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Article breakdown:

1.) Preface

2.) Breakdown of the Three Core Traits

2a.) Machiavellianism

2b.) Narcissism & Psychopathy

3.) A Spectrum, Not An Absolutism

4.) The Difference Between Machiavellianism & The Other 2/3’s of The Triad

5.) How Do You Become Machiavellian?

6.) How Do You Become Narcissistic?

7.) In Closing

1.) Preface:

The dark triad is often incorrectly perceived to be one specific personality type, this is wrong. The dark triad is the culmination of three distinct intersecting personality traits present in one individual. As such, ‘dark triad’ is a blanket term alluding to a comorbidity of psychological traits typically associated with empathy and attachment disorders, not a trait in and of itself.

I expect this to sound somewhat pedantic or obscure to the uninitiated, but nevertheless, to dispel any ignorant confusion surrounding “what the dark triad is,” I feel this distinction important to emphasise.

If you have taken the test on the war and power page, you will have a crude understanding of what the dark triad entails. If you are already confused as early into the article as you are, I urge you to read the initial overview as well as the dark triad Q & A, each describes the dark triad at the simplest level I am able to communicate.

2.) Breakdown of the Three Core Traits:

Machiavellianism is the puppeteer’s hand pulling the strings. Sometimes perceived but often not, it is the cunning which directs and sets the agenda. Narcissism is a heart of self-obsession and vanity which manifests as an aggressive concoction of indomitable boldness and unyielding confidence at its most extreme. Psychopathy is the enigmatic silence, the absence of inhibition, an effortless fearlessness mired in a nihilistic and amoral calm.

2a.) Machiavellianism:

Machiavellianism is perception, strategic insight, cunning and concealment. Machiavellianism like all strategy is amoral, it can be used altruistically or predatorily. The boundaries of Machiavellianism are determined by the moral code of the practitioner, Machiavellianism itself knows no boundaries, prioritising efficiency with a penchant for concealment.

At its crudest, Machiavellianism is calculated thinking applied to social strategy as a means of survival, at it’s most beautiful, it is the beating heart of a studious enquiry into the art of power.

One who cannot master a Machiavellian competency will never gain power, and should power find them, it will be tasted only so briefly as to escape the bestowed. The unwily man who inherits power intuits he is quick prey, outclassed by those covetous of the trappings of a position he knows not how to defend. Vulnerable to predation, paranoid of it, unable to stop it, the unworthy man loses his power to the more competently cunning; be that a rival, or as is more typical, a beautiful woman.

Individuals only possess a position they are strategically competent enough to defend, therefore it stands to reason that regardless of the aestheticism of one’s morality, individuals in positions of great power are highly Machiavellian. Power draws attack from all directions, as such where one was not sufficiently Machiavellian, power would escape them. Power respects the ruthless and despises the clumsy, it clings to the cunning and evades the obtuse.

Machiavellianism is socially maladaptive, this means it can be learned subconsciously as an effect of psychological conflict, consciously via voracious erudition, or both.

The people who read this blog will be at differing levels of competency, some will possess relatively little natural cunning and hope to teach themselves, others will possess a natural cunning they seek to better understand.

The main benefit for the incompetent is obvious, obtain competence. The main benefit for naturals lies in developing a conscious understanding of their ability. By putting words to something that is otherwise just unconscious behaviour, deeper self-understanding can be achieved leading to a greater degree of mastery. As an aside, I have it on good authority that the cunning harbour an habitual liking for the study of power.

You can read the rest of the article from section 2b onwards here:

http://illimitablemen.com/2015/11/18/understanding-the-dark-triad-the-second-overview/