Every single human
being on this planet is narcissistic to one degree or another – all
of us. Anyone who says they are not is either delusional, or a liar. The
narcissistic aspect of our personality is the reason why you put your
best photos up on social media, your most flattering self image to the
world and why we all seek accolades and affection from our peers, and
in this absurd age of Facebook, from armies of strangers who will
tell you how awesome you are just for making toast for breakfast.
There is a chemical reward system within our neurology which seeks
praise and adoration.
Our in-built narcissism
is the same reason why we exercise, try to lose weight, feel pride in
our accomplishments and generally say to the rest of the world: “hey
look at me...look at what I just did!”. More likely than not, there is a very real
evolutionary mandate in this benign narcissism contained within all
humans. Women want to look beautiful (healthy and fertile) in order to find
a mate – who is hopefully genetically compatible – so as to maximise
the more healthy pools of DNA to be passed on to the next
generation(s). Couple this with - 'we like to feel good about
ourselves' – and there is nothing wrong with this.
Without this kind of
positive narcissism we would of been deprived of the talents and
gifts the likes of Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee have given to the human
experience – making life that more interesting for all of us. Ali
really was 'the Greatest' and this was not hubris, this is a fact. He
did not fail miserably after proclaiming his abilities to the world –
he went on to become 'the Greatest', and when he retired, then devoted
his life to charity. Bruce Lee is another example of someone who
could also be seen as an extreme narcissistic/egomaniac.
However, step back and just consider what this man achieved in his short life and he did it all by himself using his own talents and abilities. He arrived in the USA from Hong Kong at a time when Chinese, and indeed most non-whites were considered sub-human in the 'Land of the Free'. Within a decade he had revolutionised the image of the Oriental male in the USA and all across the globe. He did this by proclaiming that he was not going to act out some culturally subservient role which he was expected to fulfill.
In his greatest movie Enter the Dragon, he more or less shows us this metamorphism - which he created for himself – and the image of Chinese culture in the West during the famous hall of mirrors scene. Lee, while trying to defeat the criminal and evil Han (who represented the negative Western stereotypes of shifty orientals) finds himself looking for the location of Han – only to find himself confused by the mirrors all around him. It is such a symbolic scene, that Bruce Lee is telling us that only by virtue of his own ego/narcissism – symbolically portrayed as reflections in the hall of mirrors – could he defeat the traditional image of the Western stereotypical 'chinaman'.
However, step back and just consider what this man achieved in his short life and he did it all by himself using his own talents and abilities. He arrived in the USA from Hong Kong at a time when Chinese, and indeed most non-whites were considered sub-human in the 'Land of the Free'. Within a decade he had revolutionised the image of the Oriental male in the USA and all across the globe. He did this by proclaiming that he was not going to act out some culturally subservient role which he was expected to fulfill.
In his greatest movie Enter the Dragon, he more or less shows us this metamorphism - which he created for himself – and the image of Chinese culture in the West during the famous hall of mirrors scene. Lee, while trying to defeat the criminal and evil Han (who represented the negative Western stereotypes of shifty orientals) finds himself looking for the location of Han – only to find himself confused by the mirrors all around him. It is such a symbolic scene, that Bruce Lee is telling us that only by virtue of his own ego/narcissism – symbolically portrayed as reflections in the hall of mirrors – could he defeat the traditional image of the Western stereotypical 'chinaman'.
The shattering of the
mirrors which results in the defeat of Han symbolises: that even though
Bruce Lee strove to be a Hollywood star and loved every minute of it
– there was a means to end which was far greater than the
narcissism he utilised in order to get there. In this context,
narcissism can be seen as almost a transformative and even spiritual
idea. In The Seven Spiritual
Laws of Success, Deepak Chopra talks about The Law of Dharma and how using our
talents, while serving others is the only worthwhile path to success.
Both Muhammad Ali and Bruce Lee would be good examples of this
concept. They both sought glory, fame and fortune while neither were
shy about their drive for stardom.
However, on the other hand, they
both ultimately used their stardom to serve humanity as a whole by bringing
about a greater understanding and mutual appreciation of different
cultures and spiritual traditions. Narcissism leading to positive
social and cultural change. Someone somewhere has to lead the charge.
In recent years, this healthy form of narcissism has been given a bad rap and is often confused with sociopathic and psychopathic behavior. These two states are not in anyway connected. A woman who wants to look the most beautiful bride on her wedding day is not generally pathological. This is her 'special day' and wants it to be remembered for all the right reasons. Some people are less narcissistic than others, but no one is immune from wanting – on some level – to be adored and admired for the way they look or their achievements (and in a Facebook context, no matter how mundane or uninteresting these “achievements” are).
In recent years, this healthy form of narcissism has been given a bad rap and is often confused with sociopathic and psychopathic behavior. These two states are not in anyway connected. A woman who wants to look the most beautiful bride on her wedding day is not generally pathological. This is her 'special day' and wants it to be remembered for all the right reasons. Some people are less narcissistic than others, but no one is immune from wanting – on some level – to be adored and admired for the way they look or their achievements (and in a Facebook context, no matter how mundane or uninteresting these “achievements” are).
WHEN IT GOES BAD IT GOES REALLY BAD...
Pathological narcissism
on the other hand is one of the most destructive human traits. The
difference between benign and pathological narcissism is similar to
the difference between an opium poppy in a field and all the factors
which transforms that poppy into an AIDS-tainted syringe of low-grade
smack being injected into a junkie's arm in some downtown 'shooting
gallery'. When the narcissistic trait in humans is not only indulged
by the lords of culture, but turbo-charged and celebrated as a symbol
of the only avenue to ones personal empowerment, it becomes as much
as the method of slavery and death for the psychology of the
individual as the heroin in the veins of a hopeless and doomed addict.
This is now the main
agenda of the control grid – employing the lords of culture to make
us all pathologically narcissistic and self-destructive. The profit
motive again is the only agenda here. This is a war upon us which is
not driven by anything else other than supply and demand. They supply
the fixes, we demand more and more solutions to the narcissistic
cavity engineered inside us were our souls should be.
Thomas Sheridan is the
author of Puzzling People: the Labyrinth of the Psychopath available
HERE
