Agreed-upon character traits

[karen]

Hi everyone:I am trying to compile a list of mental/emotional traits of Alexander that are generally agreed upon, for a little project of my own -- and I'd like to ask Pothosians for help.What is your list of characteristics and abilities of Alexander that you feel are indisputable?For myself, I would list "energetic," "not always able to control anger," and "militarily brilliant" (along with many others) as there seems no doubt of those; but I would not list "megalomaniac" or "alcoholic" because these are disputed.Please don't include "gay" or "straight" -- they are disputed. I'm not interested in going there.I hope to use everyone's contributions to create a solid list. Thanks in advance for your help!Best,
Karen

[marcus]

I agree about "alcoholic", but why is "megalomaniac" disputed? M

[karen]

Hi Marcus (et al):Megalomania, also referred to as "delusions of grandeur," is a mental illness. It's not called than any more, but "narcissistic personality disorder," its official (North American) definition/description here: http://www.psychologynet.org/npd.html .Would you say that Lane Fox or Hammond see Alexander as this type of person? If not -- and I think not -- then it's undoubtedly disputed.I would dispute it myself, on two bases: first, since any delusional mental disorder causes a person to make calculations based on delusions, rather than reality, they'll start to consistently blunder -- and Alexander didn't. Second, a true narcissist or megalomaniac doesn't really see other people as real, so he lacks empathy, and thus remorse; whereas Alexander is recorded to have shown it, consistently enough that even an ancient historian (Arrian) commented that he was unusual among kings in repenting his mistakes.Best wishes,
Karen

[marcus]

OK, Karen, that's fine - so long as you are looking at it strictly as a medical condition, as opposed to its more usual, non-medically-specific use.CheersMarcus

[karen]

Well, here I disagree with you -- if I see "megalomaniac" I take it to mean the medical condition.Things like egotism, arrogance, etc. are common traits; they don't necessarily make a person dysfunctional or delusional. My feeling is that if you mean egotism or arrogance, then say egotism and arrogance; not megalomania. I do think megalomania always carries the connotation of 'delusional.'Picky picky, I know. My apologies. I'm a writer and the nuances of words are important to me.Cheers,
Karen

[marcus]

Karen,I don't see what there is to 'disagree' about, but I'm feeling in 'that sort' of mood tonight, so I will take issue with you. First of all - I'm a writer, too, so please be careful not patronise. I know plenty of 'writers' who wouldn't know how to find "megalomaniac" in the dictionary, let alone understand the nuances of the word.Second, if you look in the dictionary, there's a good chance that you will see a definition that does not specify any sort of medical condition. I quote from Chambers: "(Loosely) a lust for power; a passion for possessions on a grandiose scale".Now, according to that definition, I would suggest that Alexander was undeniably a megalomanic - hence my questioning it in the first place. As you then clarified that you were talking about a medical condition, I was happy to accept that it was, therefore, disputed.OK? Right, sorry about that, but I needed to get it off my chest.ATBMarcus