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Culpepper Bundy in 1951 and he formally adopted Ted as his son and gave Ted his surname.
The indication of Ted’s lie is because he was not being honest about his earlier childhood which had been suspected to be not as nice as his confession above.
It was also believed that his troublesome childhood, especially the fact that he did not know about his parentage until high school, that contributed to his behaviours.
4.1.6. Covert Intimidation
Manipulators use covert intimidation strategy to give some sort of threats to people so that people feel anxious and intimidated.
Data 10
Ted Bundy : I’ll tell you, as long as they the officers attempt to keep their
heads in stand above me, there’s gonna be people turning up in canyons, there’s gonna be people being shot in this city, because the
polices aren’t willing to accept what I think they know, and they know that I didn’t do these things. And the men who kidnap children
are just gonna continue to be free, and not only her but every other young woman is going to be threatened by that person or persons.
It’s happening today and it’s gonna happen in the future.Appendix i, no. 5
In his statement above, Ted implied that as long as the officers focused on him instead of chasing the real killers, more women would be killed. In this
statement, he used language manipulation strategy called covert intimidation, with the purpose to give an indirect threat to people. By saying “The men who kidnap
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children are just gonna continue to be free, and not only her but every other young woman is going to be threatened by that person or persons”, he actually frightened
people and made them anxious about whether or not he was telling the truth. He indirectly intimidated people by implying that there was no use to keep him in jail as
the real killers were free out there and could kidnap even more women.
4.1.7. Guilt-tripping
Most of the times, manipulators know very well that normal people possess consciences that are certainly larger than them. As a result, manipulators often make
people sympathize with their condition so that people will try to understand their position and therefore believe that the manipulators are actually not completely bad
persons.
Data 11
Dr. Dobson : If I were able to ask the kind of questions that are being asked, one
would be, “Are you thinking about all those victims and their families that are so wounded? Years later, their lives aren’t normal.
They will never return to normal. Is there remorse?”Appendix ii, no. 39
Ted Bundy : I know people will accuse me of being self-serving, but through
God’s help, I have been able to come to the point, much too late, where I can feel the hurt and the pain I am responsible for.Appendix
ii, no. 40, line 1-3 Simon 2000:87 states that guilt-tripping is one the manipulator’s favourite
weapons because they know well that other types of persons have very different
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consciences than they do. In his statement above, Ted was trying to convince the interviewer that he had been able to feel the hurt and pain that he had caused to his
victims and their family. By stating that, he actually wanted to ensure people that he was no different than any other human being; he had just as much consciences as
other people did.
Data 12
Ted Bundy : I can’t begin to understand the pain that the parents of these
children and young women that I have harmed feel. And I can’t restore much to them, if anything. I won’t pretend to, and I don’t
even expect them to forgive me. I’m not asking for it, because that kind of forgiveness is of God. If they have it, they have it. If they
don’t, maybe they’ll find it someday.Appendix ii, no. 47 In Ted’s statement above, it shows another guilt-tripping strategy. By saying
that he couldn’t understand the pain that his victims and their families felt; or that he didn’t expect them to forgive him, he was actually trying to trick people into
believing that he had regretted his harmful behaviour and understood that the victims families might not ever forgive him for what he had done.
He was trying to make people sort of feel guilty for seeing him as a completely bad person, because by stating “I don’t even expect them to forgive me.
I’m not asking for it. That kind of forgiveness is of God. If they have it, they have it. If they don’t, maybe they’ll find it someday”, he actually expressed how much he
realised that it was not easy for people, especially the victims’ family to forgive him.
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4.1.8. Shaming
