The Tale of Narcissus: Can Humility and Ego Coexist in the Digital Age?

Throughout history, Narcissus’s myth has been retold and interpreted in various forms, from ancient Greek poetry and drama to modern literature, psychology and art. Each retelling offers new insights into human nature and the complexities of identity. Psychologically, the myth has inspired the modern concept of narcissism – a term coined by Freud to describe excessive self-admiration and a lack of empathy. Throughout his life, Narcissus came face to face with his own reflection just once. Now, from TikTok to mirrors, Snapchat, Instagram, Teams and Zoom calls, we are confronted with our reflection throughout many hours of the day. Narcissus’ inability to see beyond this image of himself symbolizes the perils of egoism and the folly of mistaking appearance for substance. So, what does that mean for us? How is our selfie culture changing the way we see ourselves?

In his book, “Millennium: From Religion to Revolution: How Civilization Has Changed Over a Thousand Years,” historian Ian Mortimer highlights the transformative impact of mirrors and reflections on human self-perception. Mortimer explains:“The very act of a person seeing himself in a mirror… encouraged him to think of himself in a different way. He began to see himself as unique.” He continues with the idea that before mirrors became popular, which was around the 1830s, we perceived ourselves as relatively insignificant, merely components of a larger society. As Mortimer suggests, the advent of mirrors redefined our personal sense of identity, enabling and reflecting a modern understanding of humanity, individuality and vanity. Fast forward from 1830 to 2024, where we are constantly being faced with our own reflections, meaning we are more self-aware than ever before. Checking our reflection, regardless of which method we choose, can be looked at through the lens of mirror checking – a term used in relation to body dysmorphia.

The book tells the story of a handsome young man named Dorian Gray, who becomes the subject of a portrait by the artist Basil Hallward. Dorian is influenced by another character, Henry, who says that beauty and sensual fulfillment are the only things worth pursuing in life. Wishing to remain young and beautiful forever, Dorian expresses a desire for his portrait to age in his place. His wish is mysteriously granted, and while Dorian remains youthful, the portrait begins to show the signs of his aging and the corruption of his soul. The portrait grows increasingly grotesque. The more he indulges his ego and vanity, the more monstrous the image in the portrait becomes. Despite his attempts to reform, Dorian cannot escape the consequences of his actions. In the end, he destroys the portrait in a fit of rage, only to find himself dying and becoming as withered and hideous as the image in the painting.

Similar to the disillusion Dorian had with his own selfie, the impact filters are having on our culture has become so prevalent that it is leading to more people having plastic and cosmetic surgery. What they see when they look in a real mirror appears “grotesque” because it does not match the image they have of themselves in their head, which has become distorted by the filtered selfies that they embrace as reality. In a study conducted by the Mental Health Foundation in the UK, 30% of teenagers said they felt ashamed of their body image and 40% of teenagers said images on social media had caused them to worry about their body image. There is now a phenomenon occurring where cosmetic doctors are reporting that people are requesting certain procedures to look like the versions of themselves in filtered, altered selfies. A Guardian article reports a client going to see a plastic surgeon after a date had gone wrong. Allegedly, the woman’s date had remarked that she did not look anything like her photos, so she came with Facetuned photos and requested to be made to look like them. The reflection we now see in our modern or digital “mirrors” – aka selfies – is so far from the truth that our self-awareness and self-perception have become distorted. This is leading to an increase in body dysmorphia and people feeling uncomfortable in themselves.

Not only this, social media platforms provide the perfect platform for the validation of our ego. The instant feedback loop of likes, comments and shares fuels our dopamine-driven brain, reinforcing whatever image we create of ourselves – whether they be accurate or altered. Studies have shown that excessive use of social media can contribute to narcissistic tendencies, as individuals become more preoccupied with self-presentation and external validation rather than authentic IRL connection. Dorian’s Faustian bargain to retain his youth at the cost of his soul is remarkably relevant in the age of selfies and filters, where our obsession with maintaining a flawless appearance is taking over. His character embodies our ever widening gap between outward appearance and inner reality.

Similar to Dorian’s hidden, corrupted portrait, the curated images people share online often mask the reality of their lives. A study published by the “Cognitive Research: Principles and Implications” journal found that people can only recognize fake, edited, or manipulated photos approximately 60% of the time. While this fact is somewhat surprising or even shocking, what is more concerning is that this study is from 2017. Fast forward to 2024, advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) have blurred the lines between reality and digital editing even further. AI-generated images and deepfake technology are everywhere, making it increasingly difficult to discern what is authentic from what has been digitally altered or is entirely fake. These AI tools can create realistic selfies of people who do not exist, generate videos of events that never happened, and alter photographs with imperceptible precision. But how imperceptible are these changes? Searching for numbers in a more recent study, I came across an online quiz published by the AI non-profit agency TrueMedia in 2024. The point of the quiz is to test us, the users of the internet, how well we can spot deepfake images, videos and audio clips. I took the test and, well… while technology, image editing, and AI have advanced drastically over the past seven years, our ability to spot this content has remained the same. I scored 60% on the quiz.