Narcissism

In the closet Objectivists

Objectivists often use this term to describe someone whom others call “egoistic” - a someone who brags in order to get the admiration of others (rather than valuing their own accomplishments for their own sake) and is therefore virulently second-handed. For example, Objectivists will point to Trump’s self-aggrandizement: “I will give you everything. I will give you what you've been looking for for 50 years. I'm the only one.” as narcissistic. These Objectivists probably aren’t wrong, but I find the usage dangerous. My purpose is to share what I’ve learned about narcissism, because I think Objectivism has some uniquely insightful things to say about this personality disorder.