Egotists are villains who are egotistical in nature, they have excessive importance of themselves and their own life experiences. These characters tend to talk excessively about themselves and have an insatiable desire to be above others. It mainly includes four sub-types: egomaniacs, solipsists, megalomaniacs and monomaniacs. This category also includes villains who seek attention and/or fame.

Egotists are extremely hard to qualify as Nihilists because the very trait of egotism is importance of one’s self or self-esteem, while nihilism is basically one finding life (including their own) meaningless. However, it may not be impossible for an egotist to qualify as a nihilist as long as they don’t value their own existence other than having an extremely huge sense of self-esteem. In fact, most nihilists in fiction are egocentric and petty individuals who believe that since their lives don't matter, no one else's does (eg. James Hook (2003), Mephiles the Dark, Judge Holden, many versions of Joker, Amon, Rick Sanchez, Rick Prime, Mr. Dark, Kratos, Maerlyn, Diablo, Myotismon, Sephiroth, The End, Nyarlathotep, AM, Mewtwo, Broly, Anti-Monitor, Invictus, Mind-Flayer, Thanos, Mother Miranda and Jobu Tupaki).

They are also the opposite of selfless heroes and their good counterparts are just called egotists.

Types of Egotists[]

Egomaniacs[]

Egomaniacs (also called Narcissists) are individuals who suffer from narcissistic personality disorder (also called egomania). They have a delusional sense of self-worth and are not the same as an arrogant villain, though many people do confuse them. In simple terms, an egomaniac is obsessed with themselves and believes they should be the center of attention, an object of worship/reverence, are incredibly vain about their appearance and so forth. Many megalomaniacs are egomaniacal as they are certain attention-seekers. Syndrome, Walter Simmons, Vector, Tony Soprano, Ernesto de la Cruz, Adam, Blitzo, Steele, Randall Boggs, Jill Roberts, Emperor Belos, Balthazar Bratt, Mysterio, Pagan Min, and Turbo embody this.

Arrogant villains often try and bully people; egomaniacs, on the other hand, are decidedly more deranged. A person who demands statues built of themselves or has their image posted in every available area of their empire, for example, goes beyond arrogance and into egomania.

Many egomaniacs also react extremely poorly to anyone trying to humble them, rejecting their advances because they believe that they are simply not giving them the respect they see themselves as deserving; this can cause them to lash out in a fit of narcissistic rage, making them much more dangerous than a simple arrogant snob or bully. Moreover, they tend to constantly crave narcissistic supply and often abuse others to draw attention to themselves.

Similar with cowards and failure-intolerants, should these villains die, it is often in disgrace and unlike the other two, they are far less likely to redeem themselves and die with honor. However, there can be rare exceptions made if an egomaniac or an egotist in general does actually redeem them self and choose to die with honor.

Two easy (but rough) ways to identify if a villain is an egomaniac: if said villains use the words "I" and "me" repeatedly as a great deal or constantly refer to themselves in third person.

Solipsists[]

Solipsism is a form of extreme egoism, in which a person thinks that they are the most important person in the world and/or the only real one and that everything around them (people, animals, objects altogether) is either a creation of their mind or simply does not exist the same way as they do.

Villains who enter this classification aren't afraid of anything, as they believe that everything is a creation of their own mind and most of the time are completely unsympathetic, ruthless and cruel. This kind of villain isn't necessarily evil, because of their philosophy and can still feel empathetic and compassionate to other living creatures (much like picking the "good path" when playing a video game with two story lines) like Claire Stanfield, but are also most likely to become complete sociopaths with no regard for the life of others whatsoever, like Patrick Hockstetter.

A perfect illustration of this concept is the closing quote of The Mysterious Stranger, as said by Satan: "Life itself is only a vision; a dream. Nothing exists, but an empty space and you. And you are but a thought."

Megalomaniacs[]

Megalomaniacs are evildoers who are obsessed with power and are similar to dark lords and evil rulers in that they seek to dominate everything, but are more concerned with power than actual conquest. Despite having the word "maniac" in the name, it does not mean they are always clinically insane. However, a megalomaniac will often commit outrageous acts such as hold cities for ransom, kidnap presidents, etc. in order to demand outrageous claims of power. Big Jack Horner, Ego, Gil Yepes, Lord Voldemort, Lucifer, Utrom Shredder, and Emperor Palpatine are good examples.

Monomaniacs[]

Monomaniacs are a specific kind of obsessed villain, often found in comic books and fantasy media but also encountered in more "serious" works. These are villains who devote their entire life to an idea or gimmick, often something either petty or bizarre and rarely (if ever) stray far from their obsession, gearing everything around their symbol of choice.

Classic examples are villains who employ weapons, henchmen and even plans all based around a topic that would seem absurd to a sane mind but are nevertheless a pivotal part of their twisted goals.

Examples would be Egghead (who always themes his work on eggs, even his appearance and speech), Mane-iac (themes everything on hair products) and some versions of the Joker (themes everything on clowns).

Many professional wrestlers can be considered monomaniacs as well, as often pro wrestlers have gimmicks of their own, such as the Undertaker's undead/supernatural gimmick and Goldust's gold/movie themes.

Rules[]

DO NOT CONFUSE EGOMANIA WITH MEGALOMANIA[]

Egomania is obsession with self-worth (as explained above); Megalomania is obsession with power. The two are often linked but are different conditions.

EGOMANIA versus ARROGANCE[]

1. Egomaniacs are actively malicious and vindictive, especially to those who do not respect them or who they feel undermine them.
2. Egomaniacs are attention-seekers and cannot stand to be "second place" to anyone; they demand the adoration and adulation of others and become deeply hostile (often even violent) towards those who do not pander to them.
3. Egomaniacs can be polite, charming and respectful, as long as they are the center of attention; however, the moment attention is taken from them, they lose their charm and respect, and become petty and cruel.
4. Egomaniacs tend to hold grudges and are sometimes known as "malignant narcissists" due to the fact they generally seek to harm people they believe have wronged them, yet are "friendly" to those who "respect" them.
5. Egomaniacs are usually suffering from emotional or psychological problems; arrogant villains tend to simply develop contempt for others due to upbringing or selfish personalities.

SOLIPSISM versus NIHILISM[]

Solipsistic villains are often motivated by a self-centered belief in their own reality and a disregard for the existence or importance of others, nihilistic villains are motivated by a sense of meaninglessness, rejecting established values and structures without necessarily focusing solely on their own existence.

MONOMANIA versus OBSESSED[]

Monomaniacs are villains who dedicate their whole life around a "gimmick" or "theme" (for example, a villain obsessed with the hero, like Hugo Strange, would not count as a monomaniac). It is also worth noting not all "monomaniacs" are actually obsessed; some tailor themselves on a specific theme simply out of eccentric and/or attention-seeking behavior (for example, costumed criminals).