Narcissistic Family Values

 

As we have established that Spiegelman’s Maus is a portrait of narcissism/hubris/pride, it becomes instructive. It explains a great deal. 

Art is inept at handiwork; the reason is because, as a child, his father criticised his every attempt. Vladek rubs this in by demanding Art come and help him with some repair. It is not enough when Art offers to pay for a tradesman.

Narcissists make terrible teachers. Their vested interest is always in being better than their pupil. So their interest is in preventing learning. 

This is an important reason why I believe the business of evaluation must be separated from that of teaching. Narcissists will be drawn to the teaching profession by the opportunity to evaluate and to be the centre of attention. Taking this away from them is one way to keep narcissists out of the profession, where otherwise they have an ideal chance to bully. Making the teacher the evaluator is asking for trouble.

Art explains that he went into graphic arts and cartooning because it was the one activity where he was confident his father would not follow. Only there could he be free. 

This is also why Franz Kafka went into writing—because he knew his abusive father would never read them. So only there could he be free.

Narcissists have no eye for art nor ear for fiction. They dare not step outside themselves far enough to experience the suspension of disbelief necessary to appreciate art. If they ever do read a story or watch a movie, they will want something painfully sentimental. Big-eyed kittens; a dying child; it is like being deaf and only hearing especially loud noises.

This is no doubt why Jesus spoke in parables. It meant the pigs could not see and trample the pearls.

And this is no doubt why writers and artists almost always seem to come from abusive childhoods. Hemingway said this was the one prerequisite for a writer.

Note how Vladek seems obsessed over his will. A normal person would just write it up once, and be done. By his own admission he keeps changing it. He repeats to Artie that Mala is after it, yet he wants to leave it all to him. What does he say to Mala? He is using it as a bribe to keep himself the centre of attention.

At the end of Maus I, Vladek reveals that he burned all his wife’s memoirs. And immediately after admitting this, he explains that they were written for Art. “I wish my son, when he grows up, he will be interested in this.” A twisting of the knife.

A narcissist has no family loyalties. He will try to disrupt any family loyalties other than to him. He will readily betray both wife and son.