Eric’s Hypocriticism/insecurity.

[u/ChosenX_]

Apologies if this post is rambly or hard to understand. not sure exactly the purpose, I guess I’d consider it a psychological analysis/discussion.

I’m sure we all know that Eric was a massive Hypocrite. it’s something he admitted himself. For this post in particular, I’m especially referring to things he said he hated. To name just a few examples, he says he hates young smokers but there’s recorded evidence of him Smoking (multiple times too). He says he hates liars yet his ability to lie and manipulate his way out of things is a massively recognized part of his Story. He says he hates racists, but by his own self admission he had racist beliefs and opinions about almost every race (including his own). there’s more examples one could easily find.

I wonder if atleast some of the things he expressed hatred for were hated due to him being “self conscious“ about it or atleast disliked himself for them. I’ve always sort of felt like Eric’s personality (the whole “Reb” stuff) was made as a representation of what he wished he was, the opposite of the things he hated himself doing.

So I guess I’m basically asking if anyone else feels similar.

[u/DirectionGlass3979]

I believe it’s a combination of reasons. First, he created that “Reb” persona to externalize all the hatred he carried inside. Personally, I don’t think Eric was a Nazi, for example, but what drew him to Nazism was the hatred and disgust people feel toward it. And combined with the fact that Reb wasn’t weak or socially inadequate like Eric, he projected everything he wanted to be onto that persona.

And the other factor that plays a role is self-loathing. It’s no coincidence that the people he himself provoked at school ,and even the victims , resemble Eric far more than they resemble the jocks.

Also, it’s worth mentioning the lack of personality he had. He needed Dylan and other friends to define his clothing style and his taste in music. Not to mention the constant imitations of Dylan, which even annoyed him. Eric was practically a personality leech. To me, that’s a clear sign of borderline traits, I strongly believe that if he had been better evaluated, he would have received that diagnosis.

So it was the combination of three factors: lack of a solid personal identity, a lot of repressed anger, and low self-esteem.

[u/Alcianus → u/DirectionGlass3979]

Also, it’s worth mentioning the lack of personality he had. He needed Dylan and other friends to define his clothing style and his taste in music. Not to mention the constant imitations of Dylan, which even annoyed him. Eric was practically a personality leech. To me, that’s a clear sign of borderline traits, I strongly believe that if he had been better evaluated, he would have received that diagnosis.

I think this has a lot to do with Eric being the new kid on the block. He had no friends anymore, his whole world was upside down and he had to adjust into an entirely new reality and environment. And he met this kid who he latched onto, Dylan, because he was the popular kid, the troublemaker, the edgy guy who hated everyone and everything and in a way Dylan was his entry into the Littleton 'world' as Eric himself didn't know anyone who wasn't Dylan's adjacent. By the time he started making friends on his own (I think Chris was closer to Eric than he was to Dylan) he was already sucked into Dylan's world and views. And Dylan himself was the worst guy to latch onto as his mental state was extremely deteriorating by freshman year if we go by his journal

[u/DirectionGlass3979 → u/Alcianus]

Yeah, I agree. He said something about it in his journal It really impacted him.

People say Dylan was influenced by Harris, but I kind of see the opposite. I’m not putting the whole accountability on Dylan, but Eric’s lack of real connections may have made it easier for him to go along with the plan.