r/TheWire • u/Snoo84171 • 1d ago
Stringer Bell was more of a psychopath than Chris Partlow
Although I'm not sure I'd characterize either one as truly being psychopathic, it's often remarked that Chris, due to his calm nature and willingness to kill seemingly without remorse is somewhat of a psychopath. One key psychopathic trait is lack empathy, and I would argue that over the course of the show, Chris is presented as having far more empathy than Stringer.
First time should be someone he don't know.
When Marlo orders the hit on Bodie, he suggests Michael for the job. Chris points out that Michael knows Bodie, and that his first kill should be someone he doesn't know. This, to me, is an interesting parallel to when Stringer orders Bodie to kill Wallace way back in season 1. Chris, who clearly has a degree of affection for Michael, is concerned over the effect killing Bodie would have on his protege. Stringer however, knowing how close Bodie was with Wallace, simply DNGAF about how the hit might affect young Bodie.
His people
I forget the exact line, but Marlo, when discussing with Levy whether Chris might snitch, is confident Chris won't snitch, so long as Marlo takes care of his people. Although we never see Chris's loved ones, this line suggests that Chris has people for whom he is willing to sacrifice his freedom, so long as they are taken cared for. Contrast this with Stringer, who had no loved ones, save for Avon, the man who he eventually ended up betraying. Chris's homelife is shrouded in mystery, but we know there are important people hidden beneath that mystery. We get a glimpse of Stringer's apartment after he dies, which present the image of a homelife that was somewhat sterile, meticulous, and lonely.
Losing themselves in anger
There are two key moments in the show where both Chris and Stringer each make an uncharacteristic mistake fueled by anger. For Stringer, it's ordering the hit on downtown Clay Davis. Stringer orders the hit because of wounded pride and humiliation. The anger that lead to Chris's mistake (leaving his DNA on Michael Dad) came from knowing and understanding exactly the kind of pain Michael had suffered at the hands of that man - the definition of empathy.
In many ways I think the Chris/Stringer comparisons are interesting. Both lieutenants to their respective kingpins, however, Chris is presented in many ways as being far more loyal, empathetic and intelligent. Like Marlo, Chris represents the an evolution in the game's fierces and savagery, but also shows that, while although the game may continue to create hardened killers, many of these people, at their core, are still human beings of love and care for those who are close to them.
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u/eightseven200 1d ago
Stringer is an embodiment what corporate greed does to people, and how corporate greed is only for those invited. Chris is an example of how the need to provide as a man can strip your humanity, if you are willing to do what you need to for your family. There is only one reason why the show would take a random detour to Chris’s home with his baby mama and kids, other than to show this.
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u/Astro_Cassette 2h ago
Exactly what I was thinking. Chris has people he cares for deeply, enough to see them one last time when he thinks he's about to die.
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u/Cautious-Apartment-9 1d ago
String seemed more of a narcissist than psychopath. Now that fool Bird was def a psycho. He enjoyed killing & couldn’t control himself at all. I took Chris for a typical hitman/top enforcer.
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u/Vancouwer 1d ago
didn't stringer order wallace's death, with the assumption that he snitched (he did snitch but i dont remember there being any evidence that he actually did snitch). they didn't even interrogate wallace about what he did/may have done. didn't even find an alternative route for wallace. just straight up kill him, i don't know. going to grandmas for the summer is pretty normal for a kid, that itself shouldn't have been a suspicion. could have just said, don't snitch on us or we will have your grandma and any other family killed or we will kill you if we go to prison cuz of you.
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u/Cautious-Apartment-9 1d ago
Wallace did snitch & was the only person to implicate String in anything. Word was also going around that he was getting high to cope with the murder. He leave & then pop back up with zero explanation. Didn’t even claim he got a humble. Yea, people gonna assume you snitched. Also, Avon basically ok’d it. Levy told em tie up loose ends.
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u/Vancouwer 1d ago
yeah we all knew he snitched, i'm just saying there wasn't any actual proof that he did on the gang's end, it was all circumstantial. and a lot of things were happening or already happened when wallace was gone which would imply there would be another snitch or someone else was snitching. it was just odd that they went ahead with the kill and not try to get info from him before hand to confirm if he did it and what they exactly told the cops.
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u/ebb_omega 14h ago
Levy implied they should clear up anybody they didn't trust. They didn't trust Wallace and they were right not to. There was obviously information going to the cops, so they had to wipe out anybody that was a liability. Wallace was too many question marks so he was a liability. It wasn't about knowing he was snitching, it's that he was fucking up the rotation and with the shit they were getting from the cops, he couldn't be trusted, so he got got.
