A Classic Study in Narcissism

A narcissist is described as being excessively preoccupied with issues of personal adequacy, power and prestige. A narcissist complex typically leads to a Narcissistic Personality Disorder (NPD). As defined by the NPD, narcissism is usually linked to a pervasive pattern of grandiosity, a need for admiration, and a lack of empathy.

My goal as a writer is not to identify and attempt to offer a solution to the many individuals suffering with this disease. Rather, I tend to focus on this issue and apply it to particular television shows I have grown up with. Sound strange? Good, that’s the whole point. Plus it’s really, really entertaining to analyze things that are not meant to be scrutinized under a microscope.

In regards to my focus on narcissism, I can find no one better to fit the bill than a character who has self-proclaimed himself, “The most powerful man in the universe”. For those of you who don’t know, I am talking about He-Man and his ‘Masters of the Universe’ television program from the 1980s. The television writers may have you believe that He-Man is fighting for democracy in his homeland (the fictional planet of Eternia), but in reality, he is a closet narcissist (and a bit of a fancy boy if you ask me).

Though He-Man doesn’t display every personality trait/tendency typically associated with NPD, his actions are quite troubling. First off, his clothing attire is mind-boggling. He-Man wears some sort of shorts concoction around his midsection, while his top half is covered by a very flimsy looking breastplate. In my understanding of it all, He-Man desires very minimal clothing in order to accentuate his overly-produced (chemically assisted?) masculine features. His choice in attire clearly identifies a complex. Instead of properly protecting himself during battle (from swords, arrows and magic), He-Man desires (demands?) to be the centre of attention. How else can you explain that mostly every other warrior in the program episodes wears proper battle gear (or some sort of attire that helps to protect the body?) Just compare He-Man’s wardrobe with Man-At-Arms, one of his loyal sidekicks, and you will see the light. You know, just because he believes that he is the most powerful man in the world doesn’t mean he should dress like he knows it. Strike one.

I have noticed that He-Man always has to be the hero. In fact he craves the spotlight, and this is readily apparent because every time he accomplishes a task, he feels the need to call attention to it. Case in point-in one particular episode I was watching entitled The Deflection, He-Man and his friends are attempting to find Gorgon, one of the many evil creatures that inhabit Eternia. When Gorgon blocks all of He-Man’s entrance ways, he believes that he is safe from apprehension. Gorgon’s arrogance is only overshadowed by He-Man’s insatiable lust for himself and his abilities. In one instant, He-Man bashes a wall down with his fist, and then in a cocky gesture (waving his hand forward as to say, ‘Was there ever any doubt?’) ushers his non-believing friends through the wall. In another instant from the same episode, He-Man destroys a door made up of steel (of steel!) with one punch and one dose of overt egotism. There is no suppressing the inflated self-image of this ‘so-called hero’. Strike Two.

For those of you who don’t know, He-Man is the alter-ego for Prince Adam (He-Man’s real name). An alter-ego is usually created as a result of a person’s insecurity with their own identity. So what better way to identify the love you have for yourself than to create a persona that identifies you as the most powerful man in the universe? In keeping with this, why even have a team of warriors? If you are who you say you are, then a team is unnecessary. This again goes back to the idea that He-Man needs an audience to congratulate him when he succeeds. I think my friends would get very tired of me if I constantly said I was the best at everything.

So, my question is this…if he is the most powerful man in the universe, why can’t he just bring freedom to Eternia? Well, the answer is quite clear, my friends. If he did that then there would be no other way to show off his amazing physical features. His high in life comes from situations that seem impossible to endure. When his sidekicks are at a loss of what to do, he always steps in and solves the situation. His goal is not to merely answer the problem emphatically through the use of violence, but rather to receive positive reinforcement/ acknowledgement from his peers. He needs the attention because his ego demands it. His deep insecurities are readily apparent as a result of his whorish ways. In a sense, he is an exhibitionist.

He-Man may want the best for his land, but at what price? Is he still a hero when his motives are self-congratulatory? Even his name, He-Man, is a very narcissistic man’s man sort of name. Why can’t his name be Kenneth or Julian? It’s because those names are too common. He needs to stand out, and as a result, his narcissism accelerates to the surface. So, who is the real enemy here? He-Man’s foes or himself?

You may have fooled me as a child, He-Man, but as I have aged I have seen the errors of your ways. You are a juice-head who cares only about the perfection of his own body (oh, and to constantly proclaim to your friends that you are the most powerful man in the world). Someone really needs to knock this guy off his high horse. Go take another steroid, jerk! Strike three, you’re out.

