Knowing you a bit (or at least believing this), I know that you recognize the complexity behind every definition of a mental disorder. In every scientist is the curiosity and the desire to understand himself and the world. The study of the human mind is probably one of the most fascinating areas of research. And yet I think that it is precisely in this area that we can only see to a limited extent what makes people tick. I don't believe so much in a fundamental characteristic firmly anchored in a person, but I know that a majority of people probably believe this. As far as there is a consensus that one can characterize people, one does so. If the sender and receiver of a characterization accept a definition equally, they behave accordingly.
But it just won't work without a label, because I think we live in a world of abstractions and the fragmentary division of labor is inherent in the system.
In my work I experience again and again that people demand compassion from e.g. government agencies (authorities) and expect people there to understand their personal fate and their misery. But these people are not trained in it and only manage the finances. I suspect this self-centredness (which carries a touch of narcissism) is based on the psychologized knowledge.
Each theme marks only the tip of an iceberg and you can dive very deep into narcissism and always find new doors. If you look at the definitions and check yourself for the tendencies, you can easily see that you also have narcissistic features. Without this self-knowledge we would not know what to do with the definitions.
When I look at how thick the DSMV catalogue is, I might think that the civilized world suffers from mental illness on a large scale.
I was a little shocked at how widespread the subject of narcissism is on the Internet and how many people focus on how to expose a narcissist and what a terrible fate can befall you in your relationship with "such a person". When I was looking at and reading, I had the creepy feeling that self-examination had definitely been neglected and that the subject matter sears a hole in the fabric like a burning glass.
I believe that the overconfidence and grandiosity of famous narcissists can only gain such public attention because those who help a narcissist to fame and success, in turn, suffer from rivalry and megalomania. It is a self-fertilizing system in the horizon of events... I believe the best way to get through life is not to lose sight of reality and every present moment of existence is accompanied by loving attention to oneself.
I would think that this is a very difficult life's work.
Humans are strange creatures. :)
Hello, Erika and thank you for your time.
I absolutely agree with you on that. You know that in order to reach full understanding we have to start from somewhere.
Hmm.. Really interesting proposal. But in reality narcissists are really good in manipulating others, so we might never know..
Thanks so much for your comment, Erika ! Best wishes to you !
:-) That I like so much about you. This openness for perspectives.
Actually, we are all quite educated in manipulation. I would say that our society provides for a certain amount for it as we communicate mostly verbally instead of working the fields or do handy work for survival.
I think a Hitler or Mussolini or another dictator would never have gotten their great "successes" if there weren't many other people with the same disease (only varying in strength).
From what I think one cannot manipulate others who have integrity and a stable mental state of mind and heart.
What do you say, how good is your nose when you sniff that another one is manipulative and how relaxed is your reaction to it? Not the out- but from the inside.
... Maybe, it would be a good idea to use a scale in order to look how much it affects me when I think I am being manipulated (from 1 to 10).
I guess that my reaction to manipulations by others would strictly depend on the context and the person in front of me.
In general, most of the times, I let the other person develop their scheme in order to see their agenda and if possible revert their manipulation against them.
That being said I think that I cannot put this reaction into numerical scale, because often it is related to multi-leveled emotional and rational experience.