The History Community has a huge problem with ableism.
Before I begin with this, I want to clarify that I am not calling everyone within the community an ableist, but I am rather suggesting that history buffs and historians stop using these terms without knowing their correct meaning or bothering to research them.
For a starter, I would like to say that for a time when I was younger, I used to use the term narcissist to equal to a bad person. I was wrong for that and I mostly blame the person for telling me that Henry VIII “was narcissistic and the worst husband ever” Yes. Henry was a horrid husband and a vile excuse of a human, but he is not a narcissist. You have no right or no profession to diagnose both a historical figure and a real person.
Before we continue on with the narrative that historic figures like Henry VIII indeed are not narcissistic or why Caligula was not a sociopath, let’s look into the mythological context of which it holds.
The Myth of Narcissus:
Narcissus (or Narkissos) was the son of the river god Cephissus and the Boeotian Naiad Liriope, Cephissus raped Liriope and Narcissus was a product of said rape. While he was still an infant, he was regarded as to be very beautiful (a little gross if you ask me) and his mother, curious about his destiny, took him to see Tiresias. Tiresias said that the infant will live a long life as long as he doesn’t get to know himself.
In his sixteenth year, Narcissus was preyed on by many people, whether it be a teenage girl, an adult man or an elder. He was just that handsome and supernatural seduction to his nymphic form. He turned down everyone’s advances, but one suitor more than the others, decided that “no” was simply not enough. Aimenias harassed Narcissus constantly, it’s clear that he did not take no to mean no and through one way or another, he would be his lover (it’s unclear as to how old Aimenias is, but it shouldn’t matter. If someone tells you no, they mean no.) Narcissus (who probably was terrified for his own safety, or at least angry) sent him a sword, to which the guy takes his own life on his doorstep.
In some variations, Narcissus takes his own life out of sadness or regret. I believe the other source where we continue with Ovid’s story rather than Connon’s Narrations.
Echo was a mountain nymph cursed to repeat the last few words of a sentence after she kept distracting Hera from Zeus’ affairs. She came across this adolescent and his friends out on a hunting trip. At some point, he notices that he’s being followed and stays behind, lying that he will be catching up to his friends and he was thirsty. He calls out to whoever is there and Echo repeats that someone is in fact there. He says this phrase “let’s join together” (huc coeamus) which in that era could be a euphemism for wanting to have sex. Echo, hearing that he has essentially invited her to do whatever she pleases (in her perspective) calls out “Join together!” And runs towards him, only revealing herself then and embracing him.
Narcissus backs up and calls out “I would rather die here than give my body to you.” Suggesting he was frightened for his own body and safety. He then tells Echo to leave him the Tartarus alone and she does, withering away.
At some point, an enraged suitor calls to Nemesis and says “he shall be permitted to love no one but himself, as he loves no other.” And Nemesis obliges.
Luring him to a pool, Nemesis watches over as the boy is curiously infatuated by his reflection, which he never leaves. He does not know that he is looking at himself and he does not know that he has been cursed and made a victim of divine punishment, even though he did nothing wrong.
Before we continue with this blog, I want to clarify that boys Narcissus’ age in Ancient Greece were expected to be very lustful and hormonal. Narcissus (who I and a few others propose to be on the aromantic spectrum) is very much void of these traits. He was not interested in anyone, not even himself.
And because of that, he is now a flower… and the eponym for a personality disorder even though it makes no fucking sense.
Let’s return to the issues within the history community regarding clinical terms for personality disorders.
I have heard people say that people like Henry VIII and Caligula were sociopathic. Here is why I disagree and actual symptoms of said conditions.
The two largest traits for NPD are lack of empathy and an extreme fragile self-esteem. While Henry VIII does lack empathy, he was too full of himself to even care for others. We don’t know if he was insecure or not but he was not as far as we know. He never had fantasies about himself, he never belittled anyone, he never went to therapy. He was a tyrant and a capitalist. That’s what he was.
And for Gaius Germanicus Augustus Caesar (Caligula) it’s largely believed that at least 90% of the stuff written about him was false or dramatised to make people sympathise with the Senators (same with emperors like Elagabalus and Nero) and even though there are factual things to show his disregard for some life (he exiled his two sisters for plotting against him, ordered his cousin’s death and Cleopatra Selene’s son’s murder) he doesn’t show symptoms of anti-social personality disorder.
I repeat myself:
You cannot diagnose a historic figure with a disorder you do not understand, you cannot even do that as a therapist.
I also want to tag my TikTok mutuals @divinehistrio and @skykiuwu partly in thanks to understanding these disorders as well as having them. These are real people and I would strongly recommend following their TikToks.
Here is a website breaking down Narcissus’ myth:
I'm sure most people reading this are familiar with the story of Narcissus and Echo. The general structure is that the handsome Narcissus wa
