Phallic narcissism

Wilhelm Reich first identified the phallic narcissistic personality type, with excessively inflated self-image. The individual is elitist, a "social climber", admiration seeking, self-promoting, bragging and empowered by social success.^[1]

According to Otto Fenichel, 'Phallic characters are persons whose behavior is reckless, resolute and self-assured - traits, however, that have a reactive character: they reflect a fixation at the phallic level, with overvaluation of the penis and confusion of the penis with the whole body'.^[2] Fenichel stressed that 'an intense vanity and sensitiveness reveals that these narcissistic patients still have their narcissistic needs...for which they overcompensate'.^[3]

Others^{[clarification needed]} would add that 'the phallic character conceives of sexual behaviour as a display of potency, in contrast to the genital character, who conceives of it as participation in a relationship'.^[4]

References

^ Reich, Wilhelm (2013), "The Phallic-Narcissistic Character", The Mark of Cain, pp. 219–226, doi:10.4324/9780203779958-21, ISBN 9780203779958, retrieved 2022-12-03
^ Otto Fenichel, The Psychoanalytic Theory of Neurosis (London 1944) p. 495
^ Fenichel, p. 495
^ Charles Rycroft, A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (Penguin 1977) p. 117

[1] Reich, Wilhelm (2013), "The Phallic-Narcissistic Character", The Mark of Cain, pp. 219–226, doi:10.4324/9780203779958-21, ISBN 9780203779958, retrieved 2022-12-03

[2] Otto Fenichel, The Psychoanalytic Theory of Neurosis (London 1944) p. 495

[3] Fenichel, p. 495

[4] Charles Rycroft, A Critical Dictionary of Psychoanalysis (Penguin 1977) p. 117

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