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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

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

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

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

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

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