The Imp Of The Perverse

AllotmentLil I did just that - cut off the long plait of a girl in my class at primary school. We were 5 years old and it was during a painting/cutting/sticking lesson and the scissors were blunt so it took me a while to cut through her hair !!!
Naturally all hell broke loose - she and I (both crying) were taken to the Headmaster's office and both sets of parents were summoned. I was terrified and thought I'd be sent home from school forever until, suddenly..............the other girl confessed that she'd asked me to cut her hair because she wanted it shorter!!!
I never did become a hairdresser

One of my team had a ponytail (he thought he was edgy, he wasn’t, he was a prat) and I used to have to cut it off and hit him with it. HR would have taken a dim view of that I think.

YY to the hot iron. Why?? It’s such a horrible thought to have, why do I think about doing it to myself?

I sometimes get a sudden urge to just reverse my car over people who stand chatting or walk across behind it when I'm trying to exit a parking space in a car park.
I can almost feel my foot sliding across to the accelerator pedal..............!!

I'm glad I'm not the only one who gets these strange impulses. I have to stand well back on tall buildings or cliffs as the urge to jump is quite strong at times.
But my main ones are while driving. Especially if someone cuts me up or overtakes me, I long to follow them and do a really great car chase like in films. But I don't think my old clapped out Honda is up to it.

Am I missing something here? I would be distressed if I ever thought of taking up a knife and stabbing someone. When does impishness end and reality begin? So many people having these desires is puzzling.

They’re not desires - it’s hard to describe what they are. More like ‘what if I did’ type thoughts. Some of them horrify me (although ponytail man would have deserved it ) and I wonder where the heck they came from as I’m not a violent or angry person at all.

I agree SirChenjin I'd describe them as devilish impulsive thoughts but certainly not RATIONAL ones!!

I would describe it as a fleeting unwanted thought NOT a desire.

I so wanted to tell my boss she was a right Bitch but never got round to it! I could do it now that I'm no longer in work though!

No need to wonder, 'What if I stab this person with a kitchen knife?' Bizarre thoughts. Surely quite a different thing from itching to cut someone's plait off?

Knives are dangerous. I keep them in a drawer. Perhaps its more a fear of doing it, as so many thousands of human beings in history have ACTUALLY stabbed someone.

I also haven't thrown myself off a cliff edge, but many hundreds if not thousands of human beings throughout history have.

No there is no need to have such thoughts and yes it is is bizarre.

Aaagh, I once had an uncontrollable urge to pull a girl's knickers down as she leant over her desk in primary school (I really didn't want to see her bottom - I just wanted to humiliate her for something she'd said or done to me). I got in so much trouble for it.

So, if you recognise yourself from this, then I really am very sorry......

Of course they’re bizarre and on occasions quite horrible - do you see any of us on here saying ‘I have these violent, impulsive thoughts, they’re great fun!’??

The fact that there’s an actual name for this is reassuring - and it doesn’t mean that those of us who experience them are ever going to act on them.

She better not watch Father Brown. Someone has plotted out actual murders.

My Mother thought she had better divorce my Stepfather when she found out about his affair, as she had this overwhelming urge to plunge a sharp axe into his bald head.

It’s OK - I don’t watch Father Brown

sorry I meant Ginny42

Interesting that there's a name for this. When driving to work years ago on a fine day, I'd get this thought now and then - "What if I just drove past the entrance and kept driving, abandoning my family?" Of course I never did - the sensible part of me would wonder where I'd go and what I'd do. I've occasionally had the thought of what it would be like to murder someone. Had a dream once that I had - very disturbing!

There's a big difference between these thoughts, and any likelihood of acting on them, or them becoming intrusive. From posts here, sounds like the Imp of the Perverse is quite common.

There's an Ann Tyler novel about a lady who did just walk away from her family and start a new life. Naturally, I can't remember the name of it though. Och!

For many years, I wanted to know what it would feel like to slap someone across the face (anyone, not a particular person). Then, a couple of years ago, I had to do just that as part of a role I was playing. I really didn't like it, as the guy I was slapping seemed to be in real pain every time - until he finally persuaded me that he was acting!

Jane 10
Ladder of years ( the book)

But surely what it boils down to is the difference between sanity and insanity - knowing what IS acceptable and what IS NOT acceptable behaviour in everyday life.
We are talking about THOUGHTS/IDEAS/DREAMS we have that are so EXTREME as to classify them as ABNORMAL and therefore if carried out surely we'd all be 'locked up' one way or another or dead. Sorry if I have offended/upset anybody.

However, what is interesting is.............the number of GN's who admit to having THOUGHTS like these

I'm sure there are a lot more who have them, but wouldn't admit to anything.

I'm positive there are many more MissA