Fame_Junkies

Personality Disorders and Fame It takes a special kind of person to thrive off fame. There are always those who are thrown into it and adapt to their new reality, but those who want it, those who crave the attention and seek it out, they all have something in common: the excessive need to always be in the spotlight. However, this obsession with attention does not necessarily equate to narcissism, as Jake Halpern suggests in his book, Fame Junkies. In an article for Suite101.com, author Kate Le Page describes some of the characteristics of narcissistic personality disorder (NPD): an unusually high opinion of one’s self, the belief that one is worthy of extra-special treatment, and the obsession with needing constant attention from other people. At first glance, this seems to be a fairly accurate description of most celebrities, however, if you do a little more research you’ll find that histrionic personality disorder (HPD) is more common, and a more fitting representation of the majority of fame-seekers. Le Page identifies HPD sufferers as being overly sensitive to criticism and rejection, having an obsession with their physical appearance, wearing provocative or inappropriate clothing, and, as with NPD, continuously needing to receive attention from other people. There are two characters from Fame Junkies who immediately come to my mind in regards to the two disorders: Ariel Barak and Eddie Powell. Ariel does seem to be the classic narcissist, with his senses of entitlement and self-importance, and his belief that he is unique. At one point he says to Halpern, “…I don’t doubt myself, and I never look down on myself – never” (49). Eddie, on the other hand, displays the characteristics of HPD. His reason for wanting to become a celebrity: “…at school I’m just a common person. The popular kids…like to make fun of me” (33). He believes fame will boost his image and cause his peers to show him the respect he deserves. In fact, most of the aspiring celebrities Halpern comes into contact with seem to fit the criteria for HPD, rather than NPD. He describes how obvious the adolescent pain and awkwardness is in so many of the children at the IMTA convention; how they seemed to hope that gaining fame and notoriety would cause a role reversal and right all the wrongs they’d endured so far in their short lives (34). This does not point to narcissism, but rather histrionic personality disorder. Aimee Larson, also a writer for Suite101.com, states that histrionics are often inaccurately labeled as self-absorbed, shallow, or narcissistic, due to their overbearing obsession with being the center of attention. This could explain Halpern’s misleading tone throughout his book that the majority of young dreamers today are narcissists. Psychologist Jean Twenge interpreted of the results of 3,445 people who had completed the Narcissism Personality Inventory, her conclusion being that American schools are “training an army of little narcissists” (Halpern, 38). What she fails to mention is that the NPI is not directly linked to NPD, rather it is a tool to measure narcissistic traits; people who score very high on the Inventory are not necessarily narcissists by definition. As well, the NPI is a forced choice questionnaire, with the statements being a narcissistic trait paired against the extreme opposite trait (Port). This could lead even those with average self-esteem to choose the more narcissistic trait over the one that makes them sound like they have no sense of self worth at all. I suspect if Halpern had looked into the difference between the two disorders, he may not have contradicted himself by listing celebrities who overcame a troubled youth, adding that, “one almost has to wonder whether it’s a requirement of sorts” (34). He reminds the reader that many celebrities seem to have viewed stardom as a way to ease the pain of a rough childhood. In these cases, it was not an overabundance of self-esteem, but rather the lack of it that drove them to seek fame and the attention and adoration that would come with it. Their driving force was to show their family and peers that they could make something of themselves – to prove that they deserved respect and admiration, not ridicule and heartache. Eddie Powell dreamed every night about becoming famous, so the kids at school would stop tormenting him. Robin Gauer, another teenager Halpern met at the IMTA convention, had a deadbeat dad and wanted to become an actress so other kids would look up to her (32). Marylin Monroe also grew up without a father and used her fame to fill that void (Halpern 34). I believe that while celebrity may certainly appeal to narcissists, many people confuse narcissistic traits not only with the disorder itself, but with histrionic personality disorder and its traits. From the outside, they do seem similar. However, to lump all those people into the category of narcissistic and make a general statement that kids are becoming more and more narcissistic and this is the reason they are seeking fame is simply inaccurate and irresponsible. Nearly every character in Halpern’s book who wanted to be famous exhibited traits that, once we learned their back-story, were clearly histrionic, not narcissistic. Works Cited Halpern, Jake. Fame Junkies. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2007. Print. Le Page, Kate. “Histrionic and Narcissistic Personality Disorder: Understanding Mental Health Conditions.” Suite101.com. 18 Mar. 2010. Web. 20 Sep. 2010. Port, Tami. “Histrionic Personality Disorder: Overview of Symptoms, Diagnosis and Treatment of HPD.” Suite101.com 10 Sep. 2007. Web. 21 Sep. 2010.