Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story became an overnight sensation as soon as it dropped on September 21. Many viewers binged the Netflix limited series, either compelled by the grisly crimes the real-life serial killer committed or drawn in by Evan Peters’ masterful performance as the namesake character. Many other shows or movies about notorious criminals often examine the questions “Why did they do it?” and “Who made them that way?” Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story follows this approach, but rather than focusing on one answer, it features three clear factors in the creation of the killer.
As is often the case with major crimes, the series explores the nature versus nurture dynamic of Dahmer’s upbringing and his early descent into criminality. As the viewer gradually sees the progression of Dahmer’s childhood, it’s clear that Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story is painting a picture in which both his mother, Joyce, and father, Lionel, are at least somewhat responsible for shaping him into what he became. Most notably, when Jeffrey displays an interest in experimenting with dead animals, his father encourages it. He brings Jeffrey roadkill so they can bond over dissecting it in the garage. The more appropriate response might have been to encourage Jeff to find another hobby — one that didn’t involve poking and prodding dead things. Instead, beginning at a young age, Jeffrey has a fascination with death, or at least its effect on formerly living things.
Additionally, the narrative within the series puts some of the blame on Lionel for failing to adequately question Jeff every time he got into trouble. Whether it was getting arrested for molesting a boy or being questioned by the police after a would-be victim escapes, Lionel doesn’t see the red flags regarding Jeff’s behavior. If he does, he chooses to ignore them or minimize them, often because he adamantly believes that his son can get better — even when every sign imaginable indicated that Jeffrey needed professional help. In the end, once Jeff has been arrested for murder, Lionel initially refuses to take responsibility, but he eventually realizes that he played a part in his son’s devolution into a killer.
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Joyce is also responsible in multiple ways, based on the story featured in the show. Lionel repeatedly references how she was taking numerous pills and medications while she was pregnant with Jeff, so she may have affected the formation of his brain to some degree, though the exact extent of the impact isn’t disclosed. But a clear sign of her culpability comes when she literally abandons Jeff. After Lionel and Joyce get divorced, she takes Jeffrey’s younger brother and drives away, leaving the teenage boy by himself. Before she goes, she shames Jeff for dissecting the animals, seemingly making him feel like a freak. Worse yet, Lionel leaves Jeff alone, albeit less viciously. He’s living with his new girlfriend, Shari, so Jeff has to fend for himself. Essentially left alone to police himself, Jeff starts heavily drinking beer and even kills his first victim. By the time Lionel returns and tries to help his son get back on track, it seems like he’s already well on his way to becoming the monster viewers see later in the show.
Of course, Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story also gives the audience reason to believe that Jeff’s own nature is responsible. Even as a young boy, he is characterized as quiet, awkward, and somewhat unusual — especially once he starts dissecting animals. He doesn’t make many friends at school, and he ruins one bonding moment he has with a classmate when he takes a dead animal from the science lab and asks his classmate if he wants to dissect it with him. Later on, even before Jeff becomes a serial killer, he steals blood bags and drinks from them to satiate his urges. Clearly, the narrative in the show establishes that Jeff at least has the foundation needed to cultivate a serial killer, which is augmented by the aforementioned ways in which his parents contributed to his downfall.
It’s important to note that Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story doesn’t tell the full story; no show does. The narrative is dramatized, condensed, and perhaps warped for the sake of storytelling. However, this limited series is measured in its approach, as it puts some of the blame on Jeff and his parents, among other factors, without explicitly trying to say that there’s one clear answer as to why he became a serial killer.
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