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Ted Bundy : In the beginning, it fuels this kind of thought process. Then, at a certain time, it is instrumental in crystallizing it, making it into
something that is almost a separate entity inside.Appendix ii, no. 14 Based on the conversation above, Ted stated that it was pornography that
fueled his thought process, but not only that. According to his opinion, pornography also contributed in crystallizing the thought process and making it become a separate
entity inside his mind. Clearly, the statement above shows another rationalization that Ted tried to
offer by stating how pornography contributed in shaping his violent behaviour which is the act of killing women and girls.
4.1.4. Diversion
Diversion is a language manipulation strategy in which manipulators try to drag the topic and direct people’s attention to another issue in order to keep
themselves safe for moments. It also includes the act of never giving straight answers to straight questions.
Data 7
Dr. Dobson : How long did you stay at that point influenced by pornography
before you actually assaulted someone?Appendix ii, no. 17 Ted Bundy
: Well, yeah, you see.. That is a very delicate point, in my own development. We’re talking about having reached the point or a grey
area that of course, well....Appendix ii, no. 18 Dr. Dobson : You don’t remember it?Appendix ii, no. 19
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Ted Bundy : Well, I would say.. I would say a couple of years.Appendix ii, no. 20, line 1
In the conversation above, it is obvious that Ted in the beginnning was apparently trying to hide from the question that was given by the interviewer. He was
hesitating to pick the right words to say and also attempting to drag the issue by saying “That is a very delicate point”, which aims to manipulate the interviewer.
The interviewer, however, clarified whether or not Ted remembered it, before Ted finally gave the answer, “I would say a couple of years.”
Data 8
Dr. Dobson : Do you deserve the punishment the state has inflicted upon
you?Appendix ii, no. 48 Ted Bundy
: That’s a very good question. I don’t want to die. I’m not gonna kid you. I deserve, certainly, those extreme punishments society has.
And I think society deserves to be protected from me and from others like me. That’s for sure. What I hope will come of our
discussion is that I think society deserves to be protected from itself. As we have been talking, there are forces at loose in this country,
especially this kind of violent pornography, where, on one hand, well-meaning decent people will condemn the behaviour of Ted
Bundy while they’re walking past a magazine rack full of the very kinds of things that send young kids down the road to being Ted
Bundys. That’s the irony, because I’m talking about going beyond
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retribution, which is what people want with me.Appendix ii, no. 49, line 1-10
In the conversation above, Dr. Dobson as the interviewer asked Ted Bundy if he thought that he deserved the punishment that had been inflicted upon himself,
which was the death sentence. At first, Ted claimed that he surely did not want to die, although he deserved the extreme punishment that society had. Note that the
interviewer actually was talking about the punishment in particular, the death sentence, while Ted responded to it by saying “I don’t want to die.”
In spite of this, he used language manipulation strategy by asserting that the society essentially deserved to be protected from itself. He affirmed that it was an
irony for people to curse his crime but at the same time could be walking past a magazine rack which contained things that might turn any young kids to commit the
crime as he once did. He also claimed that he was talking beyond the revenge that the society
wanted to impose on him. He used this language manipulation strategy to drag people’s attention away from his punishment and focusing on the consequences that
society would bear whether or not he was sentenced to death.
4.1.5. Lying
