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22
NiclasJohansson
Tefirststepistoassert“dienarzissistischeGrundlagederhomosexuellen
Verliebtheit”(“thenarcissisticfoundationofhomosexuallove”).22Tisispre-
ciselywhatRankfindsinOvid)sstory:inthewatermirrorNarcissuslovesaboy
(homosexuallove)whichisinrealityhimself(narcissisticlove).Teconnection
tohomosexualityhefindstobeconfirmedbywhatheassumestobethemythic
version(Konon)sversion),whereAmeiniaskillshimselfbecauseofhisunre-
quitedloveforNarcissus.
Inasecondstep,Rankgoesfromobservingthatthewomanfindsherself
beautifultoamrmingthenarcissisticgroundforadmiringandcreatingdepic-
tionsofoneself.InthiscontexthementionsWilde)sTePictureofDorianGray
(1891)-wheretheprotagonistmorethanonceiscomparedtoNarcissus.Te
painterBasilHallwardheresays:everyportraitthatispaintedwithfeel-
ingisaportraitoftheartist,notofthesitter.”23Fromtheobservationthatthe
womaninthedreamlikestowatchherownimage,Rank,throughtheinterme-
diaryofliteraryandartisticreferences,arrivesattheconclusionthatnarcissism
playsapartinallportraiture.
Inathirdstep,Rankfindsthatespeciallythesightofone)sownnakedbody
isattractivetothenarcissisticallylovingperson.TisisconfirmedbyEllis)squote
fromValera)sGenioyfguraandbyareferencetoayoungmancalledNarzißin
Goethe)sWilhelmMeistersLehrjahre(1795-1796).
Inthelaststep,RankconsiderstheoriginpreviouslystatedbySadgerand
Freudofnarcissismintherepressionoftheloveforthemother.Asamother
lovesherbabyasayoungerversionofherself,narcissisticlove,followingtheiden-
tificationofthemother,hasa“Verjüngungstendenz”(“rejuvenatingtendency”).
TistendencyRankfindsconfirmedinWilde)sTePictureofDorianGray,where
theprotagonist)swishtoalwaysremainyoungandbeautifulisgranted,butthere-
aferturnsintoself-contemptwhentheportrait,asamirrorofhissoul,agesand
deteriorates.Wildeiscreditedwithathorough,butintuitive,knowledgeofthe
phenomenaofnarcissism:
AbernichtnurdiesesAbwehrstadiumdesNarzissismusunddernarzis-
sistischenObjektliebe(derHomosexualität)kenntderintuitiveDichter,
sondernauchdieaufderGrundlagedesäußerlichzwarüberwundenem,
aberdochnichtvölligverdrängtenNarzissismusentstehendeNeurose.24
Butnotonlythisdefensivestageofnarcissismandofthenarcissistic
object-love(homosexuality)isknowntotheintuitiveauthor,butalso
22OttoRank,“EinBeitragzumNarzissismus,”Jahrbuchfürpsychoanalytischeundpsycho-
pathologischeForschungen3(1911):401-426,407.AlltranslationsofquotesfromRank)sarticle
aremine.
23OscarWilde,TePictureofDorianGray(London:PenguinBooks,2000),9.
24Rank,“EinBeitragzumNarzissismus,”412.