There are many aspects of our existence that I will never understand. I will never fully comprehend neuroscience, nor will my brain gravitate around the concepts surrounding astrophysics. Perhaps more importantly, I will never understand why Tango & Cash and Road House are not considered two of the greatest films of all time (perhaps one day I will discover the truth behind this particular enigma).

To be truthful, the fact that I will never be an expert on these subjects does not necessarily bother me. However, what does perturb me has a lot to do with popular culture, and more specifically, the television programs I watched as a child. There are moments that occurred during my favourite television shows that I never once thought were bizarre or out of the ordinary. Why I have decided to analyze these glaring errors now, I may never know. There are many more important issues out there to discuss, but these I feel do not need to be addressed at the current time. So, without further due, here are my grievances with late 1980’s and early 1990’s television (or better known as the events that helped to shape a large portion of my childhood).

‘Saved by the Bell’ and Science

Zack Morris is the most powerful entity on planet earth. Forget about Bill Gates, Barack Obama, and even Mother Nature. These are all examples of powerful individuals/ forces, but there is one thing that these men/entity will never be able to do: To have the power to manipulate and halt time with two simple words- ‘Time Out’. For those of you who were avid viewers of Saved by the Bell, remember when Zack, during moments of great crisis, could just stop and turn his direction to the camera off-screen and vocalize these two powerful words. In an instant, everything present in the environment he was placed in would come to an immediate stop. Yet, he had the power to move around, manipulate, and alter the very aspects of the reality he was presently associated with. How, I will never know, but that is a power that I am extremely envious of. Think of the possibilities (But I digress).

So, in retrospect, how is it that I never thought this moment of the show was out of the ordinary. I mean, it was hard to define Saved by the Bell as a realistic interpretation/depiction of high school life, but at least the moments of the show remained in a realistic context. How a high school kid had the ability to challenge every single law of time, movement and speed is beyond cognitive comprehension (I wish Stephen Hawking would get around to addressing this issue).

Why this issue is so bothersome to me at the present time is beyond any valid suggestion, but one day I would like to sit and chat openly with anyone who may have a suggestion to this meaningless conundrum that has baffled me for over 15 years now.

‘G.I. JOE’ and The Inadequacies of Modern Warfare

I will keep this short and sweet. The two opposing forces in the television show, G.I. Joe and Cobra, were supposed to be the greatest military men around, correct? They were the best of the best (yes, even better than Eric Roberts). One was fighting in favour of society’s freedom; the other was working towards the decimation of that democratic freedom (and the ability to control civilization’s best interests). Though my definition is fairly simplistic, this was the basic summary of every G.I. Joe episode. Sounds reasonable, doesn’t it?

Well, if these two opposing forces were the epitome of what it means to be the best, then I am truly frightened. Why am I frightened? Well, for the simple fact that neither of these two armies were ever able to hit a bloody target. Not once, in all my years of digesting the visual diarrhoea that is G.I. Joe, did I ever witness a casualty of any sort. Now I know that you are thinking that the reason for this was because the show was aimed squarely at children, and that there couldn’t be any sort of inflicted punishment perpetrated on screen. This fact does make sense. But, with all of those blue and red lasers propelling through the air, you would think that someone would eventually receive some sort of a flesh wound. But alas, this sort of incident never occurred. So I ask of you, the viewer/reader, would you really want G.I. Joe fighting for your freedom?

Think about it. If the thousands of lasers zooming through the air aren’t hitting opposing soldiers, then who are they striking? Yep, you guessed it, innocent bystanders. You, me, and your friends could all be decimated by the alarming inadequacies of our present day armies.

‘Peanuts’ and Child Service Groups

I know what you’re saying: How can you pick on the kids from the Peanuts comic strip and television specials. Trust me, I’ve found a way. I have no bone to pick with Charlie Brown, Lucy, Linus, or even Snoopy. My grudge has to do with Pig-Pen and his filth ridden body. For those of you who don’t remember Pig-Pen, he was the kid surrounded by a dust filled toxicity. Every time he took a step, dust and dirt would leap from his body with the accelerated speed of a puma pouncing on unassuming prey. As the filth exited his body, it would fill the air with Chernobyl like gases. So, I have two beefs with this issue of the messy kid.

How come he was never sent home for being unclean and unkempt? I mean, back in my grammar school, we had many days where we were observed for lice. If we had any trace of it, we were sent home immediately and forbidden to re-enter the school premises until the bugs had retreated from our scalps. How is it that that filthy mess they call Pig-Pen was allowed to enter the school grounds everyday and contaminate the surrounding school children?