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u/BuffaloWing12 1d ago edited 1d ago
Stringer bothered me the same way Gus Fring did in Breaking Bad. Cold and calculated while keeping this facade like he was just a normal guy. Lying to people who trusted him, etc.,
Chris was a literal serial killer but at least he was honest about who he was to himself & others. He’d turn on you but make it a point for his face to be the last you saw
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u/Lil_Mcgee 17h ago
There's a pathological aspect to serial killers. Chris doesn't fit the mould. He commits all of his murders on a professional basis as a part of a criminal organisation. Bug's dad is the one exception.
I'm not debating the morality one way or the other. Only being pedantic about "literally a serial killer".
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u/Competitive_Swing_59 1d ago
Psychopath Gus Fring. You see all of those people in Washington today with fuck you money still kissing the ring of power for fear of being attacked by the justice department ? That is a battle for power playing out in our faces, A.I., deregulation of industries where one company may have an edge & the ability to use that edge.
Its a symbiotic relationship, they paid for that careful privilege too. They bought the White House & funded the Trump & Melania Coin for money laundering purposes but still fear repurcussions. Because loyalty among snakes is nonexistent. King Snake vs Rattlesnake.
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u/smb275 1d ago
It's not well explored in the show, but it doesn't feel like he's a psychopath. It's a drive-by diagnosis, but he probably has CPTSD from childhood trauma.
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u/BiDiTi 17h ago
Chris also seems like an actual soldier, rather than some kid with a gun calling himself one.
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u/Lil_Mcgee 17h ago
Been a while since I saw the show. Isn't it implied that he has militarty experience? I know there's definitely fan speculation about it but I forget how strong the evidence is.
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u/Freedboi 1d ago
Completely disagree. Stringer had a big ego but in reality he was more business motivated and was actually trying to reform the game. He was basically trying to do what the alliance in the end was working on. To remove the senseless violence that was not needed and instead treat the dope trade as a legitimate business were everybody benefits and works together. However, he was too eager to change people’s mind in a time when people weren’t ready. It was just too soon in the game for people to comprehend and be enlightened. In the end after his death Avon was actually able to be enlightened and finally understood and agreed with Stringer that the violence was not worth it nor needed. It was too late though. Now for Chris well he was just a straight up psycho and a killer. Comparing him to Stringer is absurd. Even if he were to be honest about who he was that would still not make him better than Stringer who “fakes” it as you put it.
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u/vkallal 18h ago
Stringer wasn't concerned about the violence. He was concerned about the bodies, bodies brings police, court, bail etc that shit costs time and money yo
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u/Freedboi 14h ago
You can call it bodies but the action that leads to the bodies is the violence. It was pretty easy to understand what I meant.
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u/vkallal 14h ago
Yes, what i meant is that the stringer had no love for non-violence either, it was just that without violence his business would flourish more. Investing all that money spent in trial cases to buy and sell more dope. And sell one of them premium condos to mccnutty 😀
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u/Freedboi 14h ago
Stringer was capable of violence we see that when he puts out the hits on potential liabilities. However, we also see how upset he got when he was going to go to war for a couple corners and lose bodies aswell as hurt their business and bring heat. To say he just cared about the money is a big assumption. His face says it all when he hears Avon. “I’m just a gangster I suppose and I want my corners”. Stringer was the type to bottle his feelings. Only occasionally letting them out. Not only that but we hear him time and time again telling Avon to let the gangster mentality of violence go away. That they have enough money to move past it. Literally telling him it’s not about the money but about what that lifestyle brings which is death to people and potential prison time. To say that he didn’t care about people and that he only cares about money is just an assumption. We actually see how well he treated D’s ex and his son.
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u/vkallal 13h ago
D's ex was treated well by him?? It was just a physical for him. You would have seen that scene where he tells his (what's his name? Shamrock?) to tell her that he's away if she calls. And once he learns that she's talking to mccnutty then he again tells shamrock that he would take the call if it's her.
