When Narcissus rejects the nymph Echo, who was cursed to only echo the sounds that others made, the gods punish Narcissus by making him fall in love with his own reflection in a pool of water. Book III of the poem tells the mythical story of a handsome young man, Narcissus, who spurns the advances of many potential lovers. The term narcissism comes from the Roman poet Ovid's Metamorphoses, written in the year 8 AD.

Each time the boulder would near the summit, it would roll back down and Sisyphus would then be forced to repeat his task. He was found guilty of hubris and condemned to spend eternity rolling a boulder up a hill. History of thought In Greek mythology, the story is told of Sisyphus, a man who believed that he could outsmart the gods. It is one of the traits featured in the dark triad, along with Machiavellianism and subclinical psychopathy. While there exist normal, healthy levels of narcissism in humans, there are also more extreme levels of narcissism, being seen particularly in people who are self-absorbed, or people who have a pathological mental illness like narcissistic personality disorder (NPD). Narcissism exists on a continuum that ranges from normal to abnormal personality expression. Narcissism is a self-centered personality style characterized as having an excessive preoccupation with oneself and one's own needs, often at the expense of others. Narcissus (1597–99) by Caravaggio the man in love with his own reflection For other uses, see Narcissism (disambiguation).

Define hedonism