Abuse in Cults

The first is that of total control. Cult leaders wish to have control over all aspects of the lives of their members, thus if they can control their members sexually they will succeed in their goal (37). This was not exactly shown in True Detective as the cult is mostly undefined and no female members were shown on screen. However, this reason would make sense as the cult leaders are exercising control over the victims by bounding them, forcing them to take drugs, as well as stabbings and rape (38).

The second reason is that many cult leaders fit the definition of a psychopath. As they do not adhere to social norms combined with a need for stimulation, sexual abuse can be rampant in cults. This is not to say that all psychopaths are rapists and sexual abusers, this is used to give real-life context to the Tuttle Cult, as Errol was noted to be insane by fans (39, 40). 

​

It is common for sexual abuse to be used in real-life cults for practices and ceremonies. This is shown in True Detective. Another way that the Tuttle Cult is similar to real-life cults is that women are seen as submissive to the men and leaders in the cult as seen in True Detective  (41, 42).