The Romance of Heroism and Heroic Leadership by George R. Goethals

Author:George R. Goethals
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781787566583
Publisher: Emerald Publishing Limited
Published: 2019-01-27T16:00:00+00:00

DONALD TRUMP AS THE PUER AETERNUS

The puer aeternus is a Latin term meaning “eternal boy.” The image appears frequently in mythology and is used in modern times by clinical psychologists to describe older men who never fully mature into psychological adulthood. We raise the possibility that Donald Trump falls into the category of the puer aeternus based on behaviors that most reasonable people would consider to be childish and immature. These behaviors include his repeated insults directed toward women and political opponents; his mocking of a disabled man; his derision of a war hero, John McCain; his tendency to encourage followers at his rallies to physically assault protesters; his disdain for Muslims; his “birther” stance against Barrack Obama even in the face of definitive contrary evidence; his repeated lying at a rate far beyond that of other politicians; his defensiveness at the size of his hands; his limited vocabulary; his sexual promiscuity; his history of bragging about groping women; his impulsivity; and his overall narcissism (Drezner, 2018).

Clinical psychology has identified a number of characteristics of the puer aeternus, and an examination of Trump’s life leads us to check most of the boxes. First, most puers have fathers who are emotionally distant (Johnston, 2017). Trump meets this criterion as his relationship with his father tended to be strictly a business relationship. Hillman (2017), in fact, argues that the puer’s relentless path toward hedonism and self-destruction reflects a longing for the father and fathering. Second, an atmosphere of male bravado and machismo tend to characterize the socialization of the puer aeternus. As Milhado (2009) notes in his analysis of puers:

a sense of masculinity has to be won by struggle; it is not a birthright. This is done by taking a stand, overcoming inertia, deciding and acting more, reading and knowing more, by gaining muscle and gaining competence in the world of men.

There is evidence of such hypermasculinity in the Trump household during Donald’s childhood (Johnston, 2017). Third, a typical puer aeternus is drawn to women who will accept and feed his narcissistic self-image. After the puer falls in love, he soon discovers that the woman is not a goddess “but quite mortal and human,” causing “the fascination with her to vanish” (Milhado, 2009). Trump’s multiple divorces from women with supermodel looks are consistent with this attribute of puers.

Fourth, puers initially come across to women as charming and well-adjusted, but beneath that exterior lurks a sadistic streak. Trump has been called “sadistic” by many of his former associates and ex-wives (Schneider, 2017). Fifth, a typical puer aeternus is impulsive and impatient and has a low tolerance for frustrating events. A puer’s impulsivity translates into avoidance of tasks requiring long preparation and training. Consistent with this description, Trump eschews preparations for summit meeting with world leaders, claiming that his natural instincts will carry the day. He scorns a scientific understanding of global warming, claiming that his “natural instinct for science” tells him that climate science is wrong (Chait, 2018). The ultimate fate of the puer aeternus is not a happy one.

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