Statement
The tale of Narcissus derives from a Greek mythological tale, where Narcissus, the main character, falls under a curse of staring at his reflection until he meets his faithful end, turning into a flower. Narcissism is a personality disorder derived from the name Narcissus, who falls into the trap of his vanity by falling in love with himself. The symptoms of this disorder vary, but there are main traits that define the condition of Narcissistic Personality Disorder.
The traits include a belief of superiority in oneself, with a heightened ego and a desire to project their inferiority to others through destructive behaviors toward others and self (Baumeister et al., 2001). However, the surface of someone with NPD is nothing but a thin shell that surrounds their deeper inner core and triggers this series of negative behaviors (Day et al.). Pathological NPD harms others stemming from “deficits of feelings of emptiness and affective instability,” which signifies that their behavior is a mere projection of their hatred and instability of their own identity (Day et al.). How can someone love themselves so much that they despise themselves and harm others?
There are many theories about how individuals with NPD become who they are. Freud believed that all humans are motivated by narcissistic self-love, and those who project their narcissism act in such ways as a method of survival, as their ego, a primal instinct of theirs, gets triggered (Yale, 1991). On the other hand, Rieff had a different theory on narcissism; he believed that “narcissism is seriously flawed by its superficiality,” which is a mere reflection of their lack of selflessness (Yale, 1991, p.138). A person with NPD is “conditioned to believe that they are special and deserve to be treated better than others,” which begins from a deep-rooted origin of trauma from childhood or adulthood (Biggers, 2022). The leading cause of this personality behavior can stem from many ways: genetics and observation, where a person with NPD has grown up around a family member or a loved one with NPD, and adverse childhood experiences such as childhood trauma and culture (Cleveland Clinic). However, not all symptoms of NPD present themselves in a stereotypical way that we know of, a malignant individual who wants recognition and admiration in an ouvert direction- in fact, NPD can appear harmless, crave “approval to maintain the self-esteem of feeling afraid of disapproval,” or even couvert, not outwardly expressing their tendencies (Cleveland Clinic).
On the other hand, NPD is not just harmful to others that they surround themselves with- it also can be harmful to those who experience NPD, where not treating this behavior can lead to other psychological disorders, such as body dysmorphic disorder, substance use disorder, and it sometimes can put the individual into life-threatening cases such as harming oneself (Cleveland Clinic). As a result, five photographs and an additional poster were created to depict the outer and inner emotions of an individual experiencing NPD. The significance of color theory was implemented in the presented artwork, as blue represents NPD’s cold, self-centered, and aloof outward projection. In opposition to the chosen color, the color red represents the fragile, unstable, and shameful inner emotions, debunking the overall paradox of narcissism; as a result, two photo shoots were conducted in two different locations to capture the concept of NPD. This project brought sympathy and understanding to those experiencing NPD through thorough research and visualization. As a result, this opportunity brought an interest in visualizing and exploring different human psychology and behavior, which will potentially branch out to future projects and many more.
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY
1) Narcissism as Addiction to Esteem //
Baumeister, Roy, and Kathleen Vohs // 2001
2) 9 Signs of Narcissistic Personality Disorder. // Biggers, Larissa // 15 Dec, 2022.
3) Narcissistic Personality Disorder // Cleveland Clinic // Aug, 2023.
4) Living with Pathological Narcissism: A Qualitative Study. Borderline Personality Disorder and Emotion Dysregulation, vol. 7, no. 1 // Day, Nicholas J. S., et al. // Aug, 2020.
5) Psychoanalysis and Ethics // Yale University Press // 1991