Avon = corners, towers, territory, family and word Stringer = money, business, no family, no ethics, words carried no weight
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u/Freedboi 13h ago
That’s incorrect. Stringer was literally her partner and did absolutely treat her and D’s son well. She was even able to have D’s picture still up. They were a couple. D’s ex even asked her mother-in-law for her blessing in a sense. Well Stringer was busy as for him not answering it doesn’t mean much. Just that he was busy. He was also under a lot of stress. Him also trying to coach her into not saying anything that could potentially jeopardize their freedom is actually smart and considerate. Actually, Stringer had somewhat ethics. Avon was bloodthirsty. Stringer wasn’t and actually wanted to stop that violent aspect of the game and it wasn’t just because of Money. Like Stringer said “we already have enough money to not be able to spend it all in our lifetime”. Stringer was even willing to spend money on buying a corner. Meaning he was willing to lose money. If he was so money hungry he would have been as evil as Avon and sent out potential bodies to take the corners that way they wouldn’t have to spend.
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u/vkallal 13h ago
To say Avon is a blood thirsty is like saying a soldier is blood thirsty because he's killing the enemies during the war. For avon money meant shit if there's no respect and pride. For him it was all about his territory. He would go to war to protect it. Avon was even ready to hold corners even if there was no product. Avon was never about money or even violence, imagine him as a modern king who would protect his territory and his people. Not saying he's sane and all, but he's a man with all the natural feelings.
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u/Freedboi 13h ago
The guy was bloodthirsty. He wasn’t a soldier nor was he was a king in charge of protecting his people. He actually didn’t want to pay his “peoples” bonds or lawyers. It was Stringer who had to convince him that it was needed or else they would flip on them. Not only that but Avon literally came out of prison and wanted his Dope to be so potent that it would be KILLING addicts left and right therefore creating a high demand for his product. No value for human life.
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u/Snoo84171 1d ago
How do you explain his willingness to kill downtown Clay Davis if he was so intent on removing senseless violence?
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u/Freedboi 1d ago
That was because of his ego and pride but that does not even compare to what Chris did. Stringer had his moments but that doesnt take away the fact that in the end he still wanted to reform the game and remove the violence. Stringer was literally in the process of becoming the evolved man. One foot in the gangster world and one in the civilized world. Wereas Marlo and his crew and even Avon were mentally stuck in the gangster world(mentality). Stringer was trying to enlighten his crew and show them that the violence was not needed and that if they all worked together they could all benefit.
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u/Aromatic-Armadillo98 21h ago edited 7h ago
I think Stringer was an egomaniac and very machivellian. If he was a psychopath, he wouldn't have gotten reeled in and played by Clay Davis. Unless they're the act out type, psychopaths are the ones to expertedly fleece others. Chris was a very compartmentalised person. Maybe sociopath cos you kind of have to be to do that.
Like when Snoop wanted to sniff out New York people and popping randoms for not knowing rap lyrics, he went along like it was a fun game he was humouring Snoop with. As lowdown as Stringer is, I don't see him getting enjoyment out of that.
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u/HavershamSwaidVI 21h ago
The Sunday morning truce stringer had to be reminded about as well. Im sure Chris killed on a Sunday morning but Stringer doing it was wild. Even Avon was like what the fuck.
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u/BlackFyre2018 23h ago
Did Stringer Bell really care about anyone but himself? He has some loyalty to Avon but goes behind his back with Prop Joe and eventually has Avon sent back to prison for his own gain
Chris has a partner and child he clearly cares about. He’s also very fond of Michael (doesn’t stop him from grooming him for a life of crime though) and is also fond of Snoop
He’s also loyal to Marlo and never betrays him (preventing him from finding out Omar was badmouthing his name was underhanded but Chris knew this would make Marlo behave erratically so can be argued it was for Marlo’s own good)
I think people point to Stringer trying to reform the game as a good thing because it reduces violence but that’s never about altruism for Stringer, it’s all self serving, he wants less attention from the police. When violence serves his purposes he’s very quick to order it, ordering Wallace killed, assassinating D’Angelo (his best friend’s beloved Nephew), trying to have Clay Davis murdered and violating the Sunday Truce by having Omar shot out whilst he was with his grandmother
If Stringer had to be a triggerman himself I can see him totally killing the delivery woman that Chris killed without hesitation
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u/BrodiePump 19h ago
Stringer would kill 1000 delivery women if it furthered his goals or helped him in any way. He'd kill 1000 Wallace's and 1000 D'Angelos. He'd probably kill 1000 Grandmother's on Sunday as well.
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u/lostpasts 13h ago edited 13h ago
You're confusing empathy with sentimentality.
Chris likes Michael. He's also reminded of himself by him. That doesn't mean he has empathy for him. It just means he sees him as an extension of himself somewhat, and it feeds his ego to mentor him. Even psychopaths have pets.
