The Selfishness of Others: An Essay on the Fear of Narcissism
By Kristin Dombek
Publication Year: 2016
Type: Non-fiction
Genre: essays
Read on 2019-04-30
View additional specs on this book in Muhan’s 2019 Reading Survey ➞
★★★☆☆
Thesis of this essay is that maybe when you call other people narcissist, YOU’RE the real narcissist to think that someone isn’t giving you enough and so must be self-absorbed. I picked this up at the Strand because I was having a difficult time with a family member and in a mood where I wanted this book to tell me that yes, that person is indeed a pathological narcissist. I didn’t seriously think the book would tell me that, nor do I seriously think this person is a pathological narcissist, but I mean the book did well in telling me that maybe I’m the problem. Because I mean, I am part of the problem. It’s a long essay though and it kind of drags. The references are all over the place which is weird for me because I tend to only read academic essays with an actual methodology. Reading this did get me thinking about the essay form though, which I do appreciate. But when it’s good it’s good and when it’s boring and has a thesis I can sum up in a sentence and spend the rest of my review rambling I give it 3 stars.
