This got me thinking and reading up a little bit on narcissism. Came across a couple interesting articles:
http://www.winning-teams.com/recognizenarcissist.html
(This article has to do with the narcissist in the work place, but has some interesting perspectives)
"he (or she) spends all of his time acting, protecting his ego by presenting to the world a mask, a false image of himself. As a result he becomes a master of deceit."
"Researchers have found that a narcissist reacts much more emotionally than a non-narcissist, sometimes with "narcissistic rage" when his (or her) ego is threatened."
"Because of a propensity to internalize failure, the narcissist's emotional response to failure is to feel shame, as opposed to guilt felt by people without the disorder. So in order to avoid shame, which the narcissist feels must be avoided at all costs, he externalizes blame for negative events.Ref As he feels someone must be guilty, he almost always attributes blame to others."
"Narcissistic rage, character assassination and projection are some of the overt ways in which the narcissist expresses himself. "
"They expect others to do the day-to-day chores as they feel too important to waste their time on common things. "
http://samvak.tripod.com/9.html#more
(the topic of this article is "Can the Narcissist become Violent?")
"Narcissists often use verbal and psychological abuse and violence against those closest to them."
"Narcissists live in a state of constant rage, repressed aggression, envy and hatred. They firmly believe that everyone is like them. As a result, they are paranoid, suspicious, scared and erratic. Frightening the narcissist is a powerful behavior modification tool. "
(keep reading..it gets better!)
'Psychos and their ability to hide behind their evil Masks of Normalcy'...
As in any culture, or in any community spread across this great nation, there are those who refuse or are unable to adapt to a civilized society, skirting the rules and laws that guide the rest of us through life. Fortunately they are the exception rather than the rule. Due to their selfish need to fulfill their evil desires and sexual fantasies, their lack of empathy for others, as well as their self assurance of remaining anonymous and stealth. They have a chameleon -like ability of hiding behind their masks of normalcy (at least in the darkness of their minds). Their actions are unpredictable and they will often times resort to the unimaginable, or unconscionable..
These narcissistic psychopathic predators, who know no boundaries of sanity, prey on unsuspecting innocent victims. Many of these predators hone their skills with each innocent victim devoured, increasing confidence and causing escalation.
Although, most of these predators have an uncanny ability to shield their motives, their expressionless face, hiding behind their fake smiles, combined with their lifeless eyes, cannot conceal this lie from those who know their traits, signs, and motives.
The only effective weapon that we all posses to identify them, is detection: Be cautious, adhere to personal safety rules, and 'Trust your Natural Born Instincts'...