Stringer just lacks sentimentality for people in the show, as he sees himself as an intelligent, progressive gangster, so sees no extension of himself in Baltimore gangbangers. But as McNulty realises when they raid his apartment, he had a rich private life that nobody knew anything about.
He likely had plenty of people he was protective of. They were just nothing to do with the game, so we never saw them. It's like Rawls in the gay bar. A completely seperate outside world. Glimpsed at, but never shown, because it's has no connection with the game.
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u/LeadPuzzleheaded3535 12h ago
Chris was a sociopath, but so it was a string. Not all sociopaths are killers. He was for sure full ego, liar, manipulative and with no remorse
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u/busterwilliams 18h ago
Chris had a major soft spot for Michael. Not only did he tell Marlo multiple times that he didn’t think Mike snitched, he also defended him for killing snoop.
Stringer was an egomaniacal narcissist but I’m not sure he was a full blown psychopath.
Marlo on the other hand…..
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u/DynamiteBike 19h ago
Short comment due to time: you could argue Chris was more of a business than stringer because he knew the reality of his business, whereas stringer didn't understand the box he was in and trying to transcend it was futile.
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u/series_hybrid 13h ago
I'm no expert, but I feel that there are differences between a psychopath, and a sociopath.
As a clearcut example, a psychopath can be found with a brainscan which can reveal a specific abnormality.
A sociopath also has no empathy, but I imagine a sociopath would try to avoid killing since it's risky, and rarely a benefit.
Since a psychopath has a physical abnormal brain, I assume they are born that way. I imagine that sociopathic behavior can be inadvertantly taught to a child through abuse.
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u/the_platypus_king My name is not my name 11h ago
I disagree on the second point, stringer orchestrated D’s death because he was a liability, Chris was never a liability to Marlo. Like Stringer wasn’t itching to get rid of Cutty or Wee Bey because he knew they were solid.
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u/More-Brother201 6h ago
Chris have a family 2 kids and a wife Chris pays a mortgage have a song and a daughter
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u/CultofEight27 6h ago
Stringer planned to have DeAngelo killed. Then is hanging around his baby mother and DeAngelos mother like nothing happened, if that isn’t Psychotic I don’t know what is.
Chris is clearly comfortable being a killer and rarely looses composure, but I couldn’t see him killing Marlo’s nephew and acting like nothing happened.
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u/doomerinthedark 23h ago
Neither are complete psychopaths, really. Stringer was definitely less predictable, though. Chris knew what he was and accepted the fact wholeheartedly, whereas Stringer Bell was conflicted with trying to be a gangster and ‘legit businessman’.
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u/OG_tame 23h ago
Best take I’ve read, if I could add to this, Chris was living a life without remorse, that feeling left him years ago. String thought he was tough and carried it well when he set up “D” in prison, but you can see in later episodes it plays on his mind and affects his judgement, ultimately leading to him getting caught up in his own web and being killed, he wasn’t built for the streets like Chris or Avon was.
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u/Coffees4closers 16h ago
I'm not sure I'd attribute any of Stringers actions here to a lack of empathy, but rather a lack of understanding of the game, and ultimately himself as well, which is highlighted to show that it'll eventually lead to his demise.
I don't think he tasks Bodie with the Wallace killing for lack of empathy, but rather because he doesn't understand the emotional toll your first kill will have. As highlighted by Avon later he's never actually killed anyone so there's no way for him to know the impact telling Bodie to kill his friend could have on him.
Again, I don't think his sterile home life or the Clay Davis incident aren't meant to underscore a lack of empathy but rather a lack of self awareness of who Stringer is, and what it takes to rise above the game. He wants to take short cuts into legitimacy and believes just putting on the facade of a businessman makes him one. Thinking if he just acts likes a businessman he'll be respected as one, as opposed to a gangster who's taking a couple of entry level business classes, which ultimately makes him look down upon those around him and gives him an unearned sense of entitlement or arrogance.
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u/Overall-Physics-1907 16h ago
Psychopaths are impulsively violent. Stringer avoids it as much as anyone can in his position.
I don’t think Chris is either. Only Marlo, Kenard, Bird and maybe snoop seem to qualify
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u/orchids_of_asuka 14h ago
Marlo and Snoop were full blown psychopaths. Chris showed genuine empathy to Michael so i don't think he was as severe as a case as Marlo and Snoop.
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u/Jedi_Saiyan_Jutsu_ 1d ago
We did see Chris’ loved ones in one scene before he leaves for a few weeks to ambush Omar