Aggression

Aggression

Theory

According to Myers (2013), “In the twentieth century, the 'brutish' view – that aggressive drive is inborn and thus inevitable.” Aggression is something that everyone must deal with from time to time, whether it is brought upon or acted out by someone. Aggression can even make its way through the generations as there is much evidence that African Americans who were born in the post civil rights era still harbor much of the resentment and aggression brought on by their ancestors mistreatment many years ago (Cassel, 2010).

Event

On the morning of July 20^th, 2012, during a midnight showing of the film The Dark Knight Rises, alleged gunman James Holmes opened fire on a crowded theater that included men, women, and children enjoying the film. The weapons he used included a tear gas grenade as well as several hand guns and assault rifles. This shows a blatant attempt to cause as much damage to as many people as possible (Rowlands & Spellman, 2012).

This act of aggression seems to have been brought on by mental illness. Holmes didn't have a criminal record prior to the shooting, however had shown increasing signs of a mental breakdown in the months leading up to the crime. Prior to the shooting, Holmes had enrolled as a Ph. D. student in neuroscience. His academic career seemed to be taking a toll on him as he began to lose contact with reality, cracking under the pressure of being a student. (Rowlands & Spellman, 2012).

This act of aggression seems to be a cry for help for a man who was desperate to find control over something in his life. He had been unlucky in his love life in addition to the mounting pressure from the university. Holmes could be seen as a failure of society in not recognizing the warning signs until it was to late.

References

Cassel, E. (2010). The Power of Psychotherapy. New York, USA.

Rowlands, T. & Spellman, J. (2012, Aug. 31.) James holmes called university 9 minutes before shooting, attorney says. CNN http://www.cnn.com/2012/08/30/justice/colorado- shooting

Myers, D. (2013). Social psychology. (eleventh ed.). New York, NY: McGraw-Hill Irwin.