I'm a theologian which is why I love studying cults. It's not often I come across a series that explains this well why people go into cults, how they start, and why they usually end in horror.
A cult needs a strong charismatic leader to hold everything together and create enough faith in them that people are willing to go along without a question. The positive aspect of that is that you create a very united social group with meaning, unlike the outside world where people are lost and lonely. The dangerous side of a charismatic leader is that he will almost always go crazy and abuse his power (usually within 20 years).
Synanon was a fascinating group because it was not a religion (even though they formed a church for tax reasons). This gives us a chance to investigate a cult without having to deal with people's belief in God and so on. It's just a group of people united in their admiration of a brilliant but very flawed and sick man.
This was not the worst cult out there but it could easily have turned so much worse if it had been based on religious writings and a belief in a higher power. That being said, there is more than enough insanity here for those who love watching series like this for that reason. There are better and more shocking examples out there but this will still give you your kick. If you are however like me and want to understand why people join and how groups like these work, then this is as good as it gets.
A cult needs a strong charismatic leader to hold everything together and create enough faith in them that people are willing to go along without a question. The positive aspect of that is that you create a very united social group with meaning, unlike the outside world where people are lost and lonely. The dangerous side of a charismatic leader is that he will almost always go crazy and abuse his power (usually within 20 years).
Synanon was a fascinating group because it was not a religion (even though they formed a church for tax reasons). This gives us a chance to investigate a cult without having to deal with people's belief in God and so on. It's just a group of people united in their admiration of a brilliant but very flawed and sick man.
This was not the worst cult out there but it could easily have turned so much worse if it had been based on religious writings and a belief in a higher power. That being said, there is more than enough insanity here for those who love watching series like this for that reason. There are better and more shocking examples out there but this will still give you your kick. If you are however like me and want to understand why people join and how groups like these work, then this is as good as it gets.