Dr. Hervey Cleckley is a
psychiatrist who has studied extensively a certain group of people known as
psychopaths. Coincidentally, his
research defines the
psychopathic personality as a gross
antisocial condition.
His research points towards psychopaths being particularly intelligent and charismatic. They have a tendency to circumvent conventional punishment, often hopping back and forth between the legal institutions where they plead insanity and the mental institutions where they are proclaimed sane, often due to their excessive charm and glibness.
In his book, The Mask of Sanity, Cleckley documents many incidences of this conditions and proposes many hypotheses on identification and treatment. He includes stories of brilliant scientists of exceptional talent that, although generally respected and adjusted, have sometimes been prone to unconventional behavior, like baricading themselves in dog kennels screaming at their superiors such colorful lines as "You always did say I'd go to the dogs, professor!" The psychopath is known for lack of higher emotions, inability to respect the consequences of their actions, and near-diabolic talents of persuasion. I think this fits the description of eccentric genius.
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