Why weren’t child services called on Pig-Pen’s parents? Isn’t that considered child abuse if a parent won’t properly maintain the cleanliness of their own child? Well, I guess if the school didn’t care, why would the parents? I would hate to see Pig-Pen as a grown man today. No morals, no sense of self. I can see him now: probably walking around the streets, truly believing that the hobo look is a truly enlightening and exquisite fashion statement. Surprisingly, it doesn’t appear to have caught on with many members of society (the homeless are excluded from this previous statement).

I am sure that I will uncover further atrocities about my childhood television viewing, but for now, I will allow you to absorb my previous statements. Why I never thought any different about these matters when I was a child goes to prove my innocence and immaturity back then.

There is no turning back now.

Ten years ago, television suffered a tremendous loss. One of the greatest, if not most important, sitcoms of all time called it quits. ‘Seinfeld’ was a show that desired to be different. It did not focus on contemporary moral plight but rather highlighted the minute details that drove society crazy (only they were unaware that it did). As writer Bill Zehme once noted in a magazine dedicated to the show entitled ‘Seinfeld Forever’: “Seinfeld gave America permission to obsess over all that is inconsequential in life”. Truth be told, ‘Seinfeld’ was more intent on focusing on the idea that eating your peas one at a time was a far more relatable problem for society to contemplate then it was to focus on issues of race, gender, and politics. ‘Seinfeld’ has always been incorrectly defined as a ‘show about nothing’. On the contrary, the show was about everything, society was just not aware of it.

Much Ado About Nothing

‘Seinfeld’ was a show which celebrated the idea that nothing could mean everything. For nine seasons and over 170 episodes, viewers became emotionally intertwined with the likes of four characters, Jerry Seinfeld, George Constanza, Elaine Benes, and Cosmo Kramer.

For all their narcissistic, conniving, and insensitive traits, viewers still came to sympathize with these highly unlikable characters. These characters never emotionally grew in their nine years of existence, and never attempted to change. They were comfortable with their lifestyle for the most part but yet remained undeniably angry at the world around them. They would constantly fret and agonize over problems at Monk’s coffee shop, or they would journey to Jerry’s apartment to further complain about the injustices perpetrated by society against them. These characters never strived to change, but viewers continued to love them anyways. Perhaps, it was because they could so easily relate to the problems they endured.

Let’s face it. This world is a selfish place. For many people, the world revolves around them and them alone. They are unconcerned with the poor and needy, but are sometimes too afraid to admit this. What ‘Seinfeld’ did was to create an outlet for these people. The show highlighted the fact that people were not alone in this matter. These characters were just as shallow and self absorbed as them. According to Larry Charles, one of the many talented writers for ‘Seinfeld’: “People rarely say exactly what’s on their minds in real life, so by lying, Jerry and George and Elaine and Kramer were all being honest. It’s an honest show about lying” (Seinfeld Forever, Zehme). As heartless and mean-spirited as this sounds, it is undeniably true fact about this sitcom. According to Zehme: “And even if they (the characters) never learned anything, they handily grasped their own limitations as humans, which was an exemplary lesson to the rest of us”.

Ten Years Later

So why is Seinfeld still so important ten years later? To be honest, it is very difficult to answer that question. However, there are many elements that may be noted about why the show was successful in the first place. The show was hilarious, the acting was great, the writing was spectacular, the situations were absurd, the pop culture jargon was innovative, and the supporting cast was well rounded and abstract. In fact, there may not have been one ‘normal’ character on the show. They all had their flaws.

Perhaps this is why the show remains influential to this day. These characters were bizarre and creative, which made them real. No one was perfect, and the situations they created for themselves were inane and ridiculous, but yet somehow remained relevant to the world lived in.

Just recently, a magazine counting down the most important aspects of entertainment in the 1990s was released and deemed, (perhaps) shockingly, that ‘Seinfeld’ was rated number one. The reasons were that the show was considered highly influential and an important mode of entertainment not to be forgotten. This is in some ways amusing considering the fact that the show struggled for its first three seasons to find an audience, and consistently remained on the verge of cancellation. But, as it is with most great shows, ‘Seinfeld’ eventually hits its mark and changed the way the world would forever be embraced.

Society became aware of the fashion no-no’s of the puffy shirt, and the errors in giving advice to a Pakistani restaurant owner on how to spruce up business. Whatever the miniscule incident that occurs in one’s day to day life, ‘Seinfeld’ has more then likely covered it in detail. To say the show is about nothing is an extreme error in judgment. To say the show is a timeless masterpiece may be more fitting. Whatever the case may be, the show will continue to live on as a relevant piece of entertainment for all to enjoy.