the shadows of the night hunting and killing only other serial killers when the “Dark Passenger” tells him to. The “Dark Passenger” is a reoccurring symbol throughout the novel and is a sinister passenger in Dexter’s conscience giving him the urge to kill. Was Morgan’s conscience always this evil and diabolical, or was his conscience once humane and normal? One tragic incident when Dexter was a child transformed his innocent conscience into something called the “Dark Passenger” forcing Dexter to lose the ability of self-control, leading him to have urges of living a diabolical and sinister life that, ironically, benefited society. 

When Dexter was only three years old, he was trapped in a cargo container with his mother. What Morgan did not realize was that he was watching his own mother being murdered. On page 274, Morgan cried out to his mother and he “could see her face there, and she was somehow hiding and peeking up over…just her face showing…And why wasn’t Mommy moving…We were sitting here in a deep puddle” (Lindsay). The puddle that Morgan was sitting in was his mother’s blood. He was trapped in there with her dead corpse for three days soaking in her blood before he was rescued. This is not an ordinary scenario for anybody to experience, especially a child. If he did not witness his mother being murdered, then the “Dark Passenger” would not have been created. This scarred him psychologically for the rest of his life. The most interesting part was that he did not even remember this incident. The “Dark Passenger” acted as a defense mechanism, so Morgan could not recall what had happened to his mother. Morgan stated “there's something dark in me. I hide it. I certainly don't talk about it, but it's there always, this Dark Passenger…I don't fight him, I don't want to. He's all I've got. Nothing else could love me” (Lindsay 48). The only reason he could not fight the “Dark Passenger” was because he would recall his mother’s death. The one person who was supposed to love him died. In a way, the “Dark Passenger” acted as a parent to him. Little did Dexter know, was that his innocent life would soon be forgotten as the “Dark Passenger” started to control him to become a serial killer. 

Dexter would have been a deleterious serial killer if it was not for Harry Morgan, a police officer who adopted Dexter shortly after Dexter’s mother was murdered. Harry did know about Dexter’s traumatic incident and did not think that Dexter would not have been affected mentally by this incident, because Dexter was so young. When Dexter was a teenager Harry found out that he was killing other animals, and he became worried. Eventually Harry told Dexter “It was too strong, too much…It’s going to make you want to kill…But you can channel it. Control it” (Lindsay 43). Dexter admitted and said when the “Dark Passenger” is “driving, I feel alive, half sick with the thrill of complete wrongness” (Lindsay 48). Dexter referred to the “Dark Passenger” driving when he gets urges to kill. Unfortunately for Dexter, this was an ordinary thing. The “Dark Passenger” was always controlling his mind. These irresistible urges could not be tamed. Harry thought Dexter’s traumatic incident was giving him these urges to kill. Harry was not aware of the “Dark Passenger”, and that this was causing Dexter to get the urge to kill. Since Harry did not know the truth about where the urges were coming from, he came to the conclusion that there was no hope in changing Dexter for who he truly was now. The “Dark Passenger” was already inside of Dexter directing him to a sinister lifestyle. Eventually these urges to kill only animals changed to humans when the “Dark Passenger” was in control of him.

As the “Dark Passenger” started to control Dexter more and more, he could not feel emotions such as being depressed, enthused, or happy. Since Dexter did not have any emotions, the “Dark Passenger” knew Dexter would not have any remorse murdering humans. One night Dexter heard the “calling to the Need…the cry of the need inside, the entity…The me that was not-me” (Lindsay 1). Dexter started to realize when the “Dark Passenger” was giving him these urges to kill, and they simply could not be controlled. Dexter was afraid of these urges, because they started to tell him to kill humans. Dexter was so afraid he eventually told Harry about the “Dark Passenger”. Dexter described it as “something…Inside. Watching me…Just makes it seem like a good idea” (Lindsay 40-41). Not everyone has something inside of them telling them that killing other people is a good idea, but Dexter did. The “Dark Passenger” started to persuade Dexter into thinking that killing was a good idea. The only option left that Harry saw was teaching Dexter how to kill other serial killers’ and not get caught. The “Dark Passenger” did not care who Dexter killed, and it did not necessarily want Dexter to be harmful to society. Dexter was able to use his sinister mind to rid the streets of serial killers. Dexter did have one rule to killing serial killers. He had to have proof that these serial killers were guilty. Dexter could not let any emotions or the “Dark Passenger” influence who he killed. 

Luckily for Dexter, keeping his emotions in check was easily accomplished. He, like all serial killers, was left with no real emotion. Whenever the “Dark Passenger” was not controlling Dexter, he was lifeless inside. After killing one serial killer Dexter said “Whatever made me the way I am left me hollow…unable to feel. It doesn’t seem like a big deal. I’m quite sure most people fake an awful lot of everyday human contact. I just fake all of it” (Lindsay 15). When the “Dark Passenger” was not controlling Dexter, he lived life while seemingly being empty inside. Dexter knew he could not just rely on the “Dark Passenger” to control him all the time. The “Dark Passenger” was his only resource to any type of emotion. He had to start faking these everyday emotions that normal human beings had, so he could cover up his secret identity of being steered by this sinister passenger inside his mind. Every conversation in the book Darkly Dreaming Dexter, the reader can see that he does not care about what the other person is saying, or he simply does not know how to respond.  Dexter claimed “I am unlovable...I have tried to involve myself in other people, in relationships, and even - in my sillier moments - in love. But it doesn't work. Something in me is broken or missing and sooner or later the other person catches me Acting” (Lindsay 10). He lacked the skill of human interaction, because the “Dark Passenger” leaves him lifeless. All he wants and knows how to do is kill which leaves him wondering why he only wants to kill. Ordinary people have emotion, such as guilt, and would not be able to handle murdering anyone. Their conscience would become guilty leaving them in shock and unable to function. On the other hand, Dexter is not an ordinary person. His conscience is dark and evil directing him to kill without remorse or second guessing himself. 

Tragic incidents tend to have a negative effect on a person, but Dexter Morgan was able to overcome his past to use his demons to help rid society of evil men. He was fortunate enough to have a step-father like Harry Morgan. Dexter would have been harmful to society if Harry did not guide the “Dark Passenger” to kill only serial killers. If Dexter never watched his mother being murdered as a child, the “Dark Passenger” might have never misguided Dexter’s conscience to sinister thoughts. Dexter would never have been emotionless, and he would have lived a normal life. Unfortunately, Dexter could not fix what had happened in the past. He was hollow inside. The “Dark Passenger” gave him one fascination in life, murder, which gave him somewhat of an emotion, excitement. His new life began when he was soaked in his mother’s blood allowing the passenger to enter Dexter, leaving this demonic conscience steering Dexter to a diabolical lifestyle ready to stalk the night, hunt down, and rid the society of serial killers.
